BLOG TOUR | Spellbound by F. T. Lukens
AUTHOR: FT Lukens
PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster
RELEASE DATE: April 4, 2023
GENRES: YA Fantasy, magic, LGBTQ+
BUY LINKS: Bookshop.org
SYNOPSIS:
Two rival apprentice sorcerers must team up to save their teachers and protect their own magic in this lively young adult romantic adventure from the New York Times bestselling author of In Deeper Waters and So This Is Ever After.
Edison Rooker isn’t sure what to expect when he enters the office of Antonia Hex, the powerful sorceress who runs a call center for magical emergencies. He doesn’t have much experience with hexes or curses. Heck, he doesn’t even have magic. But he does have a plan—to regain the access to the magical world he lost when his grandmother passed.
Antonia is…intimidating, but she gives him a job and a new name—Rook—both of which he’s happy to accept. Now all Rook has to do is keep his Spell Binder, an illegal magical detection device, hidden from the Magical Consortium. And contend with Sun, the grumpy and annoyingly cute apprentice to Antonia’s rival colleague, Fable. But dealing with competition isn’t so bad; as Sun seems to pop up more and more, and Rook minds less and less.
But when the Consortium gets wind of Rook’s Spell Binder, they come for Antonia. All alone, Rook runs to the only other magical person he knows: Sun. Except Fable has also been attacked, and now Rook and Sun have no choice but to work together to get their mentors back…or face losing their magic forever.
Thoughts
Welcome to my stop for the Spell Bound Blog Tour! Thank you to Turn the Page Tours and McElderry Books (Simon & Schuster) for providing me with a copy for review.
Edison Rooker — Rook — seems to be your normal average teenager looking for a job until the real reason why he singled out Antonia's shop is revealed. He doesn't have any magic, and the closest he's ever been to the magical community was when his grandmother was alive. After his grandmother's passing, he created the Spell Binder, a device for detecting magic, to be able to regain access to the magical world. The problem: technically, the device is illegal; and the fact he has it, a non-magical person, makes it worse.
On the other hand, Sun is magical through and through. We meet them as Fable's (Antonia's rival) apprentice on their way to deliver a box of cursed items to Antonia's shop to be "fixed". If Rook needs the help of the Spell Binder to see the ley lines, Sun's special ability allows him to see magic (in addition to being able to use / wield it).
In Spell Bound, the chapters switches between Rook's and Sun's point of view. Sometimes it's of the same scene (like Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen), but most of the time the scene continues on.
One of the things I enjoyed while reading Spell Bound was how magic was incorporated in the story. Since one of the main characters isn't magical, we got explanations on the differences between a jinx, a hex and a curse. We are also somewhat enlightened on what ley lines are and how they work. (I'm sure some of you are already familiar with what they are, I however am grateful for the quick lesson on the terms.) We were also shown on just how destructive magic can be in the hands of the wrong people.
Although the main thing I enjoyed about this book is the wholesome slow burn between Rook and Sun. I liked the banter, the mutual respect on each other's boundaries, and the chemistry between these two characters to a point I couldn't wait to see if they will ever get together.
Sun. Sun. Sun, who made me giddy, quite frankly. Who stopped me in my tracks with their quick wit and wry smile and who was genuinely funny once you were able to get past their wall of defensive sourness. Sun, who had a cute nose and pretty eyes and sometimes wore earrings and other times a ball cap and other times huge hoodies and other times loose shirts, but always wore jeans. Sun who was prickly and vulnerable at the same time, who wanted to follow the rules because they were comforting, who took a chance and became my friend.
And despite Antonia's intense gaze, the lump in my throat, and the fear pooling in my veins, the thought of Sun still made butterflies dance in my stomach, sparklers set off in my chest, and candy dance on my tongue
If there was one thing I needed more of, it would be more information on why the Magical Consortium decided to keep non-magical folks from accessing magic. What could've happened? Was there some sort of argument in the olden days? Did a non-magical person break a magical law or treaty? Or could it simply be a case of they just don't want to, period?
Overall, I liked this book and would definitely read it again. This is my first F.T. Lukens book and I'm looking forward to reading more of their work. I also would love to see of a possibility of a Spell Bound sequel because I need to see the Consortium (and their rules) taken down. Ha!
Giveaway Information
There are two (2) finished copies of this book available for giveaway! Click here to enter the giveaway!
Author Bio
"F.T. Lukens is a New York Times bestselling author of YA speculative fiction including the novels So This Is Ever After, In Deeper Waters, and the forthcoming Spell Bound as well as other science-fiction and fantasy works. Their contemporary fantasy novel The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic was a 2017 Cybils Award finalist in YA Speculative Fiction, the Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Gold Winner for YA fiction and won the Bisexual Book Award for Speculative Fiction. F.T. resides in North Carolina with their spouse, three kids, three dogs, and three cats." (Bio copied from FT-Lukens.com)
Author’s website: ft-lukens.com
Author’s instagram: instagram.com/ftlukens
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