Gr 5-8-"There is no such thing as a good witch." These words, well known to all the villagers of De'Noran, haunt 12-year-old Kara Westfall. Ostracized and abused, she and her brother are the children of the last known witch, who was hanged on the edge of the Thickety when Kara was five. As the tangled branches of the dark, forbidden forest spread closer to the village, something strange and powerful awakens in Kara. Was her mother's magic truly evil? White's debut novel is darkly bewitching. The isolation of De'Noran and the fervor of its residents create a heady suspense, and White's well-crafted characters operate beautifully within the fantastical world he has created. Offerman's inky silhouettes perfectly complement the story. Readers will devour each twist and turn of the plot, right up to the startling conclusion.-Sara Saxton, Wasilla Public Library, Wasilla, AK (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
When Kara was just a child, she was accused of witchcraft and forced to watch her mother executed for the same crime. Ever after, she and her family have lived in their isolated theocratic community as pariahs. Now 12 (though mature beyond her years), Kara stoically tries to hold everything together for her sickly brother. It all starts to unravel when she's summoned to the deep wood, called Thickety, where she finds a dangerous grimoire that awakens her magical abilities. But her magic comes with a price, and soon she's not the only one trying to harness its addictive spells. In spare prose, debut author White follows Kara as she discovers sinister forces at work in her community and strives to combat the temptation to use her power for nefarious ends. Though much of the intriguing world, including Thickety, is left unexplored, an unsettling twist ending leaves a creaking door open for more stories. White's persistent dark imagery, along with Offermann's eerie silhouette spot illustrations, adds to the overall dark atmosphere.--Hunter, Sarah Copyright 2014 Booklist
The followers of the Path have left the sinful world behind to live in the isolated community of De'Noran, which is increasingly encroached upon by the Thickety, the domain of the forest demon Sordyr. Kara Westfall's mother was executed for the crime of witchcraft, and now her family ekes out a living under the burden of the community's suspicion. It falls to 12-year-old Kara to keep her sickly younger brother and dysfunctional father alive. She negotiates the treacherous road of a pariah, attempting to persuade a proto-Puritanical society that she is harmless, even while the dangerously addictive powers she has inherited from her mother well up within her. In this darkly imaginative debut, White creates a fantasy world with creatures that are anything but sweet-a cyclopean bird, a multi-mouthed horror-and, after a deceptively satisfying resolution, he unfurls a twist that will make readers want the next chapter of Kara's story immediately. White's prose is evocative without being dense, and Offermann's sharp-edged silhouettes (not all seen by PW) add an ominous note. Absolutely thrilling. Ages 8-12. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, Janklow & Nesbit. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Gr 5-8-"There is no such thing as a good witch." These words, well known to all the villagers of De'Noran, haunt 12-year-old Kara Westfall. Ostracized and abused, she and her brother are the children of the last known witch, who was hanged on the edge of the Thickety when Kara was five. As the tangled branches of the dark, forbidden forest spread closer to the village, something strange and powerful awakens in Kara. Was her mother's magic truly evil? White's debut novel is darkly bewitching. The isolation of De'Noran and the fervor of its residents create a heady suspense, and White's well-crafted characters operate beautifully within the fantastical world he has created. Offerman's inky silhouettes perfectly complement the story. Readers will devour each twist and turn of the plot, right up to the startling conclusion.-Sara Saxton, Wasilla Public Library, Wasilla, AK (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
