The Dark is Rising

By Susan Cooper

On the Midwinter Day that is his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton discovers a special gift-he is the last of the Old Ones, immortals dedicated to keeping the world from domination by the forces of evil, the Dark. At once, he is plunged into a quest for the six magical Signs that will one day aid the Old Ones in the final battle between the Dark and the Light. And for the twelve days of Christmas, while the Dark is rising, life for Will is full of wonder, terror, and delight.

I started to read this about six months ago after I bought it for my birthday, but I stopped because I thought I just couldn't get into it at the time; turns out as I got about two-thirds the way through it this time that I remembered the reason why I stopped reading it: it's the second book in the sequence. I was miffed at myself. No wonder so many things just seemed to jump into the unknown! All in all, having not read the first book, which is called, Over Sea, Under Stone, this book was interesting to read. It was very iconic in the use of Dark vs. Light and the signs of power and the struggle of good vs. evil. Cooper has a very unique and yet classic way of writing, it seems to just suck you into this ancient-feeling story that is older than time itself. It's very poetic and original, yet strikes a familiar chord which everyone will relate. As for the story itself, plot, characters and all, I'm still quite confused and will have to backtrack and read the first book to see if that clears matters up at all. For now, I'll just say, well done and superb writing!