Lure of the Dead (Last Apprentice Series #10)

by Joseph Delaney, Patrick Arrasmith (Illustrator)

Overview

The tenth book in the internationally best-selling fantasy adventure series that inspired the forthcoming major motion picture Seventh Son. Back at home, but in no less danger, Tom will face a tragic love story, an unforgivable sacrifice, and a new creature of the dark that terrorizes a village with its thirst for blood.

Tom Ward, the Spook's apprentice, and his master have bound the Fiend at last. But now Tom must use his powers as the seventh son of a seventh son to put an end to the source of evil once and for all. When the Spook is captured by bloodthirsty creatures of the dark, Tom must vanquish a god, avenge his master, and protect the person he loves most—Alice—from himself. The Last Apprentice series is soon to be a major motion picture, Seventh Son, starring Jeff Bridges, Ben Barnes, Alicia Vikander, Kit Harington, Olivia Williams, Antje Traue, Djimon Hounsou and Julianne Moore as Mother Malkin. It's a suspenseful thrill-ride that's "spine-tingling" (Publishers Weekly) and "anything but tame" (Horn Book). But don't read it after dark!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062027634
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	08/21/2012
Series:	Last Apprentice Series
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	117,435
Lexile:	780L (what's this?)
File size:	5 MB
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Joseph Delaney lives in Lancashire, England, right in the middle of boggart territory. His village has a boggart, called a hall knocker, which was laid to rest under the steps of a house near the church. Most of the places in The Last Apprentice series are based on real locations in Lancashire, and the inspiration behind the stories often comes from local ghost stories and legends.

Editorial Reviews

Anything but tame.

Horn Book (starred review)

Praise for The Last Apprentice series: “The Last Apprentice series continues to be one of the best written of the last several years.

ALA Booklist

Delaney’s mastery of suspense will grip even reluctant readers with his dramatic, beautifully paced prose.

The Times (London)

"Anything but tame."

Horn Book

With the Fiend temporarily restrained and the war over, Tom, Alice, and Master Gregory return to Chipenden to oversee the rebuilding of the Spook’s house. The Spook’s extensive library was destroyed in the fire, and soon a mysterious note arrives offering a collection of books for sale to replace what was lost. Along with Judd, a former Spook’s apprentice connected to the note’s author, Tom and his master journey to see these books, only to encounter a sect of Romanian witches and demons committed to doing the Fiend’s work and restoring him to power. Book ten in Delaney’s The Last Apprentice series continues the incremental pace of the plot, introducing yet another old apprentice and collection of denizens of the dark. Tom learns that he will have to sacrifice Alice to banish the Fiend forever, but it may be difficult for the reader to fear this, since Delaney often creates life-or-death situations for his characters that they neatly escape. Here, Tom believes his master has been killed and tortured by the Romanian demons, but a sophisticated reader will predict the outcome of this almost immediately, deadening any suspense. Several instances of characters suddenly remembering the exact information needed to save the day are grating, as is Tom’s continued and constant wondering about the wisdom of using Alice’s dark magic in their fight against the dark. Many of this book’s illustrations are genuinely sinister and may help build the tension in what is otherwise a lackluster installment in this long series. Ages 11 to 15.

VOYA - Vikki Terrile