Blackwatch

by Jenna Burtenshaw

Overview

Jenna Burtenshaw continues her dark fantasy trilogy The Secrets of Wintercraft with YA dystopian novel Blackwatch.
 
In Wintercraft, fifteen-year-old Kate Winters learned she was one of the Skilled, a rare person who can bring the dead to life. Even among that rare group, Kate is special. She alone can understand the secrets of an ancient book of knowledge.
 
In the sequel, Blackwatch, Kate is on the run from the Skilled, who have accused her of murder. And she is being hunted by an elite unit of assassins fighting in the war against Albion, Kate’s home.
 
When a potent magic threatens the veil between life and death, fate reunites Kate with enigmatic villain Silas Dane, a man who cannot be killed. Only they can save Albion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062136688
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/26/2012
Series:	Secrets of Wintercraft , #2
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	336
Lexile:	900L (what's this?)
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Jenna Burtenshaw has been writing since she was a child, and she divides her time between her writing, her dogs, and her rescue rabbits. She is the author of Shadowcry and Blackwatch. She lives in England.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 7 Up—Following the events of Shadowcry (HarperCollins, 2011), Kate is on trial for murder-and found guilty by the very people she trusted. Her friend Edgar helps her break out of prison, but while escaping the Skilled (those with the power to see into the veil separating the living from the dead), they are picked up by the Blackwatch, a powerful militarylike enforcement agency. The Blackwatch is also hunting the evil Silas Dane, whose link to Kate may save or doom them both. Orchestrating both hunts is mysterious and powerful Dalliah, who wants to see more of Kate's rare ability to enter the "shadowed realm between the living and the dead" and use that power to speed the veil's destruction. Underdeveloped characters and labored prose bog down what could be a fast-paced adventure. Events of the first book are referenced but not explained, leaving confusing gaps for readers new to the series. Some teens may connect with the story, but if it's Kate's magical talents that interest them, suggest Garth Nix's Sabriel (HarperTeen, 1996) instead.—Brandy Danner, Wilmington Memorial Library, MA

School Library Journal

Amid the backlash from the events of Shadowcry (2011), Kate Winters' and Silas Dane's destinies again become intertwined. As a traitor on the run, Silas finds a new goal and purpose in rumors of activity from another of Albion's old enemies--fellow immortal Dalliah Grey, who caused the council a great deal of trouble hundreds of years ago. But heading across the sea to the Continent to join up with her proves difficult when Silas runs into an old enemy from his soldier days. In a parallel story line, Kate's allies find refuge among the Skilled, but she finds imprisonment. In learning why they are so resistant to her, she learns more about Wintercraft and how dangerous her bloodline is. Late in the novel, both story lines finally come together when powerful magic jeopardizes the veil between the living and the dead. Kate's story explores more of the history of Albion, the Skilled and the bonemen. By contrast, the Continental setting is underutilized and under-explored, lacking sufficient differentiation from Albion. The characters that inhabit it--such as Silas' rival and foil Bandermain, the elite Blackwatch he commands and the enigmatic Dalliah--make up for the Continent's lack of personality by providing the ambiguity that made Silas so interesting in the first installment. Fans of Shadowcry (2011) will find the plot improvements satisfying. (Fantasy. 10-15)

Kirkus Reviews