The Devil’s Playground

Summary:

Sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Winters may be a witch, but she doesn’t know the first thing about magic.

Her father, a wizard himself, has forbidden the use of her powers for her own protection. But when accusations of witchcraft start flying through Salem Village, Elizabeth wishes she was more prepared.

Despite her lack of magical knowledge, Elizabeth appoints herself to save innocent women from the untimely demise the village has in store for them. Elizabeth finds, however, that she is not the hero Salem needs her to be. When Elizabeth is betrayed by someone she trusts, she loses control of her emotions and unintentionally curses the village with the ten plagues of Egypt. Now, Elizabeth must figure out how to break the curse before the morning of the tenth plague—the plague of death.

If she fails, Salem will cease to exist.  (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)

Please note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review courtesy of the author.

Review:

I guess I should have expected it more, but when I went into this read I was expecting more fantasy aspects and fewer religious overtones.  While I should have expected that to be a theme considering it was the town of Salem, I wasn’t expecting the frequent reflections and some allegories you’d have to be blind to miss.

I loved Elizabeth’s sister, but I found Elizabeth herself fell a little flat to me.  She is constantly making terrible decisions and her naivety consistently results in other people having to come to her rescue.  I know in the end she made her own choices, but I was expecting a little more fight.  I can see how this read would appeal quite a bit to younger or more devout audiences, but just wasn’t my cup of tea!

Warning: Contains some violence in reference to hangings.

Rating: 3 stars!

Who should read it? Folks looking for a squeaky clean read for middle grade to younger young adults.