[This is a review I wrote in 2007]

**Dark. Mysterious. Beautifully written.**

Another brilliant and darkly compelling novel by Marcus Sedgwick, steeped in the history and mystery of seventeenth-century witch-hunts.

Jamie is haunted by fire... the fire that destroyed his family home. His waking moments and dreams are filled with thoughts of the fire. Jamie is sent to Somerset to stay with his aunt and his cousin, but still he is unable to escape the torment of the fire. In his dreams he is tormented by an evil old woman, and soon he becomes embroiled in the quest to find the true meaning of an ancient carving set in chalk in the hillside of the village where he's staying, Crownhill.

This is a short novel, but its length suits the pace of this intricately woven plot which is intertwined cleverly with a report from a seventeenth-century witch-hunt. We see more of the report as Jamie gradually unravels the truth. Really well-written. I recommend it! ( )

Dark and sinister, this book grabs you with both hands - hide under the duvet!!! :) An enjoyable read for young adults, it kept me gripped enough to read in one sitting (I'm 40!). ( )

Twelve year old, James Fraser (Jamie) is haunted by the fire. A family tragedy that will stay with him forever.

He goes to live for a short time with his aunt, in the small West Country village of Crownhill, both to give him space to get over the traumatic events of the fire, and allow his parents to repair the family home.

But life is about to get even more terrifying for Jamie. When an evil old hag, somehow manages to get into his dreams, and then there’s the girl. A sacred victim of a seventeenth-century witch hunt, whose presence Jamie can sense all around.

As the story races to it’s scary conclusion, and the dark secrets of Crownhill and its witches are revealed, Jamie must face his very worst fears, if he wants to survive and free himself from the horrors of the past.

The more I read Marcus Sedgwick’s books the more impressed I am. He creates some brilliantly dark worlds that always feel ‘real’, and you can really sense the amount of research and work he puts in to get this just right, and without this ever overpowering or leaving the prose ‘dry’.

We learn the girls story, from the snippets and reports, that Jamie discovers and which is also cleverly interwoven with Jamie’s own story.

Bit by bit we begin to realise the connections between the events surrounding this girl and Jamie’s own horrifying dreams, Sedgwick takes both stories and masterfully builds the suspense right up to the frightening conclusion in this wonderfully spooky book.

Perfect for young teens and older.

Read and comment on my full review at:
http://www.bartsbookshelf.co.uk/2008/09/26/witch-hill-marcus-sedgewick/

( )