I enjoyed the book, although I was confused by the couple references to when Angie's brother, Sebastian, turned into a vampire -- it didn't happen in this book, and as far as I can tell, this is the first book in a new series. Other than that little bit of confusion, it's a fun read, and the line drawings are great. (I imagine more than a few kids will color in the illustrations!)

Note: I received an advance reading copy through the Goodreads First Reads program. ( )

Nice little book, with excellent thought exercises wrestling with power and morality. Also, smart solutions in the end. ( )

I was sadly disappointed with this novel for young people. It teaches that "power is bad." The girl in the story destroys her magic given power even though much good had already been done. She destroys the power permanently so no other witch can ever be given the power. Power is bad, the lesson goes.

The author also teaches that eating meat is bad, even though meat is the evolutionary healthy food for humans, and especially for teenagers. Vegetarian living is fundamentally unhealthy, but his heroine promotes vegetarian and sneers at meat.

I would not recommend this book for any teen or young adult. ( )