[Review] Devils and Thieves by Jennifer Rush

ABOUT

Title: Devils and Thieves

Author: Jennifer Rush

Series: Devils and Thieves #1 

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Release Date: October 3rd 2017 

Goodreads Page

Synopsis:

Eighteen-year-old Jemmie Carmichael has grown up surrounded by magic in the quiet town of Hawthorne, New York. In her world, magic users are called "kindled," and Jemmie would count herself among them if only she could cast a simple spell without completely falling apart. It doesn't help that she was also recently snubbed by Crowe, the dangerous and enigmatic leader of the Black Devils kindled motorcycle gang and the unofficial head of their turf.

When the entire kindled community rolls into Hawthorne for an annual festival, a rumour begins spreading that someone is practising forbidden magic. Then people start to go missing. With threats closing in from every side, no one can be trusted. Jemmie and Crowe will have to put aside their tumultuous history to find their loved ones, and the only thing that might save them is the very flaw that keeps Jemmie from fully harnessing her magic. For all her years of feeling useless, Jemmie may just be the most powerful kindled of all.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion whatsoever nor was I compensated in any way.

Devils and Thieves tells the tale of Jemmie Carmichael -- a girl surrounded by magic, but is afraid of her own. She was born and raised in Hawthorne, New York. Her family and friends are magical, or kindled as they're called, and swear their allegiances to the various biker gangs. However, as an annual festival rolls into town, Kindled start to go missing and rumours of forbidden magic spread. Jemmie must team up with Crowe, the handsome and powerful leader of the local gang, and put a stop to the danger.

I really enjoyed the magic system built into the world of this novel. There are different hereditary types of magic and range from power to control others, to protection magic. It was really interesting to see how magic existed in this world and also how it came into this culture of biker gangs. If there is a sequel, I'd love to see more of the magic in this world, and with the way this novel ended, there was definitely room for a sequel.

I like Jemmie as a character. She feels unsure of herself in the beginning and is afraid of her own power, drinking to dull her sensitivity. However, as the plot goes on, she grows into her self and her power.

As one can assume, Crowe is the love interest of this novel and he's kind of a jerk. He's definitely a "Brooding YA Hero". I don't really like him, but there's history between Jemmie and Crowe that still causes Jemmie to gravitate towards him.

While I enjoyed the novel, the plot felt incredibly rushed. There never felt like there was a time to breathe and let things unfold. One thing just kept coming after another and I felt like I was constantly gasping for breath as I read it. I would have loved to have more scenes I could get lost in, instead of trying to keep up with whatever is going on. There didn't ever feel like there was a time for enough world building in this book, which it would really benefit from with its interesting magic system.

There does seem to be a sequel, if Goodreads is correct. I hope that the sequel will learn to breathe and perhaps expand into the world a little more, or delve further into the makings of these magical biker gangs.

Happy Reading,