Double Take - The Ring and the Crown by Melissa de la Cruz

Published: April 2014

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Pages: 384

Copy Provided by: NetGalley

Summary: by Goodreads

Summary:
Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the Lily Throne, and Aelwyn Myrddn, bastard daughter of the Mage of England, grew up together. But who will rule, and who will serve? 

Quiet and gentle, Marie has never lived up to the ambitions of her mother, Queen Eleanor the Second, Supreme Ruler of the Franco-British Empire. With the help of her Head Merlin, Emrys, Eleanor has maintained her stranglehold on the world's only source of magic. She rules the most powerful empire the world has ever seen. 

But even with the aid of Emrys' magic, Eleanor's extended lifespan is nearing its end. The princess must marry and produce an heir or the Empire will be vulnerable to its greatest enemy, Prussia. The two kingdoms must unite to end the war, and the only solution is a match between Marie and Prince Leopold VII, heir to the Prussian throne. But Marie has always loved Gill, her childhood friend and soldier of the Queen's Guard. 

Together, Marie and Aelwyn, a powerful magician in her own right, come up with a plan. Aelwyn will take on Marie's face, allowing the princess to escape with Gill and live the quiet life she's always wanted. And Aelwyn will get what she's always dreamed of--the chance to rule. But the court intrigue and hunger for power in Lenoran England run deeper than anyone could imagine. In the end, there is only rule that matters in Eleanor's court: trust no one.

Review:
The Ring and the Crown sounded so interesting when I first read the summary on NetGalley.  I was hooked on Frozen (#1 of Heart of Dread series) just a few months ago so I thought I'd give this one a read.  If you like fantasy and the idea of Merlin the Magician, you may enjoy this one as it is based loosely on his character. Yep, I'm a huge Merlin fan too, but without giving away too much of a spoiler, Merlin is very much of a side character in this book.

Merlin's real name is Emry's and he had a daughter, Aelwyn who would grow up to be friends with Marie, a future queen.  After being separated for years, the two friends come back together at the castle as Marie is paired with a Prussian prince and prepped for marriage. (Nice bit of alliteration there Christinabean!)  A prince she does not love.  Although he is handsome and brave and desired by the majority of the female population, she just isn't interested.

Aelwyn, taking after her father, yields and controls magic.  Marie seeks her friend's help to escape from a marriage of convenience to pursue her own dreams with the man she desperately wants to be with.  But there are other things happening in the castle which seem to take priority over everyone's happiness.

I loved the story and the characters.  We did not hear much about Emry's, which I was hoping for but I did feel that each and every character had a very distinct voice. You're right C.  With such a huge cast of main characters - Marie, Aelwyn, Isabelle, Ronan, Leo and Wolf - it was nice that each one was very easily identifiable and each was integral to the story if not always in equal ways. I did wonder just exactly why Ronan and Isabelle were included, but as the story progresses you really see why they are part of the whole.

I found myself getting wrapped up in the story.  It was hard to put down. I'm with you there C.  I powered through this one. I had a brief spell at the beginning where I wondered about finishing it, but then I got hooked and didn't stop until the end.  I think I finished it in less than 24 hours.

**Spoiler**
Something that bothered me - Marie giving up her responsibilities in the castle to leave and let her friend take the fall if anything happened.  To ask her friend to live her entire life as a lie is a pretty big thing to ask of someone.

I just enjoyed it...Marie's sense of duty was a little disheartening but it sounds like she's led a pretty unchallenging life, dictated to her and she has a sense of weakness due to her health.  Took a few turns that I wasn't expecting and a big surprise at the end.  That big surprise at the end really changed my feelings about some of the characters, but to say more would be a huge spoiler, sorry.  On hindsight I feel as if I should have known, didn't you?  The hints were there, I just didn't pick up on them at all.  I'm with you all the way though, the book was just very enjoyable, and had the added bonus for me of being a stand-alone.  Not enough of those out there these days.  I do feel like I should have figured it out but I think I was just enjoying the flow of the story for this one.  To be honest, I'm not sure if it is going to remain a stand-alone...although I would certainly like to see more stand-alone novels.

Christinabean and Curlypow

Frozen by Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston

Published: Sept 2013

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile

Pages: 336

Copy Provided by: Bought

Summary: Goodreads

Summary:

Welcome to New Vegas, a city once covered in bling, now blanketed in ice. Like much of the destroyed planet, the place knows only one temperature—freezing. But some things never change. The diamond in the ice desert is still a 24-hour hedonistic playground and nothing keeps the crowds away from the casino floors, never mind the rumors about sinister sorcery in its shadows.

At the heart of this city is Natasha Kestal, a young blackjack dealer looking for a way out. Like many, she's heard of a mythical land simply called “the Blue.” They say it’s a paradise, where the sun still shines and the waters are turquoise. More importantly, it’s a place where Nat won’t be persecuted, even if her darkest secret comes to light.

But passage to the Blue is treacherous, if not impossible, and her only shot is to bet on a ragtag crew of mercenaries led by a cocky runner named Ryan Wesson to take her there. Danger and deceit await on every corner, even as Nat and Wes find themselves inexorably drawn to each other. But can true love survive the lies? Fiery hearts collide in this fantastic tale of the evil men do and the awesome power within us all.

