Children's Writer, Book Reviewer, Teacher, Artist
Out 29th September, Tim Tilley's follow-up to Harklights is wonderful. Witchstorm is storytelling at its very best: wildly imaginative and exquisitely written with lightning pace and atmospheric illustrations. I loved it!
Will believes in witches and the stories he's grown up with - of mythical storm-lions, disappearing villages and secret songs. Most of all, he believes the tales of magical treasure hidden in the Fens centuries ago. Treasure that he has to find, to solve the mystery of his Ma's disappearance. Then, in the eye of a storm, a witch arrives...
I have confession to make: I never got round to reading Harklights last year. I know! Now I really must read it because I've enjoyed Witchstorm so much. This book is an absolute treasure. Tim Tilley's writing is crisp, light, beautiful and evocative, like a wild walk on a fine day, while delighting in an approaching storm! He manages to conjure vivid, atmospheric scenes through pitch-perfect prose and stark, surprising visuals. For me, it is hugely inspiring for my own writing - I admire what Tim Tilley is doing enormously. Chapters are short and bursting with adventure, magic, wildness and. above all, heart.
This is a fabulous story. It's a magical adventure that never lets up, weaving a rich mythology of witches and wildness like a love-letter to nature and our place in it. Will is a terrific protagonist with a voice that beats to the rhythm of magic and wildness. I really enjoyed how each chapter builds upon a new clue as Will searches for his Ma, revealing more of the witch world and the danger that it brings. Will discovers clues in artefacts, in coded messages, underground and in the sky - it's so inventive and also just great fun! And let's talk about Hildreth... a brilliantly cold and sinister enemy, plucked from fairy-tale and completely terrifying as he and his Crows are never far behind Will. The story is practically a relentless chase from beginning to end - with nearly every transport imaginable used too!
At its core, though, Witchstorm is all about the heart: our love for the landscape and our love for each other. And I've had a heart-knowing... Tim Tilley is one of my new favourite children authors. Now to getting round to reading Harklights...
Thanks to Usborne for sending a copy for me to review.
https://www.waterstones.com/book/witchstorm/tim-tilley/9781474966610