I started reading
the Wardstone Chronicles a few years back when my brother loaned me book one:
The Spooks Apprentice. Although a book seemingly written for older children /
teenagers, I was gripped! But then again, I'm a fan of the Potter books, Hunger
Games etc....
This series is
written by Joseph Delaney, a Lancashire man born and bread (this is where I
live), and the locations and tales found in the series are loosely based on
Lancashire and its legends.
The Wardstone Chronicles follow Thomas Ward, the seventh son of a seventh son, who is apprenticed to John Gregory to become a Spook. Tom soon discovers that most of John's apprentices have failed for various reasons, including being killed in the process of learning how to be a Spook. As the series progresses the focus shifts from Tom to other characters such as the assassin Grimalkin, and develops the plot line of Tom being destined to either save the world or destroy it.
I thoroughly enjoyed the writing style and found the plots of these books made for swift reading, if a little scary for younger readers. But they do all come with a warning 'Not to be Read after Dark'.
The series itself consists of 13 books that follow Tom's apprenticeship, with two additional books running alongside it - Witches and The Spook's Bestiary. 2015 will see a movie adaptation based on the series, watch the trailer here.
Anyway, having just finished the final part in this series, I thought I would give it a quick review!
The final installment is called...
The Spook's
Revenge
Everything
ends.
The final battle with the Dark
approaches.
"He's the seventh son of a seventh son. His name is
Thomas J. Ward and he's my gift to the County. When he's old enough we'll send
word. Train him well. He'll be the best apprentice you've ever had and he'll
also be your last."
These were the words of Tom's Mam to the county
Spook some years ago. As Tom, the Spook and their allies prepare to battle with
the Fiend on a huge scale, to finally enact their revenge, it now remains to be
seen whether Mam's declaration will come
true.
As with the twelve books before it, this final part is
almost impossible to put down. Tom must battle against the dark in order to
finally defeat the Fiend, but once again this involves forming unusual allegiances for a Spook.
Alice must delve into the Dark in search of a sword
that could potentially kill her as part of a ritual to finally destroy the
Fiend. Will Tom be able to go through with the ritual? Will Alice continued dabbling in the Dark turn her into a fully-fledged Malevolent Witch? Answer to
these questions can be found in this book!
The Spook's Revenge is a fantastic culmination to this
series, and I'm excited that it's not the end of the story. A new series
entitled 'The Starblade Chronicles' will be next on Delaney's to do list, with at
least three books, and a sneak at the first chapter of the first book is
available at the end of The Spook's Revenge!
If you enjoy gritty stories about witches, magic and
things that go bump in the night, you really should read The Wardstone
Chronicles.
