Obsession with Books

Review: 4 ½ out of 5 starsSpirit is the third book in the Elemental series by Brigid Kemmerer and was provided to me by Kensington books/Netgalley.Spirit is sixteen year-old Hunter Garrity’s story; in Spark he fell out with the Merrick’s after he was accused of being a traitor and life is really throwing him a curveball – in the initial stages I really felt sorry for him, he was treated terribly by his grand-father, Calla was his biggest headache and causing him a lot of grief and nothing seemed to be going his way.I liked tattooed, pierced bad-boy Hunter from the very beginning of the series, he’s misunderstood, stand-offish and prefers to keep to himself; in this book I wish he could have relied on his friends more rather than taken on too much himself but it was nice to see him slowly start to trust. Being a Fifth gave him the ability to manipulate all of the elements but being a guide gave him the responsibility to dispose of pure elementals which put him in a difficult place, he needed to work out which side he belonged on which wasn’t always an easy decision.The love interest in this book is Kate Sullivan who was in town for a purpose, I didn’t trust her whatsoever initially and didn’t know where her loyalties lay, but I came to love her interactions with Hunter and how she questioned what she had been taught about the Elementals her whole life, she was a level-headed, confident and strong character; the text messages and banter between her and Hunter were sweet and believable. I loved the roles each of the characters played in this book, especially Michael who is an absolute sweetheart! The Merrick brothers and their respective partners are each amazing and the villains are written to perfection, Calla is crazy and Silver was despicable! The plot was fast-paced, emotionally intense and action packed and Ms. Kemmerer threw in a shockingly brutal twist I never saw coming; it definitely wasn’t expected and left me quite saddened.Overall, Spirit is a great addition to this wonderful series, Brigid Kemmerer’s writing is gripping and her story-telling keeps me riveted. I have thoroughly enjoyed the Elemental world-building and the parts each of the characters play in the overall story.Thank-you to Kensington Books for the opportunity to read and review Spirit.