Title/Author: The Magnolia League (The Magnolia League #1) by Katie Crouch
Publisher/Date published: Little, Brown on May 3rd 2011
How I got this book: received it from the publisher through NetGalley
Goodreads summary: "After the death of her free-spirited mother, sixteen-year-old Alex Lee must leave her home in northern California to live with her wealthy grandmother in Savannah, Georgia. By birth, Alex is a rightful, if unwilling, member of the Magnolia League, Savannah's long-standing debutante society. She quickly discovers that the Magnolias have made a pact with a legendary hoodoo family, the Buzzards. The Magnolias enjoy youth, beauty and power. But at what price?"
While reading the first part of this book I was preparing a gushing review in my head. And then came some stuff I had issues with. But in the end it sort of worked out, let me explain.
I really liked Alex. I liked that she wasn't overwhelmed by all the money and all it can buy. She grew up on a communal organic farm and has now been transported to Savannah and is the 'heiress' of a debutante society. I think everyone would have her reaction of 'wait, WHAT???', I know I would. She's being shoved into a role she isn't comfortable with and gets two friends sort of assigned to her, of course she's going to question it and protest.
The League has some magic they can tap into: hoodoo. And this can do lots of this for you, both good and bad. I got how this could draw Alex in and make things seem less clear for her. I thought the hoodoo magic was really intriguing, I'd never read anything about it before. I won't give away how they keep the girls skinny through this, but let me say that the explanation seemed incredibly likely to me.
So the first part of the novel was all good for me, and then came the part where Alex develops a relationship with a guy I will not name. Not only did it feel weird, but she does something that's straught out of the book 'How To Ruin Your Relationship'. I mean, really?? If you've read it, you know what I'm talking about. This REALLY bothered me. And the relationship itself... Well, I liked the guy, I thought he was kinda perfect for Alex. But I didn't believe what was happening, unlike the less realistic stuff about the whole society. The romance didn't feel natural somehow.
And OMG, that ending! It makes me want to transport to 2012 so I can immediately grab the next book and keep on reading! It's not exactly a cliffhanger, but I've got so many questions and I'm dying to find out what happens next.
So even though I had some problems with the romance part of it, I did really enjoy the book and would recommend it if, like me, you like YA and secret societies! And creepy magic! It's got it all.
My rating: 4 stars
This sounds interesting! But I hate how it seems like every book these days feels the need to throw in a romance story, even if the story doesn't need it. And especially in a trilogy - the romance can always come about in a later book instead of book one.
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