It is so much fun to watch a fun, young series grow up as you read it. It happened with Harry Potter, Twilight, and so many more. Now it is happening to the Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins. The first book was a great, fun beginning, but now with the second installment, Demonglass, the series gets much, much darker.
Sophie Mercer found out she was not a witch, but actually a demon. She also watched her classmates raise a demon (her grandmother) who went all dark and scary and killed a couple of students at Hecate Hall (most commonly called Hex Hall). Even her crush turned out to be part of The Eye, a group of assassins hell bent on killing all Prodigum (magical folks). Needless to say, it was not a great year for Sophie. Now her father is back and is trying to stop her from going through the Removal- a process that strips her powers and could kill her in the process. What Sophie doesn't know is his reasons for wanting her to keep her powers are much different than she expected.
To try and get Sophie to embrace her powers, her father takes her back to Thorne Abbey which has been the Council Headquarters since their other headquarters was destroyed by the Eye. There she is introduced to Nick and Daisy- two other demon teenagers (isn't that redundant!). Since Sophie was under the impression that she and her father were the only living demons, it becomes clear someone is creating demons (which didn't go so well for Sophie's grandmother). Now, while Nick and Daisy try to introduce Sophie to the world of underage demons, such as Prodigum nightclubs, she and her father are trying to figure out who is creating demons and what army they want them fighting for.
As this is all going down, Sophie's crush, Archer Cross, (the very same one who works for the Eye and tried to kill her) comes back into the picture and even saves her. Her father forbids Sophie to see Archer, but she knows he has information the Council needs... and she can't stop thinking about the kiss they shared right before he tried to kill her. Can Sophie, Archer, and her father get to the bottom of who is making demons before it's too late? How far does the treachery run? Is anyone really thinking about how all this will really effect both the Prodigum and the innocent humans?
This was a great follow-up to a bang up debut novel. The series has gotten a smidge darker with this installment, and judging by the cliffhanger ending, it will just continue to get darker and more serious. Fortunately, though, Hawkins keeps her sense of humor when appropriate and Sophie Mercer continues to be funny, klutzy, loud, and a great character to love and laugh with. I loved this book and simply cannot wait for the next installment. Sadly we may have at least a year to wait.
The writing is fairly clean and simple. This is a great book for middle school through high school students because although the writing is simplistic and the plot is understandable, it is in no way childish. Everything about this book makes it a must have for parents and teachers alike. So go out and pick up a copy for your shelves and make sure to recommend it to everyone you know!
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