Book Beginnings & The Friday 56: Revenge of the Witch (The Last Apprentice / Wardstone Chronicles #1) by Joseph Delaney

Hosted By Rose City Reader & Freda's Voice

"Book Beginnings" is a weekly event that shares the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. "The Friday 56" is also a weekly event, sharing a sentence from page 56 or 56% in your eReader (If you have to improvise, that's ok.)


My Pick This Week: Revenge of the Witch by Joseph Delaney

“THE highest point in the County is marked by mystery. It is said that a man died there in a great storm. while binding an evil that threatened the whole world. Then the ice came again, and when it retreated. even the shapes of the hills and the names of the towns in the valleys were changed now. At that highest point on the fells. no trace remains of what was done so long ago. But its name has endured. “They call it – The Wardstone.”

~ p. 1 

“I felt myself being lifted roughly by the hair and skin at the nape of my neck, just like a mother cat carries her kittens. Then an invisible arm wrapped itself around my body, pinning my arms to my sides. I tried to suck in a breath but it was impossible. My chest was being crushed. I was being carried towards the cellar door. I couldn’t see what was carrying me but I could hear its wheezing breath and I struggled in a panic, because somehow I knew exactly what was going to happen. Somehow I knew why there’d been the sound of digging from below. I was going to be carried down the cellar steps into the darkness and I knew that a grave was waiting for me down there. I was going to be buried alive.”

~ p. 56 

My Thoughts:
This is the April Book of the Month for my Nerds and Novels (SoCal Chapter) book club. I finished yesterday (my review), which is amazing as we're just midway through the month. We meet the last Friday of the month; normally, I'm flying through the pages in the parking lot trying to finish before we meet. It was a quick, cute read. Great setup for the rest of the series, which I'll eventually continue.

Book Synopsis: 
REVENGE OF THE WITCH

Book Series: The Last Apprentice / Wardstone Chronicles, Book #1

Author: Joseph Delaney (Facebook)

Genres: YA, Middle Grade, Paranormal, Supernatural, Magic

Format: Hardcover (Amazon)

Length: 343 pages

Release Date: September 6, 2005

Book Club (April Book of the Month): Nerds and Novels (SoCal Chapter)

Reading Challenges: 2015 Goodreads Challenge

Capturing witches. Binding boggarts. Driving away ghosts. For years, Old Gregory has been the Spook for the county, ridding the local villages of evil. Now his time is coming to an end. But who will take over for him? Twenty-nine apprentices have tried-some floundered, some fled, some failed to stay alive.

Only Thomas Ward is left. He's the last hope; the last apprentice.

Can Thomas succeed? Will he learn the difference between a benign witch and a malevolent one? Does the Spook's warning against girls with pointy shoes include Alice? And what will happen if Thomas accidentally frees Mother Malkin, the most evil witch in the county...