Published by: Simon and Schuster Children's, February 27th 2014
Genre: YA, Historical
Pages: 304
Format: Ebook
Source: Simon and Schuster UK Children's via Netgalley (thank you)
The year is 1646, tales of witches, murder and changelings are rife and a dark era is about to begin… Barnaby Nightingale is the perfect son; Strong, handsome, daring, everything his father wants him to be, and yet for his mother, Frances, he will never be the son she desires. Frances believes that her real son was taken from her as a baby by the local village folk who believed him to be a changeling, and Barnaby left in his place. Constantly disappointing his mother, Barnaby is spoiled by his father and despised by his younger brother, Abel. But when the beautiful and mysterious Naomi catches Barnaby's attention his world is thrown into chaos as superstition and dark folklore take hold of the small village and Naomi is accused of being a witch. Fear and suspicion spread and soon Barnaby finds himself on trial too and facing the ultimate penalty… death.
The year is 1646, tales of witches, murder and changelings are rife and a dark era is about to begin… Barnaby Nightingale is the perfect son; Strong, handsome, daring, everything his father wants him to be, and yet for his mother, Frances, he will never be the son she desires. Frances believes that her real son was taken from her as a baby by the local village folk who believed him to be a changeling, and Barnaby left in his place. Constantly disappointing his mother, Barnaby is spoiled by his father and despised by his younger brother, Abel. But when the beautiful and mysterious Naomi catches Barnaby's attention his world is thrown into chaos as superstition and dark folklore take hold of the small village and Naomi is accused of being a witch. Fear and suspicion spread and soon Barnaby finds himself on trial too and facing the ultimate penalty… death.
It wasn't until I was 70% into this book that it occurred to me the magic/witchy/paranormal stuff wasn't happening because The Blood List is a historical novel. I foolishly assumed the words witch and changeling meant a fantasy novel, but that's not the case with The Blood List. I think this made my enjoyment of the book suffer, because I kept waiting for something that was never going to happen.
That said, it's still a good historical novel. The world building is immersing and flawless. I really felt like I was in the 1500s, living these lives with the characters. Unfortunately, they were lives I wasn't invested in. I didn't care what happened to the characters. Barnaby felt very one dimensional to me, and Naomi never captured my love. Juliet was my favourite, and I still couldn't really care what happened to her. Barnaby's parents were equally bland and infuriating.
Another thing is the main events of this novel - the witch trials, Barnaby being sentenced to death - those things start happening around 65% of the book. So for the first 60% you're kind of floundering around, wondering if anything is going to happen.
Because I have very conflicting opinions about this novel, I'm going to separate things I liked and didn't.
Plus points:
Brilliantly crafted historical setting
Events, thoughts, and speech that feel true to the time period
Bad points:
Bland characters
Nothing much happens; it just drones along
Dull love interest
Characters ★★☆☆☆
Setting/world building ★★★☆☆
Writing Style ★★★☆☆
★★☆☆☆
(2.5 stars)
(2.5 stars)
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