"Are you ready to learn, lad?"
Spoilers from the books and/or film to follow!
Alice Deane is a primary character in Joseph Delaney's phenomonally successful book series, The Wardstone Chronicles. She first appeared in The Spook's Apprentice as a witch training under Bony Lizzie, but redeemed herself soon after and has remained a love interest of Tom Ward through the good and the bad where she has every now and then become an assistant of the dark unintentionally. As of yet, Alice has appeared in every single book of the main series, except The Spook's: Slither's Tale and A New Darkness.
A short story Alice and the Brian Guzzler, was told from her point-of-view in The Spook's Stories: Witches.
Previously known as The Alice Deane Diaries, The Spook's: Alice follows Alice's perspective as she ventures into the dark to retrieve a blade necessary for destroying The Fiend.
Biography[]
Alice Deane was supposedly born into the Deane and Malkin witch clans, her father a Deane, her mother a Malkin. Her (adoptive parents) were very violent people who constantly fought one another, hitting one another, and beat Alice just as much. Once her parents died, Alice felt no grief whatsoever and went to live with her aunt, Agnes Sowerbutts. It was a few years later that Bony Lizzie came to collect Alice from Agnes' residence and with that Alice had finally started to receive her training as a malevolent witch.
Training with Bony Lizzie[]
Old Spig[]
In her first few weeks of training, Alice was introduced to Bony Lizzie’s ‘servant’, Nanna Nuckle. In Alice’s first lesson, Lizzie got Alice to sniff three pots to tell which one contained her lunch. Alice chose the correct one. Lizzie makes her check out the other pots. In one of them was a small gremlin-like creature. Lizzie tells Alice this it is called ‘Old Spig’ and that it is her familiar. As a test, Lizzie sends Alice out to Witch’s Dell, home to dead witches, to retrieve something hidden in front of the tallest oak in the Dell. In the Dell, Alice meets a dead witch called Grim Gertrude, who was decapitated years before by Grimalkin. Gertrude tells offers Alice to be taught by her, who decides she will give Lizzie a chance. Gertrude also tells Alice “a witch you will always be”. Alice retrieves what she came for, a jug of unknown contents, and returns to Lizzie. Whilst making Lizzie’s dinner one night, Spig jumps in the stew and Alice insults him by calling him “you dirty little thing”. Later that night, Nanna Nuckle clouts Alice around the back of the head and when Alice asks what it was for, her reply is that Alice gave her cheek.
Confused by this, Alice goes to bed. Alice reads about familiars and reads a section about ‘Brain Guzzlers’ and sees that this is the species Old Spig is affiliated to. After this, Alice sees Spig coming out of Nanna’s head. She realises that had guzzled Nanna’s brains and has been using her body as a human vessel for a long while. Spig jumps in the stew again and once again Alice’s insults him, this time Spig says he will consume her brains and use her as a vessel. Lizzie sends Alice out to get another jug that she has buried in the Dell. After fetching the jug, Alice returns her mind set on killing Old Spig before he kills her. Before this Alice reads more about Brain-Guzzlers and finds that they are vulnerable to salt and can be slowed down by removing their limbs. After being unable to find any salt, Alice gets a sharp knife and attempts to kill Spig but fails after he escapes into Nanna’s head. Alice steals from salt from a farmer’s field and goes back to defeat Spig. She fills Nanna’s currently empty head with salt. Spig appears and tries to kill Alice but she hurls salt at him which burns corrosively. He attempts to escape into Nanna’s head and once inside, Alice stitches the scalp back on where Spig dies burning in salt.
Meeting Tom[]
She meets Tom when Lizzie makes her convince Tom to give Mother Malkin some cakes which unknown to Tom contain blood, saying that it wouldn't do anybody any harm. She rescues Tom from a pit Lizzie imprisoned him in to later come and collect his bones. For the rest of her life with Tom see here.
Personality[]
Alice is a somewhat mysterious character, Tom often not knowing her true motives or how she will carry them out with him around. She is very protective about those she cares about, going great lengths in order to ensure that they are safe (especially Tom).
Alongside her fierce protectiveness over her friends and family, Alice has a strong streak of bravery in her.
