Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer

With power comes enemies. Lots of them.

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…

First Thoughts: Huzzah! Another Brigid Kemmerer book, to quench my Elemental thirst. Hi cover model Hunter, you’re cute, perhaps even as cute as the background Merricks. Ah, how shallow is my assessment of this cover? Yes, let’s quickly move on…

The blurb tells me this is clearly all about Hunter and the Merricks will be in the background, sort of like the cover poses.

Plot: The plot confirms what the blurb’s told us, Hunter is struggling and the people in his life aren’t making the situation any easier. He still has to decide whether he’s going to be an Elemental hunting Guardian, or let people like the Merricks simply get on with their lives. He struggles to figure out which side’s the ‘good’ side.

I felt really sorry for Hunter, but also upset with him for over complicating an already complicated situation. The plot is good, but coming on the heels of Spark – for me – it doesn’t feel as well executed; Spirit wasn’t as suspenseful. Rating: 3 out of 5

Pacing: Great pace normally, except for the bit at the end which I I felt was rushed when it could have been suspenseful. So here I go making a comparison between Spark and Spirit again – in Spark all the scenes seemed to fit together effortlessly, and in Spirit there were at least two scenes that felt sort of patched together. Still there’s a ton of action that makes this book as much a page turner as the other books in the series. Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Characters: I liked the first book, but it was in book two, Spark, that I fell in love with all the Merrick boys and liked Hunter for spending time with Gabriel. In Spirit, Brigid Kemmerer’s managed to pull off a very difficult task. She’s made a complex character who isn’t always a nice guy. His insecurities make Hunter passive aggressive and he’s so prickly that he’s sometimes a downright douche. Yet, there’s the part of him that tries, and is confused and wants the companionship that he outwardly brushes off. Plus, he’s having to take the fall for all sorts of things that he’s not done, which makes it hard not to feel for the guy.

Kate’s a wonderful love interest, and between her, Hunter and the cold assassin hunting the Merricks, the reader comes to understand just how ‘damaging’ Guardian training can be. Great character development. Rating 4 out of 5

World Building: The setting is pretty normal, a generic neighbourhood except there’s an undercurrent of violence, intimidation and control of the elements. I love the powers the Merrick boys have and the abilities of Hunter and the other Guardians. I have a few niggles about the setting and back-story. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Final Thoughts: Enjoyed it and I still can’t get enough of the Elemental series :).  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 (from 14 out of 20). 

For my review of Spark (final rating of 4.25), click here.