Product Description

The world is changing - the government has seized control of every aspect of society, and now kids are disappearing. For fifteen-year-old Wisty and her older brother Whit, life turns upside-down when they are hauled out of bed one night, separated from their parents, and thrown into a secret compound for no reason they can comprehend. The new government is clearly trying to suppress Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Being a Normal Teenager. Imprisoned together and condemned to death, Wisty and Whit begin exhibiting strange abilities and powers they never dreamed of. Maybe there is a reason they were singled out. Can this newly discovered witch and a wizard master their skills in time to save themselves, their parents - and maybe the world?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3042 in Books
• Published on: 2009-10-08
• Binding: Hardcover
• 336 pages

About the Author
JAMES PATTERSON is one of the best-known and biggest-selling writers of all time. He is the author of some of the most popular series of the past decade: the Women's Murder Club, the Alex Cross novels and Maximum Ride, and he has written many other number one bestsellers including romance novels and stand-alone thrillers. He lives in Florida with his wife and son. James is passionate about encouraging both adults and children alike to read. This has led to him forming a partnership with the National Literacy Trust, an independent, UK-based charity that changes lives through literacy.

Customer Reviews

Not bad, just not for me
I have read many James Patterson books and have become increasingly frustrated with the quality of the stories. I know that he now works with other authors but the original James Patterson spark seems to be missing in his more recent books. I love the older books like `Roses Are Red' and `Along Came the Spider'. This story is for older children as it follows Wisty and her older brother Whit as they are taken from their beds at night and thrown into a compound for no apparent reason. During their imprisonment together, the siblings being to realise that they have special powers. Strange things start to happen and we see them learning to control their new abilities. There are some amusing moments as they struggle with their new found abilities and some sadder moments when they think of their parents, who they have now been separated from. In typical James Patterson style, the chapters are short and I read the whole book over 2 days. It has clearly been left open for a sequel and I have to say that I won't be bothering with it. I think that I am the wrong age group for this book but can see how it would be enjoyed by teenagers, similar to his series about the flying kids.

Witch & Wizard
Witch & Wizard started off quite well, but got steadily worse as it progressed. I hate to say it, but I think James Patterson is running out of ideas; at least on the YA side of things.

I got the feeling that this had been written quickly, and that the authors hadn't dedicated enough time to working out a plausible plot. Whether this is because those Patterson-doesn't-write-his-own-books rumours are true, I don't know. The plot had the potential to be fantastic, but there was just too much wackiness involved. Talking dogs, convenient ghosts and boy weasels are just a few of the occurences that left me scratching my head in puzzlement -- they really were mind-boggling.

There were some parts of Witch & Wizard that I liked, and it's a good job, otherwise I probably would have stopped reading. The first hundred pages were really quite good, and did a great job of setting the scene and introducing the characters. Wisty and Whit were interesting enough, and I liked their brother/sister relationship. I wanted them to find the notion of magic a strange one, rather than just accepting it as if it was nothing out of the ordinary, but instead they hardly batted an eyelid.

The pacing of the plot is still what I would consider Pattinson's strong suit, as the chapters move very quickly, and you never know what's waiting for you around the corner. He definitely tries to keep the reader interested, and for the most part, he succeeds. Although I didn't like this book as much as Maximum Ride, I will, as always, be reading the next in the series. I just can't help myself.

2.5/5

Different to other JP books
Very different to all other James Patterson books. Not sure if liked it or not so will listen to it again.