german and english review (not spoilerfree, I need to vent)

mir wurde das Buch von Random House für eine Testleserunde zur Verfügung gestellt

Inhalt: Eine bisher unveröffentlichte Geschichte aus Sabrinas Leben, die zwischen den Staffeln 1 und 2 der erfolgreichen Netflix-Serie spielt.

Sabrina Spellman hat die härteste Entscheidung ihres Lebens gefällt: Sie lässt ihre Freunde an der Baxter High zurück. Jetzt muss sie sich unter den jungen Hexen und Hexern an der Akademie der Unsichtbaren Künste zurechtfinden. Ihre Macht wächst täglich, aber der Preis dafür ist hoch ... Kann Sabrina ihren neuen Klassenkameraden trauen? Vor allem dem charmanten Nick Scratch und seinen Gefühlen ihr gegenüber?

Meine Bewertung: Erst zum Ende hin hat mich das Buch wirklich gepackt!!!

Ich hatte mir ein bisschen mehr versprochen, das muss ich ganz ehrlich zu geben. Das Buch ist um einiges länger als der erste Band, deswegen hatte ich irgendwie mehr erwartet aber mich hat das Buch erst wirklich zum Ende hin überzeugen können und das war einfach zu spät.

Während ich in der Serie Harvey und auch Nick wirklich mag, haben sie mich in dem Buch nur gestört und viel zu viele Kapitel mit ihrem Hin und Her verschwendet, was ich nicht wirklich gebraucht hätte. Ich hatte das Gefühl, dass Sabrina in dem Band mehr oder weniger in den Hintergrund gerückt ist. Was nicht mal so schlimm gewesen wäre, wenn ich dafür interessantere Geschichten von anderen gehört hätte. An Stelle von Nick und Harvey, hätte ich mir einfach mehr Roz oder Susie gewünscht.

Am interessantesten waren für mich einfach viel mehr Sabrina's Kapitel und die von Prudence. Hier sind wirklich interessante Dinge passiert, die unterhaltsam zu lesen waren und wirklich Spaß gemacht haben.

Alles im Allem habe ich immer noch das Problem, dass die Charaktere in den Büchern für mich nicht so klingen wie die Charaktere in der Serie. Da die Beiden nun mal zusammenhören, bringt es mich einfach immer wieder raus.

Im Allgemeinen, die Bücher sind gut als Ergänzung, es stellt mich aber trotzdem nicht wirklich zufrieden.

***

Summary: Half-witch, half-mortal sixteen-year-old Sabrina Spellman has made her choice: She's embraced her dark side and her witchy roots. Now her power is growing daily... but will it come at too high a price?

Sabrina Spellman has just made the hardest decision of her life: She's leaving behind her beloved friends at Baxter High. Now it's time to follow the path of night and find her way among the witches and warlocks at the Academy of Unseen Arts.

Sabrina has always been good at the school thing, but now she has a whole new world to navigate. Her power is growing daily, but it comes with a high price. She must always remember her new allegiances and the cost they have on her friends... and on herself.

And then there's her new classmates. Prudence, Dorcas, and Agatha are friends, kind of, but can Sabrina trust them? And what about Nick Scratch? He's as charming as ever, but will his feelings for Sabrina last?

Based on the hit Netflix show, this original YA novel tells an all-new, original story about Sabrina.

My review: I only really enjoyed this towards the end!!!

I expected more of this to be completely honest. This book was quite a bit longer than the first one, so I just expected more to be happening but this book took until the end to really grab my attention and that was just way too late.

While I actually like Harvey and also Nick in the tv show, they just annoyed me in this book and there were just so many chapters wasted on their back and forth and I just didn't need that. I felt like Sabrina was put in the background in this book. Which isn't that bad IF I would've gotten some actually interesting storylines instead. Instead of all the Nick and Harvey nonsense, I would have loved more Roz and Susie.

What held my interest the most were the Sabrina chapters and the ones from Prudence point of view. Here I felt like I actually got something interesting, that was entertaining and just fun to read about.

All in all, I still have the problem that the book characters don't sound like the tv show characters to me. And that just takes me out of the story all the time, cause these two are supposed to be intertwined.

