A Chalice of Wind by Cate Tiernan

Title: A Chalice of Wind

Author: Cate Tiernan

Quick Synopsis: (taken from Goodreads)
After seventeen-year-old Thais Allard loses her widowed father in a tragic car accident, she is forced to leave the only home she's ever known to live with a total stranger in New Orleans. New Orleans greets Thais with many secrets and mysteries, but none as unbelievable as the moment she comes face to face with the impossible -- an identical twin, Clio. Thais soon learns that she and the twin she never knew come from a family of witches, that she possesses astonishing powers, and that she, along with Clio, has a key role in Balefire, the coven she was born into. Fiery Clio is less than thrilled to have to share the spotlight, but the twins must learn to combine their powers in order to complete a rite that will transform their lives and the coven forever.

General Thoughts: I love the idea behind this book, especially the Treize and its story. Thais and Clio are great and very believable as characters. The prose is a little plain for my taste, but this is coming from someone who loves the ridiculous, meandering, vividly descriptive prose of the Vanity Fair (which I still need to finish).

My Favourite Part: The history of the Treize. And the incorporation of French into the witchcraft instead of the standard Latin chants. The members of the Treize fascinate me. There's clearly a muddy history and complex relationships between all of them, and so far I've only been dropped teeny tiny hints about what happened to them in the past. I'm really looking forward to learning more about each of them and deciphering their complex pasts.

My Least Favourite Part: The plain prose. And the love triangle. Honestly, what is with YA and love triangles? At least I didn't see the loves triangle coming until it was shoved into my face. (You'll know what I'm talking about if you read/have read the book.)

Scale of 1 to 10: 6.5

Just as a note, I read this book as part of an anthology, Balefire, a collection of the four books in the Balefire series. So expect more reviews for the other books relatively soon. (Like, within a month. Hopefully.)