3.5 StarsI am very conflicted over Entangled. There were aspects that thoroughly drew me in and aspects that thoroughly turned me off. So, I am going to do this review very differently than how I normally do. You're getting it in bullet form...it seems to be the only way my mind can wrap itself around what to say right now.What I loved about Entangled by Nikki Jefford: The cover. Seriously, how gorgeous is it? All the covers in the series are beautiful. Major cover love here! I'm not sure it has anything at all to do with the story and I don't even care. At all. It's lovely. The concept. I enjoy a bit of wichiness and Entangled delivered. Jefford delivers witches and warlocks on both sides of the spectrum. Some, like Gray, are good and fairly tame. Others are pure evil and twist the use of magic for personal benefit in the most heinous of ways. The idea of twins inhabiting the same body, taking turns every other day, is unique and it was an interesting thing to read. Raj McKenna. Raj comes off as a resident bad boy jackass at first. That impression does not last too long though. He has passion and hope in spades and is the type of guy you want on your side. You know when you are dead and trying to find away to come back to life, only a hero type can help. Seriously, the guy pines after a dead girl for months, a girl he really hardly knows. Too sweet. The ending. I love the way Jefford ended this part of the story. It was a bit of a predictable twist but lovely all the same. There was enough of a resolution to make it a natural stopping point while giving a fun slap in the face to a couple of the characters. It left me satisfied yet excited to see where it goes next. Graylee. Gray is a slightly atypical teen. A little left of center. She doesn't care about being part of the 'in crowd'. She's casual and confident in who she is. Except for her magic, which has eluded her for years. She has a nice balance that I look for in a character.What didn't really work for me: Graylee. I know, I just said I loved her. I do. However, there were too many moments of odd volatility. She is pretty level headed in most situations but then something almost minor would happen and she would kind of snap. On the opposite spectrum, things that I would expect her to react to - she didn't really. I didn't quite understand it. The pacing. For the most part the pacing runs at a quick and steady rate, which I enjoy. Though, at times it jumps too far ahead. It made me feel like I was missing time. I don't need every little detail of a characters day but I can sometimes get confused by a major time lapse. There was not a ton of this but a few instances were enough to make it a memorable thing. The mother. She seems so completely oblivious to the fact that she has an absolutely horrifically evil bitch of a daughter, for starters. Add to that, when said absolutely horrifically evil bitch of a daughter is dumped by her boyfriend, Mom lets her stay home from school. Not just for a day but for days and days. She even wants to help evil chick to get all hot and vapid in an attempt to win back her loser boyfriend. What the hell? She also has a tendency to put Graylee's needs on a back burner and cave to evil Charlene's every whim. Did. Not. Like. Mom. The mother isn't a writing flaw, just a character flaw that I didn't like. There you have it. My relationship with Entangled all neatly itemized for the world to see. Looking at it this way, my issues seem small and petty and it is obvious there was more like than dislike.I will absolutely be continuing on with the series, the concept is that cool. This is just the first step to Jefford hitting her stride as a YA author and I look forward to what she has in store for readers in the future. I would suggest giving it a go if you are a fan of paranormal, it's a good blend of magic, turmoil, mystery and humor.
