I've had my eye on this book for quite some time, ever since I stumbled upon it's cool looking trailer online. Click here to watch it.
And yeah, I love Holly Black. She wrote Spiderwick! I grew up on those books! This book's intended audience was for older teens, and when this copy finally arrived at the library I was THRILLED. I was sort of assuming it to be all about the magic. I was incorrect.
Cassel Sharpe lives in New Jersey at his boarding school. He is haunted at his memories of killing his best friend Lila. He doesn't remember actually doing the killing, all he remembers is opening his eyes and seeing her bloody body on the ground underneath him, her blood on his hands, holding a knife. In this world, "Workers" are the underground, the con artists, the mobsters, the gang members, whatever you want to call them. They influence, or "work" people by touching them with their bare hands. Being a Worker is fairly rare; it is inherited through genetics and only about one in every 1,000 people has it.
Types of Workers:
Luck Workers (the most commen. They usually make anti-curse amulets with their powers to sell)
Memory Workers (Can alter or even completely remove memories)
Emotion Workers (Can completely change somebody's emotions)
Death Workers (Can kill people by touching them)
and Transformation Workers (REALLY rare. Can turn people into anything.)
Every time a curse is Worked, the Worker feels an intense BlowBack. For example, if a Death Worker kills somebody, then the finger they used to touch the person will blacken and shrivel, Memory Worker removes a memory from somebody, then one of his memories will be removed as well.
Cassel's brothers, mother, grandfather, and father are all Workers. His mother is in jail for getting caught conning somebody with her Emotion Working. In this world, Working is illegal and it is a social crime to go anywhere without wearing gloves-- it'd be like walking around with a switchblade fully out and extended.
The story starts with Cassel waking on the school roof after dreaming of a white cat. He is escorted down by the f ire department after the Principal calls them, but then is kicked out of the school, considered potentially suicidal (they don't believe he was only sleep walking) and don't want him back until they can get a note from his doctor. So Cassel stays with his older brother Philip, Philip's wife Maura, and her infant son for a day or so but then goes to live with his Grandad.
And here are where all the plot twists start. This story is filled with plot twists. Ok, fine, I like them well enough. But Holly Black, what were you thinking?! She foreshadowed them so dang much that I pretty much had the entire story figured out by chapter five. I won't spoil any of the twists, because Black pretty much did that all by herself. I liked this book well enough but I have to say it now: I dont like first-person writing. I think it's irritating. But I tolerated that, and Holly Black spoiling her own story, because it was a good story. It really was; I definately enjoyed it. Clever, dangerous, and sneaky? Yup. Surprising? Eh, not so much.
I reccomend this book to anyone who likes fantasy-crime stories. I heard that there will be two sequels, and I'll read them if I get my hands on a copy.
I give this story 3.5 hearts.
I liked this review :)
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