Mercy is trying to control her new-found powers. Although she is outwardly living as a ‘normal’ teen, attending high school in her home town, she is enrolled in witching lessons as dispensed by Darynda, her trainer on WTC (The Witch’s Training Channel). Oh, and BTW, Alistair, her grandmother’s cat, has been appointed her guardian. A new threat arises as The Dark Coven tries to take over the town and restore their lost powers. Mercy must battle The Dark Coven, keep her boyfriend, Greg, in the dark and keep him from being jealous of Charlie, the hunky teenager she has somehow manifested.
This is the second instalment of The Young Witch’s Chronicles, but the first of the series that I have read.
The fact that I didn’t read Book 1 in this series in no way detracted from my enjoyment of this book, which works just as well as a stand-alone. It’s true I may have missed some of the characters back stories and development when the foundations were laid in the earlier instalment, but this is such a fun and easy to read book it really didn’t matter. The main character lead reminded me very much of Samantha from the old TV series ‘Bewitched’, but her personality and the way she approached things also contained elements of ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’. She has two best friends and a boyfriend, apart from that the reader doesn’t need to know anymore about her when they enter this series a book in.
The thing I did find interesting in this book aimed at younger teens upwards, was the writers skilful use of pathetic fallacy, that starts early in the novel and continues throughout. This is something readers rarely see in a book with this target demographic, and it is seamlessly included in the pages of this one. This shows a great skill on the part of the writer, which in turn makes this book accessible to readers of a more mature age who are looking for something entertaining and enjoyable. It is apparent that the Author has a wide and creative imagination that is obviously fuelled by the inner child she has not let die, as this novel gives a gateway to complete escapism from the strains and stresses of modern-day life to readers of all ages. There is nothing in this book that could offend the overly sensitive or the politically correct crowd; the only people who may have issues with it are the devoutly religious, but then again I doubt that they would pick this up based purely on the title.
Even though this is listed as being a YA Fantasy, I would highly recommend it to readers from young teens upwards; also lovers of the fantasy genre and books about magic and witches would most likely find this enjoyable read. I am looking forward to reading the next instalment in the Chronicles, and will be reading Book 1 to see if I missed anything important.
Cate's Book Nut Hut 