What started off as “Harry Potter goes bad girl” jumps ahead from Magical Reform School drama to Major Magical Uprising in this second book from Rachel Hawkins. In Hex Hall, main character Sophie Mercer learned she wasn’t really a witch, but a demon, when she had to battle her own summoned grandmother. In Demonglass, Sophie leaves Hex Hall to spend summer vacation with her father, head of the Prodigium Council. She’s supposed to learn more about her powers and strengthen her shaky relationship with her dad. Instead, she learns someone is creating demons (by sacrificing Hex Hall students) to start a war against other magical sects.
While it starts out slow and ends in a cliffhanger, and Sophie is dragged into the mystery rather than finding her own way in, Demonglass is a great paranormal read. Sophie is engaging, not obnoxious, a lead character whose specialness is a source of conflict and caution, not angst. Very engaging…and did I mention it ends on a cliff hanger?