Book Review: Dark Magick

Title: Dark Magick (Sweep Series Book 4)

Author: Cate Tiernan

Cover Artist: R. Gordon; Barry Marcus

Reading Level: 12 to 18

Paperback: 192 Pages

Publisher: Puffin

ISBN #: 0142409898

Summary:

Morgan inherited a talent for witchcraft from her parents, and now she is the holder of her mother's Wiccan tools. The tools are awesome in their power, and Morgan's boyfriend Cal wants to see them, perhaps to seize the power for himself. "We are muirn beatha dans, and we will always be together," he reminds Morgan, and she wonders if this is really true. Is Cal the one she is destined to be with? Does she have a choice? Hunter, a member of the Wiccan High Council, says she doesn't have to be with him. But what is Hunter after? Who should Morgan believe?

My Opinion:

Morgan and Cal committed a terrible crime in the previous Sweep Book. She's insane with guilt over Hunter's death, yet Cal seems...fine. Happy, even. her trust in Cal and his mother begins to wane, and this leaves her wondering what they're truly after. Throw in Hunter's appearance at Practical Magick--alive and well, I might add--and we have one witch with a serious problem on her hands.

Is Cal her soulmate, her muirn beatha dans? Or is Hunter telling the truth about his sinister side?

The ending to this book broke my heart more than the previous! That's all I'm going to say about the ending though cause its a definite twist you have to read for yourself.

Cate's writing is great! I love Morgan, the girl who sees herself as a girl with a "strong" nose and flat chest. The girl who's lucky enough to have a boyfriend, nevermind a breathtaking one like Cal. Her character development in this novel made me smile. No longer does she see herself as the content girl who's simply happy to be with a gorgeous, god-like guy. She really stands on her own in this installment, losing some friends and gaining others. The pacing was great. I couldn't stop turning the pages, desperate to know what the heck Hunter was up to again.

My Rating: 5 Stars

Here's an excerpt from the first page(Spoiler Alert):

Snowflakes mixed with sleet whipped at my cheeks. I stumbled through the snow, supporting my boyfriend Cal's weight against me, my feet grew leaden and icy in my clogs. Cal stumbled, and I braced myself. In the moonlight, I peered up at his face, alarmed by how white he looked, how beaten, how ill. I trudged through the dark woods, feeling like every step away from the cliff took an hour.

The cliff. In my mind, I saw Hunter Niall falling backward, his arms windmilling as he went over the edge. Bile rose in my throat, and I swallowed convulsively. Yes, Cal was a mess, but Hunter was probably dead. Dead! And Cal and I had killed him.