Although she shows outstanding amounts of bravery and loyalty when concerning Tom, Alice wavers between being a benign witch and a malevolent witch after the events of Rage of the Fallen. After being brought back to the human realm by Pan, Alice is shown to be both skittish and wary of everyone and everything around her, not believing that anything she was seeing was real. Later on, Alice is caught drinking the blood of chickens during the night/early morning by Tom, who is mortified by what he sees. Tom manages to cover up the bluff, but it is still unknown whether or not Alice is able to cross running water, and prove that she is not a malevolent witch. Her hair is white after returning from the dark but grows back black.
Relationships[]
Tom Ward[]
In the first book, it seems that Tom and Alice are going to be rivals. Later, they develop a friendship with each other when Alice rescues Tom from a pit in Bony Lizzy's yard. In the Curse of the Bane, it seemed that they were going their separate ways, due to Alice's pact with the Bane. However, Alice later makes a deal with the Bane, one that states he cannot attack Tom, nor his master. This shows that she still trusts Tom, and is looking for a further form of friendship with him. In the spooks secret, she did not show any loyalty to the dark nor the light, and for the most part remained neutral. In this book, it is implied they start to like each other, as she always wants to protect him, with the Spook nearly having to tie her to a chair to keep her from going after him, and then Tom comparing the two of them to John Gregory and Meg, who used to be in love. She helps Tom on several occasions in this book, and their friendship grows. She talks to him constantly about how much she misses him. In The Spook's Battle she shows us loyalty to Tom by going to Pendle all by herself, trying to find out what happened to Tom's mother's trunks. In this book she seems closer to the light by helping Jack recovering from his mental sickness. Also by her bravery of entering Pendle alone. The Spook's Mistake seems to be the opposite of The Spooks Battle. She uses many dark charms for Tom. At the end of the book they share their first kiss. In the next book Alice again seems to follow the middle road and the two remain friends. Her and Tom's bond grows stronger, proven by Alice giving Tom a kiss and the Spook watching when they think they may never see each other. However in The Spook's Revenge when she meets Lukrasta, Alice casts Tom aside and starts a relationship with him instead, leaving Tom devastated. However, it seems these two are destined to be together no matter how dark things get. Not only that but in the first book she gave Tom a scratch that made him hers. This could be a good thing, or a bad thing. The scratch later disappears when Alice becomes a malevolent witch. This may signal that Alice does not look at Tom as hers anymore, although this is never confirmed.
In the new series, "A New Darkness", there are vague references to Alice's presence near Tom's house by his new apprentice Jenny, who suggests that she still cares for Tom. It is further suggested that Alice is jealous of the presence of Tom's new apprentice Jenny as she always seems to be watching her, further reinforcing the idea of an everlasting bond between Tom and Alice.
In The Dark Army, Alice returns and says that Lukrasta is dead and that she was forced leave Tom and to be with Lukrasta by the old god Pan and to link her powers with his to stop the Kobalos god, Talkus. She wants to be with Tom and states that she loved him even when she was with Lukrasta. She says that no matter how far they are from each other, they will always be in each other's hearts. Tom and Alice then start a real relationship when Alice says she is willing to die for him. Their relationship is shown to be extremely close when Jenny overhears Alice crying and saying that doesn't want to lose him. Jenny also hears them kissing often.
In 'The Dark Assassin' Alice kisses Tom before she leaves for Pendle at the very beginning. They are separated for a while. She finds out that Lukrasta ins't dead, and that he's a prisioner of the Kobalos. Pan insists that she work with him once again. She tells Tom about it and takes him with her to Lukrasta's Tower. Grimalkin saves Lukrasta from the Kobalos so he can play his part in killing Talkus. After they kill Talkus, Lukratsa orders Alice to take the Starblade from Tom and kill him with it. She convinces Tom that she'll kill Lukrasta but when Lukrasta appears she pretends to kill Tom but at the last moment steps aside and kills Lukrasta instead, showing that she never loved him and wanted to be with Tom and that she was only doing what Pan ordered. We can assume that Lukrasta knew that she loved Tom but not Lukrasta because when they both thought he was dead she went back to Tom but he didn't realize the extent of how much Alice loves Tom and what she would do to protect him, he assumed that she would do as Pan ordered but what Pan had asked had been achieved, the destruction of Talkus. Tom admits that he didn't trust her and thought that she was about to kill him so Alice tells Tom to go home alone and that she won't come with him. However, at the end she's back at Chipenden, showing that they can never be separated and that Alice never meant what she said about not coming with Tom and that she was simply punishing him for not having faith in her.
