And another synopsis from a different edition:

On the Midwinter Day that is his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton discovers a special gift — that he is the last of the Old Ones, immortals dedicated to keeping the world from domination by the forces of evil, the Dark. At once, he is plunged into a quest for the six magical Signs that will one day aid the Old Ones in the final battle between the Dark and the Light. And for the twelve days of Christmas, while the Dark is rising, life for Will is full of wonder, terror, and delight.

I finally got around to starting The Dark is Rising sequence this year, after having it on my to-read list for a very long time. Two books in, I’m calling it — I’m done. (At least, for now… although I suspect it’s actually forever).

This may be yet another example of wrong reader, wrong time. Perhaps if I’d read these books with my kids when they were younger, I would have had a completely different experience. But the reality is, reading this 2nd book in the series as an adult was a slog, and I never engaged with the story.

In brief — Will Stanton awakes on his 11th birthday to find out he’s a chosen one. (Hmmm, sound familiar? Keep in mind this book was originally published in 1973, well before a certain other special 11-year-old ever appeared in print). As Will learns, he’s the last of the Old Ones, a group of magically gifted people dedicated to prevent the Dark (forces of evil) from gaining power and taking over. The Old Ones represent the Light, and Will’s role is to gather six signs that together will banish the Dark, at least until it manages to try again.

As an Old One, Will can move through time. Guided by people of his village (including Merriman Lyon, the only character crossing over from the first book) — also secretly Old Ones — he uncovers the signs one by one, encountering nefarious representatives of the Dark along the way. A climactic showdown endangers his entire family and town… and Will is ultimately the one who must save them all.

Why Will? Why can’t any of the other Old Ones find the signs? It’s explained that he’s a seventh son of a seventh son, which is apparently significant, and also that he’s last of the Old Ones (but why is he the last? Don’t know). In any case, Will magically gains all the knowledge he needs to fulfill his role, and the plot centers around his quest to retrieve the signs and defeat the Dark’s attempt to rise.

Honestly? I was bored. I stuck with the book for the sake of seeing how it ended and because I was holding onto the idea of completing the five-book series… but I really had to force myself to finish, so I can’t see continuing.

Maybe it’s just a case of “been there, done that”. Maybe The Dark Is Rising sequence was new and different back when it was published… but at this point, there are plenty of magical quest and chosen one stories available in children’s books, and I didn’t feel that The Dark Is Rising offered me anything particularly unique or engaging.

I’ve heard that the series gets really good in later books, but I don’t think I’m interested enough to see for myself. As I said, this could just be a case of being the wrong reader at the wrong time.

In my review of the first book, Over Sea, Under Stone, I said that I really enjoyed the book and was happy to have read it, but that I’d probably leave it as a stand-alone read and not continue. Having now read the 2nd book, I should have stayed with my first instinct. I do think this series could be very entertaining for kids who enjoy fantasy quests, but as an adult reader, I’m out.