A new government regime called the New Order has taken control over every aspect of society and two siblings are set to discover their hidden talents of being a witch and a wizard. The story centers around a brother and sister duo named Whit Allgood, 17 years old and Wisty Allgood, 15 years old. Their family is about to be executed in response to a new regulation in their society called the New Order (N.O.). One night, soldiers from the N.O. break into their house to arrest Wisty and Whit for being a witch and a wizard. The new regulation states that (1) All behaviors not keeping with N.O law, logic, order, and science are to be ended, (2) All minors are to be assessed for orderliness and are subject to corrective actions, and (3) The One Who Is The One decides whether a person is to be seized and/or executed. Byron Swain, their stuck up schoolmate also appears with the soldiers and accuses the two of violating the order. Wisty and Whit are both confused because their parents seem to be scared, too. The soldiers grab Wisty and unknown to her, she suddenly disappears. When she sees that her parents are scared, she bursts into flames and Whit thought that the soldiers set fire to her. The One Who Is The One appears with a gush of wind and hints that he knows how Celia, Whit's girlfriend, disappeared. He asks both of them to renounce their ways, and their parents. They refuse him and they are both paralyzed and are taken into a prison. The One Who Judges brings both of them to court and are charged guilty of being a witch and a wizard without due process, and the punishment is by hanging until death once they turn eighteen. When they are riding through the city they see a new sign being constructed. It is about finding their parents so that means their parents are able to escape somehow.
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They are then sent to a different prison which is spell-proofed and guarded by the Matron. They gradually discover their hidden powers. Celia shows up and tells Whit about the prophecy which is the reason why the N.O. is so afraid of the two. The next morning, a figure called Visitor tells them about their situation and the impossibility of escape. Celia appears again informing them about the Shadowland, an alternate dimension where Half-Lights like her lives. Wisty, Whit and Celia enter Shadowland and are joined by Byron, who has turned into Weasel courtesy of Wisty. They meet Sasha, a boy who takes them out of the Shadowland to Freeland. Freeland was once Garfunkel's, a store where persecuted children live once they escape. Celia leaves the two and needs to return in Shadowland or else she will cease to exist. Whit and Wisty are told about the Prophecy in detail and that they are the Liberators that will end the regime of the New Order. They decide to help out in the mission to take down the New Order with their parents in mind. In this mission, Wisty turns herself into a mouse while Whit helps the children from prison escape. The mission becomes successful and the prison is set on fire, but their friend from Freeland named Jonathan turns out to be a traitor. Whit faces The One Who Is The One and he tells Whit about their family's execution which is in the Prophecy. While starting on their next mission, they pass off an area that looks familiar. It turns out that it is the place where their house was.Their parents use magic to communicate with them, and help them to transform the drumstick and book into a magic wand and spellbook. Wisty's mother then changes Byron back to human form and orders him to look after them. The novel ends with her urging the reader to go out and live and promising they'll hear from her again. "I promise. And I'm a scary witch who keeps her promises."
Best part of story, including ending:
Great concept delivered in a simple manner.
Best scene in story:
The scene where they have been kidnapped by the soldiers. It shows how funny the characters are.
Opinion about the main character:
They are so oblivious to their powers.
