Early Review: Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer
Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer
Elemental #3
Hunter Garrity just wants to be left alone. He’s learned the hard way that his unusual abilities come at a price. And he can’t seem to afford any allies.
He’s up to his neck in hostiles. His grandfather, spoiling for a fight. The Merrick brothers, who think he ratted them out. Calla, the scheming psycho who wants to use him as bait.
Then there’s Kate Sullivan, the new girl at school. She’s not hostile. She’s bold. Funny. Hot. But she’s got an agenda, too.
With supposedly secret powers rippling to the surface everywhere around him, Hunter knows something ugly is about to go down. But finding out what means he’ll have to find someone he can trust…
Hunter Garrity wishes he could find a way to escape the reality that is his life. He's been taught that all elementals are evil and a threat to humanity, so it's his duty as a fifth to hunt them down. But he's seen elementals do amazing things to protect others, even at great risks to themselves, making him question everything he's been told. But with tensions on both sides brewing to a boiling point, he doesn't have long before a choice of sides will be forced upon him, as everyone is playing for keeps. In a world where everyone seems to be his enemy, Hunter will have to learn to open up and trust someone before he finds himself in the crossfire.
I have to admit that when I heard that the third Elementals book would be told from Hunter's perspective, to say that I was disappointed would be an understatement. I just didn't like him in the previous books. There's many reasons for that, but even if you put all of that aside, I still wouldn't have been thrilled as I would have preferred the book to be from Nick or Michael's perspective. Heck, even a repeat of Chris or Gabriel would have been okay in my book. However, now that I have read SPIRIT, I have to say that not only has Hunter grown on me, but I think his perspective really added to the story. Before this point we had only really seen things from a defensive side, so seeing through the eyes of someone raised to be the enemy was interesting to say the least, especially since Hunter is rather confused about what side he is really on. His inner turmoil just sucked me right in, even as I wanted to smack him for his quick temper and terrible decisions. He's just one of those characters that make it so hard to care about, and yet somehow you find yourself loving him anyway in the end. It really amazed me just how much he grew on me throughout this book.
I have to applaud Brigid Kemmerer for her ability to both impress and appall me at the same time due to her unconventional choices. She took some incredible risks in SPIRIT, and while I feel like my heart has been put in a blender under the puree setting, I think it will pay out in the end as no one can say that this is a cookie cutter book. That being said, there was one point where I literally dropped my book in shock over what happened, as I simply could not believe that she took that bold of a move. In fact, days later as I'm writing this review, I'm still in shock, especially since that wrecking ball of a game changer wasn't the only bold move in this book. I just cannot wrap my head around what it all means for the future books.
On a slightly side note, Nick's novella, BREATHLESS was included in my ARC copy of SPIRIT. It was short, but there was an incredible amount of emotion packed into such a little space. Without spoiling things, I will say that Brigid has continued her unconventional choices in this novella, which will definitely bleed over into the rest of the series. Those choices prove hands down, that if you are looking for something fresh and original in the Paranormal YA genre, than the Elementals series is an absolute must read. I personally will be counting down the days until the next installment is released.
(Received a copy from the publisher)
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