In Brother Wulf she gives birth to their baby daughter Tilda. Tom is captured by the old goddess Circe when he attempts to rescue Will Johnson. Alice goes after Tom to rescue him and brings her daughter with her. She asks Wulf to go and rescue Tom from the Circe's underworld. Circe demands that Alice hand over Tilda so she can drink her blood in return for having Tom and Spook Jonson back. She contacts Grimalkin who takes Tilda with her for a year and day for safekeeping and she supplies a changeling which Alice gives to Circe who thinks it is Tilda. The changeling attacks Circe and damages her temporarily buying Alice time to escape with Tom, Will, and Wulf.
Mab Mouldheel[]
The relationship between Alice and Mab is a bitter rivalry. The moment they set eyes on each other, they were enemies. At first it was because they were clan enemies, but their hatred deepened once Mab started to flirt with Tom. When Mab forcefully kissed him, she found out about Alice's mark, and was enraged. However there are times when they put aside their hatred to protect Tom. They always fight over Tom, to answer his questions or to be with him at all times. It's a possibilty that they will cross paths as allies since they are both enemies to The Fiend and they feel strongly for Tom.
Bony Lizzie[]
Even though that they have a negative relationship with each other. Bony Lizzie was thought to be the aunt to Alice but was later discovered to be Alice's mother. Even though she is Alice's mother, she doesn't show compassion to her, only using her to advance her own magic. She seems more interested in training her as a witch than being a good mother. Alice is actually glad that Bony Lizzie was put in the pit showing us that Alice has no respect or affection toward her. Alice demonstrates this lack of acknowledgement by refusing to admit Bony Lizzie is her mother, even once she finds out about their true relationship. Alice only stayed with her because she was afraid of the consequences of leaving.
The Spook[]
The relationship between The Spook and Alice is strained. The Spook and Alice got off on the wrong foot since she was trained as a witch for two years by her "Aunt" Bony Lizzie, who later turns out to be the her mother. In "Curse Of The Bane" their uneasiness toward one another grew because she set the Bane free and gave it her blood. The Spook was planning to bind her in a pit because of this but Tom made him reconsider by reminding the Spook about Meg. In "Night of the Soul Stealer" and "Attack of the Fiend" the Spook`s and Alice`s relationship improved considerably when she became the Spook's scribe. However, when Alice uses dark magic to create a blood jar to protect herself and Tom the Spook becomes disappointed in both Tom and Alice's actions, creating a strain in their relationship that may last throughout the rest of the series. He never wants Alice near Tom, and seems to watch them whwn they are togetger because he doesnt want them getting too close, also putting strains on the relationship between him and Alice.
Agnes Sowerbutts[]
Agnes Sowerbutts took care of Alice and taught her healing. Agnes tried to refuse Lizzie when she came to collect Alice. She was a benign witch, helping town-people heal wounds and sicknesses. Agnes was killed during "Grimalkin the Witch Assassin" and her body brought to witch dell by one of Mam's sister Wynde. Agnes lived a miserable existence in the dell due to being weak. During "The Lure of the Dead" Alice gives Agnes some of her own power to help Agnes live better in the dell which would last until her mind started to go.
Lukrasta[]
Whilst attempting to complete the Doomdryte ritual Alice incurred the presence of the legendary mage Lukrasta whom appeared in order to thwart the ritual. Upon locking eyes with Alice they fell in love in what is considered by Grimalkin as being an incredibly rare form of love in which both parties have been made for each other. Alice leaves with Lukrasta and both are now working together in order to stop the uprise of a new evil demon. There is some speculation as to the veracity of their relationship as the prophecy of Alice regarding her relationship with Tom explains that she will "Love you, Betray you and eventually Die for you." Hence there is speculation that she may in fact still be in love Tom, this is further reinforced in "Spooks: A New Darkness" in which Jenny suggests that Alice is jealous of her presence in Tom's cottage, furthermore the fact that she monitors Tom's activities most likely without Lukrasta's knowledge further suggests that there is still some sentiment left between both Tom and Alice. It is then shown in The Dark Army that Alice had to join with Lukrasta at Pan's command, from the promise made in "Spook's: Alice". She said she only kissed him so Lukrasta would listen to her allowing her to protect Tom. When Lukrasta wanted to go to Chipenden and get The Fiend's head she convinces Lukrasta to let her go instead because Lukrasta would've killed everyone there including Tom. When Lukrasta dies at the hands of the second high mage of the Triumvirate, Alice's deal is broken and resumes her relationship with Tom. In the final book we find out that he isn't dead and he is a prisoner of the Kobalos. When he returns he wants to use Alice to kill Tom, but instead she turns and kills him, proving she wants to be with Tom and not him. Lukrasta knew that when Alice thought he was dead she went back to Tom but he was blinded by how much Alice loves Tom and the reason he trusted Alice could either be that he thought Alice loves him more than Tom while in reality she has no feelings for Lukrasta or the reason could be that he thought that Alice would have to obey him because of her debt to Pan.
