Thank you to The Parliament House and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Awakened by Ciara Duggan is an amazing YA fantasy romance with a splash of black magic. I would describe it as The Vampires Diaries meets Netflix's Fear Street reboot. The story revolves around Hannah, a 17 year-old who is a freshman at the mysterious Bellcliff University. Her parents died recently, and she's struggling with the aftermath when she accidentally sets Callan, a male witch from the 17th century, from a cave near campus. Suddenly, she's meeting vampires, werewolves, and sirens, and some of them want to do her harm. Will she discover the powers lying dormant deep within herself? Will she stop the monster that is evil incarnate from hurting her and those she loves? And what hidden past does she have with Callan?

Here is a chilling excerpt from Chapter 1, which introduces us to Hannah:

"H-a-n-n-a-h...
As Hannah Fenwick walked by the historic Bellcliff University Library, she heard a voice whisper her name. It was beautiful and soft, like the warm, amber sunset over campus, yet unsettling. Even a little eerie. Her skin chilled. She stopped, searching for its origin, but there were only excited students ready to start a new semester...
H-a-n-n-a-h...
Goosebumps crept on the back of her neck...."

Overall, Awakened is a stunning debut in the YA fantasy genre. It was unputdownable. I had to keep reading to find out more about Hannah's past with Callan, and how they deal with the growing threats and monsters coming after them. I ended up finishing this book in a day. One highlight of this book is the setting and atmosphere. First of all, I love books that are set in creepy locations, and a university by the cliffs definitely fits the bill. I also love that Hannah is attending university and not high school. It's a worn trope that every YA book has to be set in high school, with all of those stereotypes, and I am so happy that the author made her character more mature and a freshman in college instead. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA fantasy books in general, I highly recommend checking out this book when it comes out in September!

I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

A fast paced, paranormal debut YA Fantasy novel that is an easy breezy read. I enjoyed the basic elements of the magic system in the book and the war between good/bad magic and light/dark magic. I wish the author would have explored the dark creatures such as the vampires and sirens in depth as they always intrigue me. Kudos to Duggan for coming up with the spells in the book and making them rhyme in such a creative manner. There was also the concept of past and present romance that provides you with an insight into the relationship between Callan and Hannah which has developed over centuries, where Hannah is now a reincarnation of Raven, Callan's first love. The story is set over a week time frame and the one thing I wished to see more of was the battle that Hannah has with the evil Mara. It just felt like Hannah was able to defeat her easily without too many set backs or obstacles. Overall this is the perfect book for those who are fans of Maggi Stiefvater's or Becca Fitzpatrick and gave me the feeling of picking up a magical high school fantasy novel.

I liked the story and the characters. The idea of finding each other in different lifetimes is so sweet. But this whole story took place in like 2 days and it all tended to work out so conveniently. Not the best writing in my opinion but it is a debut.

I wanted to enjoy this, but at the end of the book I was left with a sense of... wanting more. I felt that the writing was disjointed and not what I was expecting, and I also felt that the characters were nothing but whiny and depthless. This just wasn't for me.

Title: Awakened

Things To Know:

-Magic
-Witches
-Romance
-Quick Read

Synopsis:

After losing her parents in an accident only she survived, Hannah is desperate for answers. Haunted by the events of that tragic night, she struggles to move on, yearning for some deeper truth about her loss. But when it comes time to turn a new page and move cross country for college, she vows to leave the past behind. Afterall, Bellcliff University is a thousand miles away from the ghosts nipping at her heels. Yet when Hannah accidentally awakens a handsome witch from a hidden cave near campus, she realizes he isn't the only thing stirring out of slumber. Hannah has roused all magic...including the devil herself. As if spells, curses, and college jitters weren't enough, this witch claims to know her from four centuries prior-and their connection is more than casual. Thrust into a world of sorcery and monsters, Hannah must fight to keep the magic she'd unleashed from claiming a price far too steep for her to pay.
Review:

I would rate Awakened 3.5/5 stars.

I really like the premise of Awakened. Hannah has been through a traumatic event and is trying to heal from said accident by attempting to be a normal college kid but little does she know that it is impossible for her to be ‘normal.’

I felt like the story wasn’t extremely original. It has been done in some way or another, but that being said I never tire of witchy stories! I love the battle of good vs. evil, light vs. dark. I did love the element of past, present, and future romance. I think it added to the story.

