Serpent's Kiss by Melissa de la Cruz

Published: June 12th, 2012

Publisher: Hyperion

Pages: 316

Copy: From publisher

Summary: Goodreads

The intriguing Beauchamp family, introduced in the New York Times bestselling Witches of East End, returns in Serpent’s Kiss, with dizzying plot twists and spellbinding magic.

Joanna and her daughters, bookish Ingrid and wild-child Freya, are just settling into the newfound peace that has been cast over their small, off-the map town of North Hampton. With the centuries-old restriction against practicing magic lifted, casting spells, mixing potions, and curing troubled souls has never felt so good for the three witches. That is, until everything gets turned upside down—from Joanna’s organized kitchen to Ingrid’s previously nonexistent love life to Freya’s once unshakeable faith in her sexy soul mate, Killian Gardiner.

When Freya’s twin brother, Freddie, suddenly returns, escaped from Limbo and professing innocence on a long-ago crime, Freya should be ecstatic. The golden boy can do no wrong. Or can he? Freddie blames no other than her fiancé Killian for his downfall, and enlists Freya’s help to prove it. Now Freya doesn’t know who to believe or trust.

And for the first time in—well, forever, really—Ingrid is also busy in love. Matt Noble, the handsome and charming police detective, has won her heart. But can romance work between a virgin witch and a mortal who doesn’t believe in magic? Things get even more complicated when it appears Ingrid is harboring the prime suspects in Matt’s police investigation.

To add to the chaos, a dead spirit is attempting to make contact with Joanna—but does it mean to bring harm or help? Joanna asks her sort-of ex-husband Norman to help figure it out, only to accidentally invite him to a Thanksgiving dinner with a dapper gentleman she’s recently begun dating.

As the witches pull together to discover the serpent within their midst and the culprit behind Freddie’s imprisonment, everything is thrown into peril. Will the discovery come too late to save those they love most?

Melissa de la Cruz has made the transission from YA to adult with great success and her Witches series just keeps getting better and better.  With Serpent's Kiss she has added some wonderful background to her characters and the reader gets to know a little more about the history of the Gods and the different Worlds of 'The Known Universe'. Norse mythology really is quite fascinating and Ms de la Cruz manages to educate us without appearing to.

Ingrid, Freya and Joanna are such wonderfully real characters with depth and emotion and it is very easy to fall into their world and cheer for their success.  Essentially the story is three different mysteries wrapped around three love stories, with a twist, or three, to sweeten the pot. Ingrid has to deal with a disbelieving Matt and a bunch of pixies; Joanna has a spirit trying to contact her, but for what reason, and who exactly is Harold?  Then Freya has her twin brother Freddie showing up out of the blue when he's supposed to be trapped in Limbo, and accusing her soul mate, Killian, of treachery.  Confusing?  Not at all.  Ms de la Cruz keeps everything clear, and while the mysteries twine around each other, each thread is nicely separated - until it's not!

Just when you think everything is wrapping up nicely there's a huge cliffhanger ending, that I for one did not see coming, and now we have to wait until next June for The Winds of Salem.  Serpent's Kiss is a fairly quick read, but it is fully engrossing and quite un-put-downable. A wonderful series for teens who are ready to branch out into adults reads, and I'll be happy to recommend it.

For those who would like to find out a little more about the family there is an original e-book coming out in the fall called Wolf Pact, which is about Arthur Beauchamp and the Wolves of memory.  Arthur is Ingrid, Freya and Freddie's uncle.  Sounds intriguing - I think I'm going to have to check that one out as well.

Oh and for Blue Blood fans, the final book in the series, The Gates of Paradise, is due out in January 2013.  Mark that one on your calendar.