Powers and skills[]
Alice Deane is an exceptionally powerful witch. Due to her heritage and being the daugther of a powerful witch, and The Fiend himself, her potential as a witch is almost unparalleled and is only equal to or slightly surpassed by the likes of Luktrasa, the post powerful mage that ever existed. According to Zenobia, if Alice were to forge an allience with The Dark, she would undoubtedly become the most powerful witch in history.
Alice is capable of utilizing tremendous amounts of power magic, she is considered Lukrasta's equal, the most powerful human mage who successfully completed the Doomdryte ritual, that would grant the successfull user godlike powers.
- Heart of Darkness: Alice has the ability to access the heart of darkness. This allows her to accomplish great feats of magic without the use of spells, with only her thoughts. She has shown this skill multiple times, most noticeably through her flashbacks in "The Spook's: Alice." Some impressive shows of her magic include: when a silver chain bound her, Alice could use her will, her thoughts to teleport away; she was able to cast a green mist that impact Grimalkin and The Spook (John Gregory), and weakened Tom; she defeated different entities of the Dark including Raknid. Finally, she was deemed as an equal of Lukrasta, a powerful mage.
- Enhanced Senses: Due to her witch physiology, and being the daugther of The Fiend himself, her senses are enhanced beyond normal human capabilities. According to Jon Gregory, a witch's sense of smell is far superior to even a hunting dog. This would make her sense of smell at least anywhere between 10 000 to 100 000 times more acute than the average human. Her sense of smell also allows her to detect danger, although this is not perfect as she failed to detect the dangers in the towers when attempting to locate Ordeen in Greece. In The Spook's Curse, Jon Gregory says that a true witch would have smelled the inquisitor comming even though he was many kilometers away, and thus would have easily avoided him.
- Enhanced Strength: According to Jon Gregory, the physical strength of a powerful witch is equal to or slightly surpasses the strength of a fully grown up man. In the first book, Tom notes that even though Alice is a girl, she is by no means weaker than him physically.
- Animism Magic: She learns this type of magic in "The Spooks Nightmare" or "The Rise of the Huntress"
- Familiar Magic: She briefly practises this form of magic with the Bane though it remains a debate whether the Bane, a powerful entity, can really be controlled by Alice as a familiar.
- Bone magic: Alice has shown strong affinity for bone magic (one of the three common forms of magic, the other two being blood and familiar) in her flashbacks in "The Spook's: Alice". However, due to the nature of bone magic which typically requires killing the victim, she refuses to use it.
- Healer's knowledge: Alice knows the effects of many different herbs.
- Control the elements: In "The Spook's: The Dark Army", it is revealed that Alice is an earth witch: the first of her kind, which allows her to control the earth and the elements.
Additionally, Grimalkin has remarked on different occasions that Alice's magic is stronger than hers, which is a great compliment and showcases the depth and skill of Alice's magic because Grimalkin possesses strong magic herself.
Appearances[]
- The Spook's Apprentice
- The Spook's Curse
- The Spook's Secret
- The Spook's Battle
- The Spook's Mistake
- The Spook's Sacrifice
- The Spook's Stories: Witches
- The Spook's Nightmare
- The Spook's Destiny
- The Spook's: I Am Grimalkin
- The Spook's Blood
- The Spook's: Alice
- The Spook's Revenge
- Spook's: A New Darkness (mentioned)
- Spook's: The Dark Army
- Spook's: Dark Assassin