Thrust into high school drama with added magic. The book really captured the teenage essence. The author expertly wrote the mind of a teenager, where everything is a huge deal and your friendship group is your tie to the world. It brought me back to my school days, with relatable exam stresses, friend dramas and boy trouble. It was the quintessential school experience, when one added difference…That the main character was a witch and had the added bonus of magic. Perhaps not a good attribute for a hormone filled teenager deep in the dramas of high school, where a simple spell could see you getting revenge on every school bully.

This book was really compelling for me, and I found myself tearing through the pages wanted to see what would unravel. I was caught up in the high school drama, and was intrigued to see how all would play out.

This was my first read from this author and this book series, as I wasn’t aware there was another one. At times I did feel like I had missed out on reading the first book, but you get a pretty good feel about what happened and what went on in the previous book so I didn’t feel like I missed out on much. I don’t think it’s a huge deal if you go straight to this one having not read the first , as the author does a fab job of filling you in, but if you get the opportunity, I’d read the first one to get more out of it.

As the book continued to pick up speed, it went by in a whirlwind and I couldn’t read it fast enough. This book was all kinds of stressful but in the best ways. You just wanted the best for the main character, and for everything to work out for her. A really enjoyable read and I’m glad I read this one!

Last year I thoroughly enjoyed Hexed, the debut by Julia Tuffs which was billed as ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch meets Sex Education’ and was a very funny account of a fifteen-year-old girl discovering her family are all witches. Although it was a comedy it also had a serious message on the topical subject of everyday sexism in secondary school, here’s an excerpt of my original review: “Amazingly, when we get beyond the humorous aspects of Jessie Jones trying to get a handle on her clumsy magical skills Hexed has a powerful message which is uncannily similar to the current media stories of rape culture and sexism in British secondary schools. In fact, Hexed completely nails this subject to the wall and does it with some style and good humour whilst making revealing observations.” Although there was nothing wrong with Twice Hexed it does not develop its anti-sexism message and concentrates more on the comedy and friendship elements as Jessie gets herself in a series of scrapes when she starts year 11 and prepares for her GCSEs.

After being friendless for much of Hexed Jessie now has a solid group of friends around her and even has a boyfriend and the story revolves around what happens when a new girl (Sloane) joins the school and muscles into the friendship group and cracks appear. Part of the problem of Twice Hexed was the fact that it was so incredibly predictable, from page one it was obvious that Sloane was a witch and was dodgy. I was stunned by how quickly Jessie abandoned her friends and found herself under the thrall of Sloane which gave the novel the opportunity to explore how magic (and dark stuff) worked in slightly more detail. This was a very light and easy read with a fair share of funny moments as Jessie’s life descends into chaos when the influence of Sloan really kicks in. If there is to be a third novel in the series it needs to have slightly more kick otherwise repetition will set in very quickly. AGE RANGE 12+