Powell, Laura Burn Mark 411 pgs. Bloomsbury USA Childrens,
2012. $17.99. Language: PG (no swears, but some vulgarity); Mature Content: PG;
Violence: PG.
Glory and Lucas
are teenagers in London who develop the Fae on the same day. Their London is a
place where witches are part of the mainstream public, but are subject to being
controlled by the government. Glory is a member of a coven which had great
power and fame in the past and now find themselves struggling to survive using
their magic for low-level scams and petty crime. Lucas is the son of the Chief
Prosecutor for the Inquisition whose job it is to prosecute witches going so
far as to burn them at the stake in public executions. There is no love lost
between Glory and the government because she believes that they are responsible
for her mother's death. However, she finds herself agreeing to work with the
government as a spy against her own coven to take down her uncle who has become
too powerful to please the government and who she believes betrayed her mother.
Lucas agrees to help in the scheme,
as it is his desire to prove his loyalty to the government, as his
"fae" is a great disappointment and embarrassment to his family.
This book was
slow-paced and while the idea of the plot was intriguing, the actual story fell
flat. Glory is portrayed as petulant and whinny, which made it hard to
sympathize when it was obvious that she was supposed to be a sympathetic
character. Lucas was a more likable character, but it was still difficult to
care what happened to him. For fans of supernatural lit, this book is a
different take on an overdone subject and may be found enjoyable.
MS/HS-OPTIONAL.
AEB, Social Studies Teacher
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