If you're looking for a kickass female character, Violet's your girl. At her brother's behest, Violet goes into the hold to defend the ship's cargo, only to discover that cargo is Will. She soon finds out when the ship they're on board is attacked at the docks. However, Violet remains somewhat naive and at first she doesn't fully understand the character of the nobleman her brother serves. While she and her father's wife barely tolerate each other, Violet looks up to her half-brother. Violet is the bastard daughter of an Englishman, who returned home to his family from India with her in tow. Which brings us to the second of the main characters. Nevertheless, he continues to present much as one expects of a scion of light: a hard worker with a strong sense of justice and a deep loyalty to his friends. And while he experiences some intuitive flashes of knowledge, for much of the novel he struggles to access his power, let alone master it. Instead of the cliched farm boy, Will has had to fend for himself on the streets of London after the death of his mother and has wound up as a dockworker. In keeping with a darker, more mature tone, he has been aged up from eleven to seventeen. Ignorant of his heritage, he meets with the last remnant of those forces of Light who reveal to him the true magic of the world.īut that is largely where the similarities end. At first glance, he seems very similar to Cooper's version: of humble background, he's the sole descendant of the forces of Light that at great cost (mostly) defeated the Dark in an age long passed. Some clever changes have been made to introduce some shades of grey and also to appeal to a more modern audience. However, while Pacat very clearly intends Dark Rise as a homage, this is also not an uncomplicated tale of Light vs Dark. The title itself harks back to The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper, and the story plays with many of the same elements. If this sounds familiar to you, it's not surprising Dark Rise is a book that proudly shows its influences.

When he is finally captured, he discovers a magical dimension to the world he never knew: a world which, as the last of his bloodline, he may be destined to save from the return of the Dark King. Dark Rise brings some shades of grey to a classic tale of Light vs Dark.Ĭover art by Magdalena Pagowska, 1821 London, a teenage boy called Will is on the run from the nobleman who killed his mother.

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