Book Review: Demonglass by Rachel Hawkins

Sophie Mercer thought she was a witch.

That was the whole reason she was sent to Hex Hall, a reform school for delinquent Prodigium (aka witches, shapeshifters, and fairies). But that was before she discovered the family secret, and that her hot crush, Archer Cross, is an agent for The Eye, a group bent on wiping Prodigium off the face of the earth.

Turns out, Sophie’s a demon, one of only two in the world—the other being her father. What’s worse, she has powers that threaten the lives of everyone she loves. Which is precisely why Sophie decides she must go to London for the Removal, a dangerous procedure that will destroy her powers.

But once Sophie arrives she makes a shocking discovery. Her new friends? They’re demons too. Meaning someone is raising them in secret with creepy plans to use their powers, and probably not for good. Meanwhile, The Eye is set on hunting Sophie down, and they’re using Archer to do it. But it’s not like she has feelings for him anymore. Does she? (From Goodreads)

Demonglass was another great book by Hawkins. The plot was fresh, and new characters added some mystery to the story. James, Sophie's father, plays a rather large role in this book. New demons make an appearance, and The Eye causes some trouble as well. There's some hinting at a romantic triangle. I'm not a big fan of triangles, but the upside was that I got to see more of Cal. He's the second lead, and I have a feeling that Sophie won't end up with him. It may be because he's chivalrous, or that clearly cares about Sophie, but for some reason I'm rooting for him. The reader gets to learn more about demons, and what exactly their power entails. Sophie learns more about herself as she spends time with her father. I thought it was a nice way to tie in her abilities, and let the reader learn more about James.

Hawkins has definitely mastered the twist, and puts it to good use in Demonglass. There were quite a few, and they kept me reading late into the night. I can honestly say that while I may have suspected that a few characters were behind certain things, I was completely wrong (and I loved that). Of course, there's also a huge cliffhanger. Without spoiling the ending, after I read the last chapter my mind went in all sorts of directions.

The only thing that I would have liked more of was character development. We do see Sophie grow, and learn more about herself and her powers. Still, it felt like something was missing. I would have also liked to see more from some peripheral characters...but maybe that's just my inner Cal-fan. Also, argh, cliffhanger. It's both good and bad. I'm so impatient that I don't want to wait another year! Overall, a great sequel. I'm definitely looking forward to more.

Demonglass (Hex Hall 2)
By Rachel Hawkins
Published by Hyperion
Received from Around the World ARC Tours
368 Pages
Rating: B