Overall, the books are a nice add on but I'm not really satisfied.

actual rating: 3.5

audible audiobook

spoilerfree

Inhalt: Die offizielle Vorgeschichte zum großen Serienereignis auf NETFLIX

Nur noch einen Sommer hat Sabrina Spellman bis zu ihrem 16. Geburtstag. Dann wird alles anders werden: Sie wird in den dunklen Hexenzirkel aufgenommen und muss allen normalsterblichen Menschen entsagen; ihren Freundinnen - und ihrer großen Liebe Harvey. Wird sie das schaffen? Und liebt Harvey sie überhaupt so sehr wie sie ihn? Um das herauszufinden, lässt sich Sabrina von ihrem Cousin Ambrose zu einem gefährlichen Plan überreden: Sie wendet bei Harvey einen Zauber an. Etwas, was ihr ihre beiden Tanten, ebenfalls Hexen, absolut verboten haben. Nicht ohne Grund, denn plötzlich ist mehr als nur ein Leben in großer Gefahr...

Meine Bewertung: Besser als ich gedacht hatte!!!

Ich liebe die Serie einfach und da ich alles aufgeholt hab, was es zu gucken gab, habe ich mir vorgenommen mich den Büchern zu widmen. Einfach um erneut in die Welt einzutauchen und mich mit den Charakteren zu beschäftigen.

Der Schreibstil/Erzähler des Hörbuches war auch wirklich gut.

Es gab jetzt keine großen Überraschungen, es gab nichts was mich jetzt irgendwie total begeistert hätte. Trotzdem war es ein wirklich gutes Lesevergnügen, kurz aber gut. Es hat mir die Charaktere nochmal ein bisschen näher gebracht, vor allem Tommy, mit dem ich in der Serie nie was anfangen konnte, der ist mir erst jetzt durch das Buch so wirklich ans herz gewachsen. Damit hatte ich nicht gerechnet.

Ich werde auf jeden fall bei den Büchern bleiben, den zweiten Band habe ich schon.

***

Summary: From the creator of RIVERDALE comes the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, a new NETFLIX series based on the classic Archie comic series. This prequel YA novel tells an all-new, original story.

It's the summer before her sixteenth birthday, and Sabrina Spellman knows her world is about to change. She's always studied magic and spells with her aunts, Hilda and Zelda. But she's also lived a normal mortal life - attending Baxter High, hanging out with her friends Susie and Roz, and going to the movies with her boyfriend, Harvey Kinkle.

Now time is running out on her every day, normal world, and leaving behind Roz and Susie and Harvey is a lot harder than she thought it would be. Especially because Sabrina isn't sure how Harvey feels about her. Her cousin Ambrose suggests performing a spell to discover Harvey's true feelings. But when a mysterious wood spirit interferes, the spell backfires in a big way.

Sabrina has always been attracted to the power of being a witch. But now she can't help wondering if that power is leading her down the wrong path. Will she choose to forsake the path of lightand follow the path of night?

Our exclusive prequel novel will reveal a side of Sabrina not seen on the new NETFLIX show. What choice will Sabrina make and will it be the right one?

My review: Better than I expected!!!

I love the tv show and because I'm all caught up on everything there is to watch, I decided to dive into the books. I just want to go back into the world and interact with the characters again.

The writing/the narrator of the audiobook was also really good.

There weren't any big surprises, there wasn't anything that rocked my world. I still enjoyed this a lot though, even tho it was a really quick reading adventure. But it managed to make me feel closer to some of the characters, especially Tommy, who I was super indifferent about in the show, the book made me fall in love with him. I didn't expect that at all.

I'm totally going to stick with the books, I already got the second book ready.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Vol. 1 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa came onto my radar because I saw the super edgy trailer for the Netflix show and of course I felt I needed to at least read the first volume (containing the first 6 issues) before I started in on the show. :-P [A/N: For those unaware, this alternate reality version of Sabrina exists in the same realm as Archie and his pals over in Riverdale and you can keep your eyes peeled for my review of that too.] This is a comic book series that takes the familiar character of Sabrina Spellman (Remember that cute show about witchy magic with that super sarcastic talking cat named Salem?) and turns it onto its head. This is Dark Stuff and trust me the capitalization is warranted. The story starts out with Sabrina's parents, Warlock Dad and Mortal Mom, who disagree on how to raise their newborn daughter. According to coven law, Sabrina should be blessed by Satan so that when she comes of age she can formally sign Satan's book and give her soul over to him. (Did I mention this was dark?) These parental disagreements result in the mother being driven insane and Sabrina being entrusted to her witchy aunts to be raised 'properly'. So now Sabrina walks in two worlds (witch at home and mortal at school) and by the time she is 16 (present day in the comics where it's the 1960s) she is thoroughly confused about where she fits in which is par for the course with most teenagers if we're completely honest. Gore, violence, Satanism, cannibalism, necromancy, first love...your standard high school experience. The artwork was unlike anything I'd ever consumed in a comic or graphic novel medium before with bold colors and almost grotesque characterizations. I dug it. Horror fans and those that like re-imaginings of familiar tales will enjoy the world that Aguirre-Sacasa has crafted immensely. Yes, it's Dark Stuff but it's also boldly imaginative and well-formed. He's not only crafted this but another series called Afterlife with Archie (not to mention the tv series Riverdale). This is an author to watch! 10/10

