Staff Pick: Half Bad

Sally Green's Half Bad is the thrilling start to a trilogy about a young witch with an indomitable will to survive. Nathan Bryn looks forward to his seventeenth birthday when he'll receive three gifts and become a full witch. But he's a Half Code. Born the illegitimate son of a white witch and the infamous, hated black witch named Marcus, he's put under strict surveillance and house arrest by the council of white witches that views him as a threat.

Nathan is eventually imprisoned in a cage, beaten and handcuffed by a merciless trainer because of the council. Through all this, he struggles to determine if he's inherently good like his mother or evil like his father. As his seventeenth birthday approaches, Nathan fights to escape and find his father while remaining undetected by the council and the witch hunters after him. He must receive his three gifts before it's too late.

Half Bad is a thought provoking and engaging read that I couldn't put down. Green's character is honest, and the story makes you want to fight on his side. I look forward to reading the next book, Half Wild, which is due out March of 2015.

If you'd like to check out our copy of Half Bad, you can find it in our catalog by clicking here.

-William