The Gift

Let me start by saying that I am a big fan of the works of James Patterson. I've read many of his novels, including the Alex Cross novels, the Women's Murder Club novels and my favorites, When the Wind Blows and The Lake House which are the adult versions of the Maximum Ride novels. I've also read the YA Maximum Ride novels and Daniel X.

This novel, however, did not live up to my expectations from this author. I realize it is a YA novel, however, it just seemed to lack substance for me. I felt like the lead characters, a brother and sister who have magic powers and are on the run from a new world order lead by an evil and also magical "One who is the One", are never really defined. I never got a real sense of who they were.

The book does show more contain a lot of action, but really that is all it is. As I said these kids are on the run, so the novel is primarily about their attempts to escape this evil. The storyline itself is good, but really the characters needed further development. I never quite got to where I really cared whether or not they made it.

Overall I found this disappointing and I will not read the sequel. show less

James Patterson writes in an unique way in Witch & Wizard: The Gift, presenting the reader with short chapters that provides insight into the main characters. Although, slow to start, The Gift, soon gains speed making the reader not want to put it down. It however feels rushed at the end and somewhat leaves the reader wanting more, before the to be continued.

I may just be the wrong age for this but it just doesn't quite work for me. For me it reads like the Colour of Magic, trying very hard to be metatextual but in many ways failing to really be original with the texts. Whit and Wisty Allgood are trying to stay alive and in the process learn how their gifts work, meanwhile the villain, the One who is the One is being very stage-villan-y and obvious, very unsubtle.

I may read the rest of this series but honestly I'm not pushed. The best fun is the back pages with the banned books list and why they're banned. There are some good ideas lurking in this series, I'm not entirely sure that the authors are executing the ideas as well as they could.

OMG! … WTH? … It’s Harry Potter and Hermione Granger moshing through Logan’s Run, with excursions into Brave New World, 1984, and Farenheit 451. Not really. It’s the Allgood kids.

Brother and sister, Whitford and Wisteria Allgood, are a teenage wizard and a witch learning to discover and to harness their special talents in order to free a world controlled by the megalomaniacal and sinister The One. As leaders of an underground youth gang of freedom fighters, the siblings alternately narrate their adventures rebelling against a sterile New World Order, hunting for their lost parents and loved ones, and all the while testing and trying their innate magical powers.

Whit, a clairvoyant, has a skill in past-future journaling with a show more penchant for provisioning food whenever necessary. He continues to search for his lost lover. Wisty is a firebrand as well as a hothead. She continually fights the advances of her nemesis informant. Together, the two are able to morph into fanciful creatures that aid in their escapes.

This work addresses as much about adolescent adjustments and teenage angst as it reveals a dystopian future. There are plenty of texting code messages, punk rock features, and teenage rebels to update this fiction with a kind of Mad Max appeal.

One flaw in the staging of this fiction appears when Whit is stripped of his journal (in Chapter 48) by The One. Many chapters later (Chapter 67), Whit is on the lam and is consulting his journal. There is no explanation—textual or magical—how he has managed to regain his secret writings. FCOL.

I have two disappointments here. First, I grabbed the book only seeing James Patterson’s name (I love Alex Cross and Women’s Murder Club). I knew the Patterson brand featured some youthful publications, but I hadn’t noticed this as part of the Witch and Wizard series. I wasn’t prepared for YA reading. BWTM.

Pages fly fast in reading this book. Nevertheless, I really want a satisfying resolution to the one book I finish; I want to be rewarded with an EOM. That doesn’t happen here. I only get … 2bctnd. show less

Imagine another world...
one similar to your own.
A parallel universe, where life is
still full of friends and loves,
school and sports, church and family.

But then: Everything changes.

Overnight.

Because people aren't paying attention,
something important is taken from society:
Books, movies and music. Freedom and justice.
And respect for the incredible creative power of kids.
It can all disappear in a flash...

So, pay attention.
Don't let this happen to your world.

Recommended to:
Young readers from 4th grade on and adults who enjoy fantasy, magic & young adult books. An edge of your seat book. There is some violence & death and a bit of nail biting action. So, assess your own child for what they can handle.

I read these books ages ago. And I show more just recently realized that another book from the series came out and I need to catch up. :)

So, I decided to reread these two and then try to finish the series. I'm glad I did. The books are great dystopian YA fun. I love James Patterson's style and the characters in these books are great. I don't want to give anything away. Let me just say that if you like YA books and magic and a bit of adventure, I think you will enjoy this series.

Whit & Wisty are great as the Witch & Wizard. In the beginning, they don't even realize they have powers. There are prophecies and a evil power hungry guy (the One who is the One). There is dark humor and of course, death and danger. The book is written so that Whit and Wisty are talking to the reader. We read what is going on from each of their point of views separated by chapters. And they are constantly talking to us, like "I know I went too far" or "I shouldn't have said that" or "you wouldn't believe what we saw". It makes for fun reading and I sped through both of these books. Now I'm on to book 3, Fire. I'm really looking forward to it. I can't wait to see how this will turn out.
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This is the second in the Witch & Wizard triology. One I finished the first novel, I was ready to read the second and now I'm looking forward to the third in the set, which I haven't acquired yet.
Very entertaining, fast paced, excellent story arc, a slew of plot twists, edge-of-the-precipice moments, uniquely identifiable characters and a cast of thousands, though, thankfully we don't get to meet them all.
Mom and Dad are supposedly dead, but I'm certain they will return in the last installment. Just wouldn't be right if they didn't. Don't we all want a happy ending?
Aimed at young adults, but an entertainign read for adults as well who enjoy a mix of sci-fi and fantasy.

LOVED this one. I loved the case in this one. I also really really loved seeing Lindsay pregnant finally. Only thing that pissed me off was how she treated Joe when she found out about his "affair" she jumped to conclusions and didn't both to let him talk. It was stupid as hell especially since how Joe has treated her since she's known him. And Cindy needs to get over herself and grow up shes like a toddler throwing a tantrum about not getting information from Lindsay or Rich. it's annoying.