The Red Bishop

by Greg Boose

[Kim Deister]

The Red Bishop was such an interesting read. Lake Price is the epitome of a slightly out of control teenage girl, and rightfully so. Four years ago, her older brother was kidnapped from his bedroom and never seen again. It has left Lake on a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. On one hand, she is consumed with grief and sadness and fear for her brother Kimball, not quite able to admit that he may be dead. On the other hand, she is numb, just completely emotionally numb to anything else. As a result, she has become a thrillseeker, always overly intense and extreme. She will essentially do anything to just feel. She seeks out the scariest things she can, just trying to feel anything other than pain. It is that need that leads Lake and her friends to a purportedly haunted house. That one decision literally changes her entire life.

The mythology of this story is great, different from anything I have read before. The story takes place in Massachusetts, bringing the rich, witchy history of the area into the story. The witches in this story are positively frightening. Their method of survival is disturbing and creepy at best. There is definitely a bit more gore than the average YA novel, but not so much to be overdone. Just enough to make it deliciously scary!!

There is time travel, magic, romance, mystery, betrayal, and a bit of an epic quest. The cast of characters is just as diverse. There was a twist with one of Lake's friends that was rather unexpected, the twist completely not what I thought it was going to be. There was even a love triangle, and I am not at all sure how I feel about it!

The ending left me a little confused. I'm hoping it is a cliffhanger for another book in the future because I want to know MORE!

Things to love...

--The scary, creepy factor!
--The unique (and creepy) mythology.
--The twists and turns.

Things I wanted more/less of...

--More Madison and I can't explain why! NO SPOILERS!

My Recommendation: If you like a little horror/witchy mystery, this is a great read!