The antagonist was *chefs kiss* I am a sucker for a good bad guy. I usually root for the good guy, but if the bad guy is this awesome they’re usually my favorite character. (Think like the Joker in The Dark Knight, how do you not love him?!)

I would recommend this book to others who really enjoy magic and witches! It was a page turner and I finished it within a day!

Thank you NetGalley for early access to this book!

First, I would like to thank Netgalley for the ARC of this book!

Awakened follows 17-year-old Hannah who traveled across the country to go to college, to get away from the incident that killed her parents. Hannah struggles with the fact that she survived the accident, and her parents didn’t.

Hannah ultimately awakens a witch and a curse that was placed 300 years ago. Hannah and the witch are now on a journey to stop the curse from coming true. I feel like the plot line was developed so fast and I feel like a lot of information was packed in, in such a short time span.

Ultimately – I think this book was okay, I wasn’t blown away by it. I feel like it was missing the magical element. I wish the story would have illustrated the magic system a little more.

Rating. 2.5/5

I gave this book a 3.5 out of 5 but rounded up because I did enjoy it! Thanks you NetGalley for providing this copy in exchange for my honest review!

This book is about a 17 year old named Hannah. She lost her parents 2 years ago, and ever since she has struggled with sever grief and panic attacks caused by flashbacks of the accident that killed them. She doesn’t understand why she survived when they didn’t. She moves across the country to attend college and get a fresh start.

While there she starts to have weird experiences and hear stranger voices. Eventually she stumbles upon an ancient grimoire while doing research in the school library. The grimoire lures her to cast a spell to open a cave and free a young man named Callan along with evil magic that has been trapped for over 300 years! Callan, who is a witch, tells her she is a reincarnation of a witch he loved name Raven…and that means Hannah herself is a witch. Her and Callan must work together to stop the evil witch Mara from spreading her dark magic and destroying the world!

I enjoyed Hanna as the main character, I found her very relatable. I also liked Callan and enjoyed their budding relationship on.c e he was able to realize Hannah was not the same girl he knew as Raven! Overall I enjoyed this book! It was an easy, fast paced ya fantasy and would be perfect if your looking for a quick, interesting read!

Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you are looking for a fast read, this book is short enough and compelling enough to finish in one night. The preface that if you are fans of Hush Hush and Crave is an apt description.

I did not feel like there was anything remarkable about this book. I feel like the most common trope with witches/vampire novels is how the protagonist is compelled to the witch quickly. They feel a pull or are drawn to the character early on and the romance begins quickly. Based on descriptions of vampire qualities, one of their abilities is to compel others, but I find it frustrating that it is a common theme amongst all these books and I was hoping for something a little different.

The main character Hannah, accidentally awakens a 300 year old witch who cast a spell to trap all magic in an attempt to prevent a devil witch from using dark magic to take over the world. When he awakens, he believes that Hannah is Raven, the with he loved in a previous time. This reminds me a little of The Glass Queen (Gena Showalter) in that it involves reincarnation. The witch Raven, cast a spell that would allow her to reincarnate until her eighteenth birthday. While Hannah is her own person, she casts a spell so that she is able to remember her past life and gain insight into what happened that led to current events. It turns out that Hannah is a prodigy witch with light magic that rivals the dark magic of the devil, Mara. It is up to her and the 300 year old witch (who she is drawn to and falls in love with quickly) to stop Mara from turning every creature and witch dark.

My issue with the book is that it happens within a week timespan, and while Raven and Callan were in love 300 years ago, it feels to quick for Hannah to also love Callan that quickly after really only knowing him as herself for one week. She even admits to him that she thinks they should hold off on the kissing until Callan knows his feelings for her are real. The relationship feels like every other vampire/witch relationship where there is really no depth, growth of the relationship, or true love.

My other issue, which I think is why the book is so short and such a quick read, is that the plot is linear and the events that happen, happen so quickly. Oddly, it actually feels like stopping Mara was not really that hard. There weren't enough setbacks, or temporary wins that backfired. There weren't a whole lot of characters besides Callan and Hannah who were up against Mara and Nathanial. I wish more had happened and that it didn't seem so predictable.

I did enjoy the ending. I liked how the past came full circle to the present. I just wasn't expecting the "how".

