White Cat

Cassel comes from a family of powerful curse workers - magicians who are able to perform magic that affects other people. Some are able to change others' luck, or their memories, or can even kill a person with a single touch. These curse workers are generally feared by the public for the work that they do. Fortunately (or unfortunately) Cassel himself does not have any powers; he's just a normal kid in a family with a long history of working. While Cassel wishes he had the abilities that his mom and brothers have so that he can belong, part of him is happy to be normal. But Cassel's history isn't quite as perfect as he pretends it is - at the age of 14 he killed his best friend. He does not even remember doing it, but Cassel has never quite gotten over this event and has desperately tried to be as typical of a teenager as possible. The wall of normalcy that Cassel has built around himself comes crashing down however when he begins sleepwalking and slowly begins to uncover the truth about himself and his family.

Holly Black is the author of such other beloved fantasy books as Tithe and The Spiderwick Chronicles. White Cat is the first book in what will become a series about Cassel and his life among the curse workers, and it pleases on all counts. Black has done a good job of creating a sort of alternate history peppered with the struggles that the workers have endured over time and a world where being a worker is both a great blessing and a curse. I greatly enjoyed the extra dimension of the crime family that Cassel's family works for, which creates some extra intrigue to keep things fresh and intense. Parts of the story are a tad predictable, but this is comforting rather than irritating and peppered with just enough twists to keep readers on their toes. Now that things are set up I'm very curious to see where Black goes with the rest of the series.

Overall Grade: A