Half Bad by Sally Green

Summary from Goodreads

Half Bad by Sally Green is a breathtaking debut novel about one boy's struggle for survival in a hidden society of witches.

You can't read, can't write, but you heal fast, even for a witch.

You get sick if you stay indoors after dark.

You hate White Witches but love Annalise, who is one.

You've been kept in a cage since you were fourteen.

All you've got to do is escape and find Mercury, the Black Witch who eats boys. And do that before your seventeenth birthday.

Easy.

Paperback, 400 pages

Published March 3rd 2014 by Penguin (first published January 1st 2014) 
 

My Review
 

Half Bad is a debut to get all shouty about! It has a real interesting mix of qualities which make it stand out from the crowd and have me seriously excited!
 

Sally Green is a fantastic writer who has managed to build her world extensively and to complete perfection! She has crafted her characters in such a vivid way, that they jump right out of the page and force you to sit up and feel something!
 

In a world of witches, who gain their power at a giving ceremony at their 16(?)th birthday, things would seem pretty straightforward. But white witches won't stand for black witches in their world and they ruthlessly hunt them down.
 

Nathan is a half breed - half black & half white! The authorities keep a very close eye on him, they don't kill him - probably because he is the son of the most notorious black witch and they keep him around for some secret reason....
 

Nathan is a stand out leading character. I liked him a lot, for his bravery, courage and intelligence! I was very angry with the abuse that he was forced to endure at the hands of others and I wanted to step in and fight to protect him. I think his horrific treatment over such a long period of time made him the tough, complex and very conflicted person he is.
 

The storyline is pacy, it slows down to let us see the finer details, then speeds up to fly through the action and shockers. My heart was in my mouth in places and I flew through those pages at an alarming rate because I HAD to know what was going to happen next!
 

The lead up to the ending is tense, edgy and action packed. The ending itself....WOW!!
 

Half Bad is not at all like what I was expecting. It was emotion filled, cruel in places, frightening, complex, exciting and just all round awesome. I can now totally understand the hype surrounding this book. Sally Green has written a real winner and I can't wait to go on the next journey!
 

4.5 / 5 Stars!
 

*Special thanks to Penguin for the review copy*