Jinx (novel)

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Jinx
Author	Meg Cabot
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young adult novel
Publisher	HarperTeen
Publication date	2007-07-31
Media type	Print
Pages	262 pp (first edition)
ISBN	ISBN 0060837640 (first edition)

Jinx is a 2007 young adult novel by American author Meg Cabot. The novel has darker themes than Cabot's earlier best-selling The Princess Diaries series of novels.^[1]

[edit] Plot summary

Jean "Jinx" Honeychurch is a sixteen-year-old girl from Iowa. In order to run away from a stalker in her home town, her parents decide it is best for Jean to live with her Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Ted in Manhattan, New York. Things do not go Jean's way from the moment she steps off the plane in New York. She believes that she was cursed from the moment she came onto earth. This is why everybody began to call her Jinx.

On the day of her arrival none of her family members aren't there to greet her. Later noted to the fact that they had the date wrong. Jean arrives at her aunt and uncle's house and is greeted by a young women named Petra who is the au pair in the house. When Petra mentions that Jean's cousins Alice and Teddy are at school, Jean inquires where her other cousin Tory (Torrence) is. Petra is a grim tone said that Tory is at home and in the gazebo. Jean enters the gazebo to find six teenagers smoking or drinking. Jean is amazed to see that Tory has changed since the last time she saw her five years ago. One boy catches here eye a guy named Zach Rosen who just so happen to be incredibly hot. Zach and Jean are both juniors.

Her cousin Torrance (whom Jean calls Tory) believes that she and her friends are witches after being told that one of her ancestors was a witch. She makes a voodoo doll of a boy called Zach Rosen who both she and Jean like in order to make him fall in love with her. She is convinced that it works.

Tory is convinced that Jean is a witch as well, then asks her to join her (Tory's) coven of pretend "witches". Jean instantly refuses saying that she has no idea what Tory is talking about. Tory starts acting real mad. However, Jean might be the one with special powers, and might really be a witch. A series of bizarre things happen to Jean.

Things start turning bad. Jean goes away from Iowa to get away from her bad luck, now even on her first day to have a fresh new start she is still "Jinx". Jean develops a major crush on Zach (who seems to like Petra); who happens to be the guy who here cousin also is in love with.

In the next couple of days Tory is furious that Zach hangs out with Jean... a lot. One day at school Jean finds a dead rat from the biology lab hanging in her locker that everyone in the school is looking at. Jean has a hunch that Tory did this but doesn't tattle. The next thing she finds out is that Shawn (Tory's boyfriend or "friend with benefits") is expelled. With this Jean is instantly labeled a narc. Tory all of a sudden turns over a leaf and says that she hasn't been acting all to greatly towards Jean.

Zach asks Jean to the spring formal as "just friends". Jean gets a huge surprise; her stalker is Tory's date. His name is Dylan and was once loved by Jean herself. Only problem is that Jean used magic to win Dylan and it ended up turning into a disaster. All of this Tory reveals in front of Dylan, Zach, Jean's new friends, and everyone else attending Chapman High. After confessing Jean flees back home (Aunt and Uncle's) and cries herself out.

In the middle of the night she thinks she see's Branwen (her witch ancestor) but interrupted by a sound in the gazebo. Jean slips into jeans and tries to find out what the racket is. It turned out to be Tory and her "coven" of "witches". They used the family cat to lure Jean downstairs. Jean was gagged and tied up while Tory tried to get some of Jean's blood with a knife. Tory was going to drink Jean's blood so that she could have Jean's powers.

Coming to the rescue, Zach entered the gazebo and gets Jean into the house where Petra finds the truth. Zach confesses that he never was in love with Petra but was in love with Jean since the first day he saw her and she spat long island ice tea into his face. Zach manages to convince Jean that he really does like her (by kissing her). After all this it ends up that Jean and Zach love each other. Tory goes to boot camp for the summer then a "special boarding school" in rural Iowa and ends up falling in love with Dylan. Most of all Jean isn't referred as Jinx anymore but Jean. Plain old Jean, which couldn't have made her happier. Things were definitely looking up for "Jean".