Review: Born Wicked

Title: Born Wicked
Author: Jessica Spotswood
Date Released: February 7th, 2012
Pages: 330
Rating: 4 out of 5

Description:
Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother’s diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family’s destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren’t safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other.


Review:
Born Wicked was such a cool book set in a an alternate late 1800s, where the Brotherhood rules the world and women are either to marry or go into the Sisterhood.  Cate Cahill is in that dilemma - should she marry Paul (or even Finn?) or join the Sisterhood?  But, the problem is that she and her sisters are a witches and have been keeping this a secret every since their mother died.  Cate has all of these problems resting on her shoulders and on top of all this, she finds out that she and her sisters might be at the center of a prophecy.

I really liked almost everything about Born Wicked.  It was cute, yet serious; funny, romantic, and everything that a novel needs to be perfect.  Sometimes, Cate fell a little flat or the plot moved a tad bit slow for my taste, but other than that, it was awesome.

Cate was awesome.  Sometimes, she could get a little too caught up with all of the things that were going on in her life, but all of these things made her a strong character.  I loved, loved, loved both Finn and Paul... I think I might like Paul a bit more just because he seemed more like the more outgoing person and really, really liked Cate.  Finn obviously really liked Cate, too, but he was a little more "nerdy"... Not that there's anything wrong with nerds.  I like nerds, but I just didn't feel the same about him as with Paul.

The setting was definitely really cool.  It was set in a small New England town in the late 1800s, where carriages and fluffy dresses were still around and class was everything.  I loved the descriptions of Cate's house with the garden where she and her sisters total opposite sisters, Maura and Tess, would practice their magic in secret.

The plot was what really drew me in.  There were some less intense parts, but Cate was constantly learning more about what her future could possibly hold and was always thinking about what she has to do that would be right for her family.  Born Wicked reached a climax that was really surprising, and the ending left on such a cliffhanger... Argh.  Cliffhangers, you kill me every time.

Born Wicked was a great read.  I loved the characters, the plot, and the setting.  Sometimes the pacing was a little slow, but things would quickly pick up.  Definitely give this book a try if you're looking for a book on witches living in a super conservative society!  I'll definitely be looking forward to the release of the second one next year, Star Cursed.

Cover Review:
I honestly fell in love with this cover the minute I saw this.  I love the contrasting colors between the foliage and the girl herself.  The rose on her head absolutely pops out too with its bright red color.  Overall, the cover has this vintage-y feel with the font, the colors, and the outfit that she's wearing.  I love it!

Also, I absolutely LOVED the trailer, and is one of the very few that I have actually fully watched... So, I've decided to share it with you if you haven't seen it yet :D



Cleo :)

*Review copy bought.
**Description and cover from goodreads.com