The Apprentice Witch

Unbedingt mit dem ersten Teil der Serie beginnen.

Gave it as a gift she seemed to like it

Its been a while since I read a good middle grade book and what I can say is I loved it. The book as a whole carries you through the journey of this witch as she discover her abilities and powers but as well overcomes many of her mental and emotional obstacles. When you first start to read the book it starts off slow but picks up pace early on into the reading, It felt as the author a few chapters in started to get into a writing rhythm and that's when the story begins to develop. The story as a whole deals with the turmoil of being a teen with self esteem issues along with being a witch and her trials to make a friend and maintain those friendships while doing her duties of course. You will enjoy this story for the simple fact because you get a well thought out plot not overly complicated you get action and as well as various sub plots which make the story interesting. I would love to see second volume of this story, hopefully the author didn't just make this a stand alone.

This is exactly the sort of book that is guaranteed to tick all my boxes, so it’s no surprise that as soon as I learned of this book’s existence, I ordered it! The Apprentice Witch is a lovely coming-of-age story about a young witch finding her feet in a new town – it reminded me a lot of the feel of Kiki’s Delivery Service, so was an obvious hit for me.When Arianwyn fails her assessment to become a fully-fledged witch, she’s given the consolation prize of an apprenticeship in a small town in the middle of nowhere. As she struggles to fit in and prove herself, she learns a lot about herself and her craft – it’s a classic story, but one that really works. As I say, the premise reminds me a lot of Kiki’s Delivery Service, which is my favourite Ghibli film, and The Apprentice Witch, while it has more action and more pace, has a similar hopeful tone about becoming the best witch/person you can be.Arianwyn’s a great character. From the very beginning you are rooting for her, and I was genuinely disappointed for her when she didn’t pass her test, even though it says she won’t in the blurb! I really liked that her frustration and self-esteem issues were apparent, but she was determined to work through them and prove people wrong – it made it easy to fall in love with her, since she was flawed but working hard to improve herself. I really liked watching her find her place in amongst the people of her new village – she makes friends and enemies, of course, and these characters are also well-sketched, particularly her friend Salle and the horrible Gimma. Arianwyn’s kindness and persistence make her a great character for kids to identify with, and I know I would have worshipped her if I’d have met her as a younger reader!I really enjoyed the magic system here – the idea is that witches are able to cast spells by using elemental glyphs to channel their power. It’s got just enough freedom that all sorts of fun things can happen, but just enough restriction that it makes Arianwyn’s discoveries really interesting. Hopefully we’ll get even more info on the truth behind the magic in the next book! The creatures that Arianwyn encounters are really fun, and lead to some very exciting scenes – I particularly like Estar, who again proves that Arianwyn’s thoughtful kindness is the best way forward.Overall, The Apprentice Witch is a perfect witchy MG read, with a loveable, realistic heroine and a great storyline. I can see this easily becoming a classic of children’s fantasy, and I can’t wait to read the sequels! Five out of five stars.

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