AUDIOBOOK REVIEW | Spellcaster by Claudia Gray

Title: Spellcaster
Series: Spellcaster Trilogy
Author: Claudia Gray
Publication Date: March 5, 2013
Length: 11 hours and 11 minutes
Source: I listened to the audiobook via my online local library.

When Nadia's family moves to Captive's Sound, she instantly realizes there's more to the place than meets the eye. Descended from witches, Nadia can sense that a spell has been cast over the tiny Rhode Island town—a sickness infecting everyone and everything in it. The magic at work is darker and more powerful than anything she's come across and has sunk its claws most deeply into Mateo . . . her rescuer, her friend, and the guy she yearns to get closer to even as he pushes her away.

Mateo has lived in Captive's Sound his entire life, shadowed by small-town gossip and his family's tormented past. Every generation, the local legends say, one member of the family goes mad, claiming to know the future before descending into insanity. When the strange dreams Mateo has been having of rescuing a beautiful girl from a car accident actually come true, he knows he's doomed.

Despite the forces pulling them apart, Nadia and Mateo must work together to break the chains of his terrible family curse, and to prevent a coming disaster that even now threatens the entire town, including Nadia's family, her newfound friends, and her own life. Shimmering with magic and mystery, New York Times bestselling author Claudia Gray's new novel depicts a dark and unforgettable world of witches, curses, buried secrets, and star-crossed romance.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Goodreads 

 I was off to a rocky start with this book. Though the book starts off with a car crash and took off from there, the "it" factor was missing for me. The characters seemed a bit cliche, and I couldn't empathize with any of them. However, this all changed a bit before the halfway point and then I had tons of fun listening to Spellcaster. 

This book until around 30 percent. There wasn't anything pushing me to continue to listen to the book. It wasn't until there were three days left until the book expired that I really started to listen. In fact, I listened to roughly seven hours of the audiobook in one day. That's saying a lot for me, considering that I normally listen to an hour tops a day. But the story was so compelling after a while. I was starting to care for the main characters, and the plot moved so quickly that there was never a moment when I wanted to put it down.

One thing I loved was how much development the characters underwent. At first, I couldn't connect to any of them. However, all of the main characters (Nadia, Mateo, Elizabeth, and even Verlene) were all expanded on. I started to really root for Nadia and Mateo, and I loved that while there was an instant attraction between them, they didn't act on it for quite a while. Plus, there is also a great friendship in Spellcaster as well! Nadia, Mateo, and Verlene are like their own squad. They always stuck by each other and I liked their dynamics as well. I'm looking forward to reading more of them in the sequel.

My only complaint about this book is how slow of a start there was. Like I mentioned before, I couldn't connect with any of the characters and they all seemed very cliche. In fact, the first 30% did seem a bit cliche the whole entire time. There was a special girl who is kind of lost and only has one parent. She meets a mysterious boy who is smoking hot. And there are some petty girls at the high school too. Talk about YA cliches! Thankfully, Gray spins these cliches on their heads.

Another thing that was really great was that parental figures in this group were present. Most YA books have parents or parental figures that are absent or never mentioned. This is the complete opposite. Family matters and is important to both Nadia and Mateo, and I loved how they were mentioned, developed, and influenced the plot of the book.

Needless to say, Spellcaster was a great first book in this trilogy. The book had a rocky start, but really began to pick up around the 30% mark. The characters, both main and secondary, were fleshed out quite well. Plus, there was a great relationship among friends and parents. My problems were pretty minor, and I will be continuing on with the series!

With that, I give this book
4 out of 5 Stars!