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" ... But one spares oneself all sorts of troubles by dying''
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SYNOPSIS: When a scarecrow climbs over the garden wall, delivering twelve-year-old orphan Zita Brydgeborn a letter saying she has inherited a distant castle, she jumps at thechance of adventure. But little does she know that she is about to be thrust into a centuries-old battle between good and evil. Blackbird Castle was once home to a powerful dynasty of witches, all of them now dead under mysterious circumstances. All but Zita. And Zita, unfortunately, doesn't know the first thing about being a witch.
As she begins her lessons in charms and spells with her guardian, Mrs. Cantanker, Zita makes new allies--a crow, a talking marble head, two castle servants just her age named Bram and Minnifer, and the silent ghost of a green-eyed girl. But who is friend and who is foe? Zita must race to untangle her past and find the magic to save the home she's always hoped for. Because whatever claimed the souls of her family is now after her.
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BOOK REVIEW
To Note: Standalone
Genre: MG fantasy
Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Personal Enjoyment: 4.5/5
Overall Rating: 17/20
This was a wonderful middle grade fantasy. Couple of chapters in and I felt like I was reading a cosy retelling of Anne of Green Gables, IF Anne was a witch! This premise had me utterly enthralled. But as you read on, the story becomes wholly it's own. The cast of characters that are introduced, are interesting and varied.
I appreciated the fact that there was no info dumping and the world slowly unfurled around us, and we were left to figure out what most of the magical creatures were and how the magical world as a whole worked. I think readers will appreciate not being patronised. The plot itself is centred around a curse that needs to be broken, but there are mysterious forces that are at play. That Zita, only knowing the life of a housemaid before she arrived at Blackbird Castle, feels ill equipped to tackle. As she grows in confidence and in her abilities as a witch we see the her face her destiny head on.
The premise of this story was very interesting, the witches in Zita's world help ferry the souls of the recently departed into the underworld and make sure the border between the living and the dead is not breached. I found that to be an interesting concept and leant itself easily to the exploration of what it means to have power and what the consequences would be if someone decided to used it for some nefarious deeds.
I found the story to have the right balance of mystery, adventure and surprisingly there were very eerie moments too. Certainly all the ghosts Zita encounters were not friendly! The Author's writing style deftly balances the lightness of how a child views the world with the horrors that are out there.
I thought the author manages to provide a very entertaining standalone, that is well rounded, perfectly paced and with the perfect level of creepiness that will send just the right amount of shivers down the backs of the reader to leave them delighted. I was completely charmed by this book and would recommend it to all MG fans out there.