Book Review: The Nixie's Song by Holly Black

The Nixie's Song
Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
Genre(s): Adventure, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Published: January 14th 2014
Pages: 162
Rating: 2.5 stars

“Nick Vargas thinks his sucky life is being turned upside down when his father remarries. So when an expedition to a nearby lake turns up a nixie with a giant problem - it's up to Nick and Laurie (his new step-sister) to come up with a plan. Will they be able to stop the rampaging beast before all of Mangrove Hollow goes up in smoke?”

The first book in the Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles series was an okay continuation of the world, introducing new fairies and characters and a whole new setting.

It was interesting to read about the creatures - I especially liked the nixie - but I didn't really feel for the characters. I found Laurie to be even more annoying than Nick just because she was portrayed as being a bit of a goody two shoes, when in fact she was rather manipulative. Jules wasn't very developed and overall, everyone just felt a bit flat.

However, I would have been able to overlook that because I did enjoy the fantasy, fairy side of things just as much as (if not more than) the original series, but the inclusion of the author and illustrator really irked me. It ended up making me feel like the first five books were a bit of a joke and I didn't really see the point in it. It came across as a bit big headed and I would have preferred it if it had never been included.

That being said, I did really enjoy the art. DiTerlizzi's style really compliments Black's work, and the pair make a good team.

I just hope the next two books in this series are better than this.