Review: ARC of Spellbinding by Maya Gold

Goodreads Book Description: There's more than one way to be powerful . . .

It is during a routine school project that Abby Silva--sixteen and nearly friendless--makes a startling discovery: She is descended from women who were accused of witchcraft back in 1600s Salem. And when Abby visits nearby Salem, strange, inexplicable events start to unfold. Objects move when she wills them to. Candles burst into sudden flame. And an ancient spellbook somehow winds up in her possession.

Trying to harness her newfound power, Abby concocts a love potion to win over her longtime crush--and exact revenge upon his cruel, bullying girlfriend. But old magic is not to be trifled with. Soon, Abby is thrust headlong into a world of hexes, secrets, and danger. And then there's Rem Anders, the beautiful, mysterious Salem boy who seems to know more about Abby than he first lets on.

A reckoning is coming, and Abby will have to make sense of her history--and her heart--before she can face the powerful truth.

My Rating 2 out of 5 stars

My Review:  I was given this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Spellbinding by Maya Gold stars Abby, who is a nerdy brainiac who is in love with the school's most popular boy. She is tormented by the trio of mean girls who rule the school. When she is given a school project to look at her geneology, she realizes that she is descended from a "witch" from Salem. Then things start getting really weird and she realizes that she may have other talents than she realized.

At first, I was shocked by the low ratings. The first few pages are well written, clear, and enticing. But then after about the 5th page, I started to realize why. The thing is-- everything is so stereotypical. There is a nerdy girl who gets some powers. There are a bunch of mean girls who probably will get their comeuppance at some point. There is a cute boy who nerdy girl lusts after. There are some love potions. There are some really unimaginative witch references. The twists are completely predictable.

Abby herself is kind of a problem. I found myself not liking her very much, and not learning very much as the book went on. She ends up being proud of herself for reasons I don't really agree with. The boys and romance are lackluster, and there isn't really anything new that this book brings to the witch motif. Everything in it is a revamp of old teenybopper movies. We do get a lot of history lessons about the witches from Salem-- so I guess this may entice a young girl who has never learned anything about Salem at school and has never read or watched anything about witches.

Overall, a very disappointing read. Generic and uninspiring.

I would overlook this one.