Enchanted Ivy by Sarah Beth Durst

Summary/Cover from Publisher's Website:

What Lily Carter wants most in the world is to attend Princeton University just like her grandfather. When she finally visits the campus, Grandpa surprises her: She has been selected to take the top-secret Legacy Test. Passing means automatic acceptance to Princeton. Sweet!

Lily's test is to find the Ivy Key. But what is she looking for? Where does she start? As she searches, Lily is joined by Tye, a cute college boy with orange and black hair who says he's her guard. That's weird. But things get seriously strange when a gargoyle talks to her. He tells her that there are two Princetons—the ordinary one and a magical one—and the Key opens the gate between them. But there are more secrets that surround Lily. Worse secrets.

When Lily enters the magical Princeton, she uncovers old betrayals and new dangers, and a chance at her dream becomes a fight for her life. Soon Lily is caught in a power struggle between two worlds, with her family at its center. In a place where Knights slay monsters, boys are were-tigers, and dragons might be out for blood, Lily will need all of her ingenuity and courage—and a little magic—to unite the worlds and unlock the secrets of her past and her future.

Review:

If you've been a long time reader of my blog, you'll probably know that I absolutely loved Sarah Beth Durst's previous book Ice. It was amazing, and simply one of my favorite books released last year. So, to say I had high expectations for Enchanted Ivy would be a serious understatement. Though, as it turns out, I had nothing to worry about, because Enchanted Ivy is yet another solid attempt from Durst, one that is sure to become a favorite with her current fans and bring her new ones along the way.

Lily Carter has many wishes that range from hoping that her mother will get better to getting into Princeton, though the Princeton one is probably her biggest. So when her grandfather agrees to take her with him to his annual Princeton reunion, Lilly is beyond ecstatic, especially when she learns that she'll also be taking the legacy test (Prize- automatic acceptance into Princeton). Though, as it turns out the legacy test will be anything but easy, as there's secrets to be found, evil people to be recognized, and two adorable boys who may or may not like Lilly. If anything, this weekend will certainly be one to remember!

Lilly Carter was an awesome protagonist! I loved the fact that she truly cared about her mother and grandfather...to the point where she would even risk her life to save them both. I also enjoyed the fact that while she was smart and brave, she was also one to make mistakes. Though, she never left them get her down, instead she worked harder to make everything work out. Plus I really adored her relationships with Tye and Jake. Both were funny, charming boys, and without them this novel would simply fill incomplete. The only problem I had with the characters was the fact that while they were really close to all being three dimensional, they weren't all the way there.

Another one of my favorite parts of Enchanted Ivy was the premise. I loved the idea of two Princetons- a magical one and the real one. It was a cool idea, and the execution of the idea was even better, because I was always on the edge of my sit, curious to find out more about the different creates of the magical Princeton and what they ment for the real Princeton. I also adored the setting Sarah brought into play through her vivid descriptions. She truly made me feel like I was right there with Lilly, Jake, and Tye the whole time.

And just like in Ice, Sarah Beth Durst's writing was a high point of Enchanted Ivy as well. She's a writer who can easily make even the most boring of topics interesting through her extremely creative imagination, and a writer I admire greatly! I simply can't wait to see what paranormal type read she comes up with next, because it's sure to be great!

In all, Enchanted Ivy is a creative, romantic, and intriguing paranormal book unlike many in its genre, leaving it to be a book I absolutely adored! This is actually one book I would love to see a sequel to.
 
Grade: A-

Enchanted Ivy is now out!

Source: Sarah/Simon and Schuster for review