Jinx

Jinx by Sage Blackwood

Ehhhhhhh......

An amazon summary because needs, "The highly acclaimed first book of a fantasy adventure series set in a mysterious forest, starring a daring new hero.

"Readers will thrill to journey with Jinx" (SLJ, starred review), a wizard's apprentice, as he sets off on a quest through the dangerous Urwald, a magical forest full of wizards and were-creatures, and discovers that it is more complex than he could imagine, and that it needs him more than he could ever guess.

This humorous and smart tween fantasy adventure is perfect for fans of Septimus Heap, The Sisters Grimm, and Fablehaven." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

This is my normal cup of tea as far as book genres go, but there's something about this story that doesn't sit well with me.

Let's talk plot.

Jinx lives in the Urwald; a dangerous magical place that seems to be a giant country filled with woods. In the woods there are different clearings that different people and creatures come from. There's also a path through the Urwald that restricts harm being done to travelers of said path.

One day, due to a lack of food and general kindness, Jinx's stepfather leads him into the woods to abandon him...but Jinx is found by Simon Magnus; a wizard of the Urwald.

Simon takes Jinx home and Jinx spends a few years of life just cleaning the house, watching over things that aren't of magical concern. Simon takes care of Jinx to an extent; he's really a father to Jinx, but more of a friendly caretaker ish....

Jinx discovers he can hear the trees of the Urwald when he buries his naked feet in the dirt. He also starts learning more about Simon and his magic as his curiosity begins to peak...sprawling into an adventure into the Urwald.

So, my main hold up with this story is it wasn't very gripping.

There were a lot of parts of the book that were supposed to be kind of action filled and more attention gripping while also revealing mysteries that will probably be puzzled out in future books. There was scattered character development, world building, etc....which normally would have a nice cohesion to it....but it all just seemed to be the same.

Kind of like going down the river in a canoe and seeing a wide variety of things on shore - good, bad, or other - but never stopping the canoe to see them. The river stays a steady pace and there aren't any barriers, you just keep going at the same pace regardless of what's happening around you.

While that works for some books, I don't think it quite works for Jinx.

Overall, it was a kind of fun read, but I don't have an urge to read any further books in the series.

Happy reading!