The Spook's Blood: Book 10 (Wardstone Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney
| The Spook's Blood: Book 10 (Wardstone Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney | |
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| Category: Teens | |
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Reviewer: Nigethan Sathiyalingam
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| Summary: 'The Spook's Blood is an enjoyable read with plenty of suspense and tension, but it ultimately feels like filler before the final epic conflict between Tom and the Fiend. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 275 | Date: June 2012 |
| Publisher: Bodley Head | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-0370331812 | |
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One might've thought that having bound The Devil in a massive underground pit and cut his head off, life would become a little easier for Thomas Ward, Spook in-training. Although the Fiend has undoubtedly been weakened, he has many loyal servants set on putting him back together so that he can reap terrible eternal vengeance on the few brave enough to fight him. While witch assassin Grimalkin, a dark and unlikely ally, evades the Fiend's minions and keeps his head separate from his body, it is up to Tom, Alice and The Spook to work out a way to destroy him permanently. But Grimalkin cannot run forever, and the Fiend's most powerful servants are encircling Tom and his allies, forcing them to fight with everything they have, just to survive.
After a trip to Malkin Tower where Tom learns more about the process of actually destroying the Fiend, which involves a horrific ritual and a sacrifice of the sort that I struggle to see him being able to make, it is back to business as usual with the Spook discovering a lucrative source of books to rebuild his library from. There's a nice old-fashioned horror story feel to Tom's interactions with Mistress Fresque, the owner of the books, and her sinister home. Plenty of suspense is built up and there are some genuinely scary scenes. This later gives way to a more action-based approach, heralded by the arrival of Grimalkin, as Tom takes the fight to his foes and eventually confronts the main villain of the book, the vampire god Siscoi.
I'm a huge fan of Joseph Delaney's Wardstone Chronicles, with its distinctive protagonists and wonderfully dark villains. As usual, his writing is effortlessly immersive, being powerfully atmospheric when required without compromising the sharp pacing of what is an exciting novel. However, I did feel that the level of intensity was somewhat lacking in this instalment, especially when you compare it to The Spook's Destiny or I am Grimalkin. The Spook's Blood is pacy and there's plenty happening, but it feels like a step back from the climatic binding of the Fiend. It didn't feel right that the Spook's focus wasn't entirely on the issue of the Fiend, and although the attempt to buy books for the Spook's library eventually disintegrated into a much more serious conflict, it did feel out of place at first.
However, at the same time I did love the chapter Just Like Old Times, which had a wonderfully poignant scene where Tom helped the ghost of a little girl find the light, and also featured the welcome return of one of my favourite characters. This part of the story brought some welcome nostalgia, bringing back memories of Tom's first months as a Spook's Apprentice.
Tom continues to be a very sympathetic protagonist, maintaining the honest, sincere narrative that made him so likeable in previous instalments, but at the same time displaying an increasing maturity and confidence, as he grows into his role, not just as the next Spook, but as the County's one hope against the Devil.
Especially throughout the latter half of the series, Delaney has gradually displayed the decline of the Spook mirroring Tom's own rise in prowess. The Spook's Blood showed the Spook at his worst yet, weary and ineffective. It is an interesting dynamic and one that has been developed well by the author.
The final battle of the book was a little anticlimatic, but it does its job in paving the way towards what I hope will be the epic conclusion that this series deserves.
Thank you to the publishers for sending a copy to The Bookbag.
For fans of horror wrapped inside the webs of a top-notch plot, Darren Shan is at your service with his cracking Demonata series. The Bookbag loved Blood Beast (The Demonata) by Darren Shan. Meanwhile, one of the most controversial young adult writers around, Melvin Burgess, has his own take on witchcraft in his beautifully told story, Burning Issy.
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You can read more book reviews or buy The Spook's Blood: Book 10 (Wardstone Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy The Spook's Blood: Book 10 (Wardstone Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney at Amazon.com.
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