Summary
Thomas Ward is the seventh son of a seventh son and therefore qualified to be apprenticed to the Spook, the local man who battles witches, boggarts and the like, keeping the local population safe. But Tom is initially a rather reluctant apprentice; the life of a spook is lonely and fraught with danger. However his own sense of what is right and his bravery, soon cause him to become committed to his elected path. Danger threatens in the form of two evil witches and their young helper, Alice.

Review
The Spook's Apprentice is read by Daniel Weyman, theatre, television and film actor. He has a strong northern accent which matches the Lancashire setting of the story.
The story has really spooky moments of horror which are effectively created. But these sometimes fall a little flat at the moment of climax. On at least two occasions, the tall, dark, terrifying figure in the darkness turns out to be Tom’s master and not a monster at all. However, there are really terrifying witches to battle and a complex web of evil and possession to unravel.

This is an audio for 9 to 12s, and is likely to appeal mainly to boys. There is a strong female character to identify with, but it isn’t clear whether she is good or bad, and there are also one or two anti-girl comments in the story.