Review: Salt (Salt #1) by Danielle Ellison

Salt

Author: Danielle Ellison

Series: Salt

Pages: 266

Publisher: Entanlged Teen

Amazon

Release date: 7^th January 2014

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

Penelope is a witch, part of a secret society protecting humans from demon attacks. But when she was a child, a demon killed her parents—and stole her magic. Since then, she’s been pretending to be something she’s not, using her sister’s magic to hide her own loss, to prevent being sent away.

When she’s finally given the chance to join the elite demon-hunting force, Penelope thinks that will finally change. With her sister’s help, she can squeeze through the tests and get access to the information she needs to find "her" demon. To take back what was stolen.

Then she meets Carter. He’s cute, smart, and she can borrow his magic, too. He knows her secret—but he also has one of his own. 

Suddenly, Penelope’s impossible quest becomes far more complicated. Because Carter’s not telling her everything, and it’s starting to seem like the demons have their own agenda…and they’re far too interested in her.

Review: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

I love all things witchy and demon related so I was definitely intrigued by the synopsis of Salt by Danielle Ellison.

Salt follows the story of 16 year-old Penelope Grey who is a witch without powers thanks to an attack by a demon when she was younger, now raised by her grandparents she uses her family, especially her sister to fuel her abilities and has dreams of becoming an Enforcer to track down the demon that killed her parents and stole her magic. When she’s is accepted for testing to join the demon-hunting force, things don’t come easily for her; especially with the secretive Carter hanging around who she is somehow also able to use to fuel her own magic.

I liked Penelope, she could be a bit whiny and seemed to act without thinking but she was determined and strong and I loved her wit. Carter was a lot of fun and fascinating, I liked learning about his back-story; the interactions between the characters were amusing but the romance I feel did develop at a rapid pace.

The overall plot was mysterious and filled with intense action sequences that kept the story entertaining and with the twist we are given towards the end it certainly made for a promising start to the series; I enjoyed learning along with Penelope more details about her past, her drive to become an enforcer and her quest to find her demon. I also liked the authors’ unique twist on witches and demons; it was creative, engaging and written well. There were a few unanswered questions I hope will be resolved in the sequel.

I would have liked more insight into each of the secondary characters, especially Penelope’s grandmother who seemed to have a few family secrets hidden away; I enjoyed her relationship with her sister who was extremely supportive and her best-friend Ric who I thought was great but didn’t get a lot of page time. I hope we learn more about each of them in the next installment.

Overall, Salt is a great start to the series; with a fascinating premise, wonderful characterisation and things between the witches and demons about to become exciting, I’m quite eager to read the sequel.

Thank you to Entangled Teen and NetGalley for a digital arc of this book.

About the author: Danielle Ellison is from a small town in West Virginia. She spent her childhood pretending to fly and talking to imaginary friends. When she grew up, she finally flew away (in an airplane) and started traveling the world. She hasn’t stopped yet, but someday she may decide to settle in one place. Her real life friends would definitely like that; they would probably also like if she stopped talking to her characters out loud. 

SALT comes out in January 2014, and then it's sequel. In October 2014, FOLLOW ME THROUGH DARKNESS (book one of the BOUNDLESS Trilogy) comes out. She's got a busy few years!

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