The Ragwitch Book

As it says, I started but did not finish this. I picked it up at the library because I was looking for more Nix after finishing the Old Kingdom trilogy. It's hard to believe that they are by the same author, although as others have written, this is his first published work. Mediocre is the word I would use to describe it. Despite the length, it really is written for older children or younger teens, and not just because of the age of the characters. The writing style is very direct and literal. Everything is explained, numerous times. I only read about 30 pages, and in those 30 pages we are told twice that Julia is the one who makes the decisions, while Patrick follows her. To be told once was too much. We should have been shown. Every action is recorded, even when the dialog and subsequent actions make it clear what had happened. For example, when Julia first finds the nest, she asks, "What's this nest?" Then we are told that she had been exploring the top of the midden. Ya' think? The Ragwitch's dialogue sounds like a parody of a bad horror film -- "And she is mine, ALL MINE!"

It's too bad that the writing style is so mediocre, because the ideas behind the book are innovative and unusual. The world that Nix creates shows a lot of promise, but I just can't trudge through the turgid prose, particularly when the ending is entirely predictable.