It's a fun, simple read. However, if you are looking for more depth or something different, I might look elsewhere.

Thank you NetGalley and Independent Publishers Group for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.5/5
Expected Publication: September 7, 2021

First of all, the only thing I could think of while I was reading this was Vampire Diaries.

Ever since her parents death, Hannah has been noticing strange things occurring. She’s been trying to uncover answers as to why she was the only survivor in the accident. However, Hannah decides to let go of the past when she moves away to college. Even though she tries to let everything go, she can’t help but notice more unusual things on her campus. After following the strange whispers, she ends up letting a handsome witch, Callan, out along with magic that awakens deadly magic and creatures. Hannah joins Callan on the quest to put the magic back and defeat a very powerful witch. But along the way, problems arise when Hannah starts to discover who she really is and the questions she’s been asking herself are finally answered.
When I first started reading this book, it felt like any other YA Fantasy book. Nothing really surprised me, and I found myself rolling my eyes at some parts.

It was a really good story and I ended up liking the main character, Hannah, a lot! I found her to be relatable and I didn’t get frustrated with her. That’s what made me enjoy this book! I was on Hannah’s side 100% of the time, and it was refreshing to actually like a main character where she wasn’t frustrating!

The writing was something I really enjoyed even though I did roll my eyes a lot of the time. I haven’t been able to read a fantasy book in a couple months, but this one put me back into the fantasy world! It caught my attention, and every time I put my Kindle down, I was wanting to pick it back up and continue on with the story. Overall, I’m really impressed with it and didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. I recommend this book if you’re looking for an easy and fast paced YA Fantasy read!

This book exceeded my expectations and was a very fun read. The main characters were interesting and have depth but the story also was unique and something I have never read before.

Thank you Netgalley and The Parliament House for allowing me to read and review this book!

AWAKENED is about seventeen year old Hannah who travelled across country to go to college, away from from the accident that killed her parents and where she unexplainably survived. Feeling a "pull/force" towards a cave on the beach, Hannah reawakens a handsome witch and a terrible curse that was placed 300 years ago. She and her witch friend Callan now need to stop the terrible curse from coming true and need to defeat an old foe, coming after Hannah and her newfound magic.

Hannah was a good protagonist and had a realistic voice in an unbelievable time in her life. She lost her parents a year ago and has, what she thinks, PTSD moments. But those moments are actually memories and visions of a different girl in a different time period, who knew Callan and Mara (the dark witch) and put a curse on herself to help Callan survive while under Mara's Siren song. Hannah realizes the reason she lived during the accident is due to her Convergence of magic. The magic inside her protected her from dying and after the accident she stayed with an uncle.

I seriously wish there was more to the magic system and Hannah using her powers and learning from Callan on how to use them. Hannah is a reincarnation of Raven, the girl from her visions/memories and Raven's magic has been sitting dormant until Hannah realized it's her magic. Callan was put in stone due to the curse from Raven's time period, she had sacrificed herself so Callan could be saved from Mara's clutches and every eighteenth birthday, she is to die and be reborn in another eighteen years. It's a weird sacrifice to make but Hannah's eighteenth birthday arrives in one week and both Hannah and Callan have to break the curse and defeat Mara before Hannah dies and Mara takes over more witches' minds.

I liked most of the characters but they were not developed very well. Callan was a bit of a cardboard cut out of most love interests in YA Fantasy books, Hannah had a "chosen one"/light powers stereotype, and Mara is hell-bent on power. The magic system could have been amazing but it was never explored more than the basics. I wish Callan had taught Hannah more about how to use her magic instead of just getting them and then her memories just telling her how to use them, like a reflex. Mara wasn't a bad villain but she was also a cardboard cut out of a "hell-bent on power" character. I actually think it would have been cool to have more Mara moments since the story was told in the third person. Hannah's friends that she makes in college were only there as placements and nothing really comes from any of them in the end. I think it would have been interesting if Hannah had lost Callan in the end and left an open ending and maybe moved on with Landon and told him later of her powers. Callan wasn't a bad character but the development of each person was lacking and needed more depth.

This was a pretty basic YA story with not a lot of challenge or struggle for Hannah. I did read this book in a short period of time and overall it wasn't bad but I feel it could have been so much better with: more magic, character growth, and development in the story.

3 stars