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?
Soooo...this book was creepy. I guess that's what you get when you pick up a book about spooks huh? Stupid me, but I thought it would be a little more cheerful than that. Basically my gripe is that it had this really gothic undertone (which isn't bad) and seemed to have a theme of self-sacrifice for the greater good. It seemed that while Thomas was learning from the Spook that all the dude was really trying to warn him about was how he would be alone all the time, that people wouldn't like him, but that he was the only one for the job. "Yup, you have to get used to being haunted by gory figures and witches, and wierd supernatural creatures for the rest of your life!" There wasn't a lot of hope in this story, and possessions and what not have always given me the willies. I just have to say the whole pig thing at the end with the butcher was just gross. I'll leave it at that.
There are tons of fans of this 9 (I think) book series, so if anyone out there wants to contradict me please do! I'd like to know someone else's view of the other books. It was a little too much creepy for me. But then again, the scariest I like to get is the movie The Sixth Sense.
2 1/2 out of 5 (for the creepy factor, so add another star and a half for those who like that stuff).
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