Rachel Hawkins, School Spirits

73. Rachel Hawkins, School Spirits

3.5 stars

While not as enjoyable as Hex Hall, this story, which picks up with Sophie's cousin, Izzy (Isolde) Brannick, was a cute, fun read.

While Izzy and her mother struggle to come to terms with Izzy's older sister's disappearance, her mother decides to take a small job in a town called Ideal, to let Izzy take charge of a case and attend high school for a little while.

The case seems simple enough--the haunting of the high school by some sort of malevolent spirit. It doesn't take Izzy long to run into a group of high school ghost hunters, who she joins in the hope of pumping them for information. What Izzy doesn't anticipate is how the group makes her feel--Romy is like the best friend she never had, and Dex . . . Izzy isn't quite sure what she feels for Dex, who feels oddly like Prodigium to her, but like no Prodigium she's never encountered. He makes her feel other things too--things that make Izzy pretty certain she's better at dealing with Prodigium than boys. The only problem with all of this? Izzy isn't supposed to have friends (let alone a boyfriend)--this is just supposed to be a job. But the ghost proves unexpectedly difficult to eradicate, and the friend thing proves unexpectedly more enjoyable and enduring than Izzy expected.

 The main plot line wasn't particularly deep or complicated, but I enjoyed reading about the teen ghost hunters and their relationships. Izzy did at times feel a lot like Evie from Kiersten White's paranormalcy--only without the same level of enthusiasm.