PS Salem the cat is in this version as well!

PPS I started the series and I'm digging that too!

Not too spoiler-y since it's from the beginning. [Source: The Mary Sue]

What's Up Next: Star Trek Destiny #2: Mere Mortals by David Mack

What I'm Currently Reading: Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond and The Science of Supervillains by Lois H. Gresh & Robert Weinberg

I fancied some ‘light’ horror and since a whole bunch of my pals on Litsy have been reaching for graphic novels this Halloween season, I thought I’d try this. And don’t be fooled: this version of Sabrina the Teenage Witch’ is most definitely HORROR with a capital H. If you are looking for something along the lines of what you would find on the CW when Sabrina was a sitcom, this is NOT it. Forget PG-spooky, it’s definitely the other end of the horror spectrum: S for Sabrina is now Scary. 

Set back in the 1960’s, Sabrina is the illicit lovechild of a warlock called Edward Spellman, and a mortal named Diana, and she is raised by her aunts Zelda and Hilda (no news there). Sabrina is approaching her 16th birthday, which means she can become a fully-fledged witch, and pledge herself to the Dark Lord*. Complicating things are having a mortal boyfriend, and deciding if she can kill living animals on the spot. More fun ensues when Madam Satan shows up in town, and she is none too happy about having been sidelined by Edward for Sabrina’s mom. Enough said.

There are all sorts of horror goodies in this jumbo comic edition (it contains comics 1-5 of the ‘Chilling Adventures’, and in the back, has the variants that were printed with the different covers). The fabulous intro by the author Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa lays it all out for the reader, pointing out that the adventures are like ‘Rosemary’s Baby’, plus ‘The Exorcist’, ‘The Omen’, and Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible’ all rolled together. It’s ALL in here. As well as Ray Bradbury’s ‘Something Wicked This Way Comes’, zombies, and vengeance against men who have picked up innocent hitchhiking women. 

The retro style of illustration harks back to comics of decades ago, and Roberto explains it’s because he wanted them to have the feel of a ‘period piece’, and it all works flawlessly. There’s plenty of dark humor (very dark), a definite feel of classic horror influencing every frame, and it’s actually no wonder that it’s being adapted into a show on Netflix. I hope they keep it just as gory, retro, and bloody though...

I’ll be continuing the series!

*To any heathens asking: no, REAL witches do NOT pledge themselves to ‘Satan’ or the ‘Dark Lord’.

**You can find this omnibus edition on hoopla!

Mostly because someone accidentally 'spoiled' the ending for me - and it wasn't at all what happened in the actual ending!

Anyway, this is atmospheric, creepy, and just perfect.   It hasn't gone past issue eight which came out in August - was part one of a new story.   This collects issues one through five, and sets Sabrina in a evil, devil-worshipping coven that includes her aunts, and her father.   It also takes place during the 1960s with the author trying - and succeeding - in giving in a Rosemary's Baby vibe.   It's a slow, psychological part, although not quite as nuanced as Rosemary's Baby.   (Then again, Rosemary didn't know what was going on and Sabrina is on the coven; this doesn't allow a parallel buildup of tension, but there's another buildup of tension.)

Beautiful artwork, lovely how the characters are, at the core, themselves - and yet not - and how they play on each other in this new storyline.   I'd like to think that Betty and Veronica, who do show up, might be later reincarnated as their Afterlife with Archie counterparts - but I suspect this is a completely separate AU.   Either way, I'll take it.  I'm trying to decide on if I should buy the next issue right now, or wait for a sale.  I normally just wait for the sales.