There is something evil
up Bergamot Holler, and it's been targeting the Hall family for generations.
Patty Hall is fifteen
years old. She loves stargazing, science fiction, and all things related to
space exploration. This leaves her perfectly prepared for the wrong problem.
Patty is afraid her
mother will send her to a care facility if she tells her what she's seen. If
she doesn't figure things out soon, she's going to join her father in the Hall
family cemetery plot.
Patty has to come to
grips with her own physical handicap, face the wilderness, and an ancient evil
all alone if she's going to survive.
Will O' the Wisp is
suitable for young adults. It involves elements of suspense, and is set in the
mid 1970s.
My Review
Will O' the Wisp is the
story of a teenage girl, Patty Hall, told in the first person POV. I haven’t
read any story with such a young main character and was curious about this one.
As I read other books by Craig Boyack I hoped it wouldn’t disappoint me. And it
didn’t.
The primary characters, Patty,
her mother, her step father and her friends Laura and Pete are not glamorous but
rather down to earth which lent a certain innocence and believability.
The characters are well-drawn, and
the period details are fascinating and well-researched.
Patty is tormented by
the leg braces her mother forces her to wear all the time, and by an odd light,
that threatens not only her physical existence
but seems to have a connection with tragedies that happened in her family along
the time. I won’t reveal more as I don’t want to spoil your pleasure in reading
an eerie story.
All I want to add is
that I enjoyed this character, Patty, a combination
of a young Miss Marple and a young Sherlock Holmes – smart, brave and
imaginative girl.
The author did a great
job in highlighting the generation gap, the description of mother-daughter
relationship – although Patty is clever enough to soften it and not antagonize
her mother, allowing her to do the research on the supernatural manifestations
that hunt her.
Craig Boyack's books always keep me turning
page after page, wanting more.
The
bottom line is, I think this is a good read and look forward to reading more
from this author.