Mackie Doyle lives in the small town of Gentry which has a dark history of too many children dying mysteriously. Mackie's earliest memory is of being carried through a window at night and left in a strange house. Unlike most replacements, Mackie did not die soon after someone switched him for a human child, but he lives a very restricted life, keenly aware of his outsider status. His reaction when someone scratches the word “freak” on his locker goes beyond the normal high school social paranoia. Proximity to blood or iron makes him feel ill, as does entering hallowed ground. Given his father's position as minister of the local Methodist church, the latter restriction can hardly go unnoticed by his neighbors.
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Best part of story, including ending:
The story mixes a mood of horror with mundane teenage life in a small town.
Best scene in story:
The scene where Mackie makes a deal with the Morrigan is deliciously creepy.
Opinion about the main character:
Mackie is keenly aware of the ways in which he is different from his family and friends. He exists between a dark and magical world and a familiar human world in which he is an outsider.
