Booking It: Half Bad

Dark and twisted in its portrayal of a feud between Black and White witches, Half Bad by Sally Green has been sold in 42 countries, and the film rights were snatched up almost instantly by Fox Entertainment Group after its publication. Set in modern day England, this fantasy world features “good” White witches and “evil” Black witches, but we soon learn that everything is not so, well, black and white. The fight between good and evil is never simple in this novel, and protagonist Nathan finds himself caught in the middle, as he is the son of Marcus, one of the most notorious Black witches of the age. (For instance, Marcus goes one step further than Voldemort, as he eats his victims once he has defeated them.) Nathan’s mother, a widely adored white witch, committed suicide years ago.

Green keenly explores the idea of nature versus nurture by depicting Nathan’s life as one dogged by prejudice. The boy is constantly pushed away from the White side of himself, as the members of the White Witch Council give him every reason to resent them. They restrict his movements, follow his every step and tattoo him with the number 0.5 so that his outsider status is clear to all.

Half Bad focuses on the theme of not belonging and of having nowhere to which to escape. In this world, the White Witch Council can kill a Black witch on sight, and Nathan is suspected of being one. The audience watches as he is nearly pushed into the “evil” side of himself. There is plenty of gore in the novel, but there is also tenderness, as in Nathan’s romance with Annalise and his relationship with his brother, Aaron.

Half Bad does not always feel original, but the tension-filled story will have you constantly turning pages until its suspenseful end. The first in a trilogy, the book can be swallowed quickly in a few dizzying, pleasurable gulps and will leave you aching for more. But for those who hate cliff-hangers, be warned, as the final installment of the series will not be released until March of 2016.