Attack of the Fiend is the fourth book in The Last Apprentice series by Joseph Delaney. Picking up a few months after the previous book we see Tom, Alice and the Spook back in Chipenden where Tom continues his apprenticeship. When the Spook receives a visitor, who he also claims as a friend, Tom and Alice start worrying. Especially when the visitor is a former spook turned priest who works near Pendle, the home of three different witch Cohen’s, with news that there is something brewing amongst the witches. While the Spook starts preparing for a long term investigation Tom and Alice visit his family’s farm only to discover some bad news. The witches of Pendle are after the trunks Tom’s mother had left him and are willing to kidnap his brother and his family in order to acquire the contents. Alice follows the trail to Pendle to use her family contacts to get more information while Tom returns to Chipenden to inform the Spook. They promptly set out for Pendle where they find things are worse than they thought. The three covens, all of whom are long-time enemies, have banded together for a particularly dangerous ritual that has long-term consequences if successful.
Much like the earlier books in this series it really plays up the stereotypes frequently believed during the time period being depicted. It is interesting just how these are woven into the story to create something that is so entertaining even if somewhat over the top at the same time. The characters all seem to fall into a rather blinkered perspective that really only allows them to see in black and white with very few, if any, shades of gray. While Tom does see a little bit more of the gray the Spook is very much a black and white kind of guy which affects how he interacts with almost everyone and definitely heightens his mistrust of Alice. I know this is tied into the stereotypical beliefs of the time but it is still interesting how this actually plays out within the story. The distance and lack of trust with Alice seriously hinders their efforts throughout the story. In terms of plot the story is pretty good as it continues the curve of gradually getting more complex that we have seen in this series so far. There are a lot more elements at play here and the story does a good job of utilizing them. However, it also does something relatively new as well. This story introduces elements and background plots that are not all resolved in this story. In all of the previous stories everything gets wrapped up by the end but not in this one. Only the major plotlines really get wrapped up which seems to be indicating the emergence of long term background plot developments. It makes me rather curious about how things are going to play out from here. A decent story that was enjoyable and sure to be a good hit with younger readers. I am giving it four out of five stars.
This is a good fantasy story that should hold considerable appeal for younger readers, specifically teens who enjoy fantasy. I highly doubt it will hold a lot of appeal for readers outside of that group though I may be wrong. It is part of a series and I would highly recommend that you read them in order to get the full background on what is going on with the characters so far. Outside of some mild violence and the negative depictions of witches there doesn’t seem to be any potentially difficult or questionable content. I do hope that teen readers who enjoy fantasy will consider trying it and if you do consider sharing your thoughts in the comments.