Review:

I pre-ordered this title after hearing about it from Melissa de la Cruz's newsletter.  I was intrigued to get back on board with a new series by this author and wanted to see how this husband and wife would work as duo authors.  I have to admit, the idea of Vegas freezing over and a new bleak, dystopian future sounded intriguing (albeit a little depressing).  The main characters start out in New Vegas but are in fact searching for "the Blue". I truly thought that it would have centered more around the area and this particular reclimatized location would play a major role in their surroundings.  It sounded like a very interesting place to be.  Gambling still runs rampant despite how most people seem to have very little and have lost much.

Nat asks a ragtag crew to take her to "the Blue".  It is like a fabled area where the skies are blue and the water is clean and the sun is warm.  Basically a paradise most believe does not exist.  Throughout their journey they run into all sorts of problems.  Natasha also begins to discover that she has some magical abilities that she is not able to control (such as levitating objects).  It was an interesting journey fraught with danger, romance and even a little death.

By the end of book 1, I certainly felt like the authors were setting the stage for an epic series.  Reminiscent of a new Fellowship,  Natasha's companions - a couple dwarves, what I pictured to be an elvish woman, and the other humanfolk seemed to mimic a similar group we know of...except they were not searching for a ring. Lord of the Rings crossed with an episode of Merlin and a dash of Serenity.  Is it a recipe for success?  Only time will tell...

Overall, this was a great start to a new series.  I agree with Margaret Stohl's comments when she says "more dragons please!"  Keep 'em coming Mr and Mrs. de la Cruz....

The Winds of Salem by Melissa de la Cruz

 

Published: August 13, 2013

Publisher: Hyperion

Pages: 288

Copy: From Publisher thank you

Summary: Goodreads

Modern-day witch Freya Beauchamp is cast back in time to 1692 amongst the Salem Witch Trials by an enemy spell, as her present-day family attempts to reopen the passages of time to bring her home.

  SOON TO BE A LIFETIME TELEVISION SERIES!

Freya Beauchamp is trapped in 1692, in Salem of all places, with no recollection of her past. A powerful enemy spell has sent her spiraling away so that she is separated by centuries from her mother, Joanna, and sister, Ingrid. This is not good news for a twenty-first-century witch. Not to mention the immediate threat she faces from the wealthy and influential Putnam family. When little Annie Putnam is one of the first to make accusations of witchcraft, her landowner father jumps at the opportunity to consolidate his power and expand his holdings in Puritan Salem Town. If Freya is caught using magic, she will be forced to relive the witch trials, and this time, even her immortality is in question.

Meanwhile, twenty-first-century North Hampton has its own snares. Joanna and Norm consult the Oracle for advice, and Freddie and his pixie allies search for a missing totem that could reopen the passages of time and help bring his sister home. When Ingrid bumps into an old flame, she finds that her new love for Detective Matt Noble is in doubt.

Moving between past and present, Winds of Salem's dizzying plot twists and page-turning suspense is sure to bewitch fans old and new.

Review

I think I have a special affection for this series because it is the first series where I have been invited to review every book, and  I have enjoyed each book - Witches of East End and Serpents Kiss were both fun to read and Winds of Salem did not disappoint. The character development continues well and yet again the story manages to take a tangent without losing it's family focus.

This time around as well as the family story that I've come to love, there was an interesting historical side based around the Salem Witch Trials.  I don't know about you, but I was sure all the witches were burned. However, according to Ms. de la Cruz, they were hanged, not burned.  I love it when I can still be surprised by historical details. Her take on the reasons behind the trials was very plausible and easy to believe.

The series as a whole is written for adults, but really is suitable for just about anyone.  It has some fairly light-hearted moments when the pixies come into the picture, and generally - to my mind at least - is not too serious.  In fact, it is the perfect beach read. (I did talk to someone at work about this and she disagreed with me there and said it was very serious!) There are several twists and turns that surprise nicely, if somewhat predictably.  Not that this is a bad thing by any means, don't get me wrong.

Ms. de la Cruz writes a good supernatural mystery that I think is going to translate well on to the small screen and I can't wait to see what the writers do with the story.  According to Wikipedia, the three main characters are Julia Ormond as Joanna, Jenna Dewan as Freya and Rachel Boston as Ingrid.  I think I might have to break my self-imposed TV ban and watch this one for a bit to see what they do with it.

All in all a fun trilogy -I can't find any evidence anywhere that the series is going to continue, but I could be wrong - that I am happy to recommend.  Try it out if you haven't already.

Wolf Pact by Melissa de la Cruz

Published: October 2nd, 2012

Publisher: Hachette Digital

Copy: for review

Summary: Goodreads

Lawson and his brothers escaped from the underworld and now lead desperate, dangerous lives, pursued by the Hounds of Hell from one town to the next, never calling any place home. But when the hounds finally catch up with them and capture the girl Lawson loves, the hunters become the hunted. Lawson will stop at nothing to track down the hounds—especially their ruthless former general—even if the chances of saving Tala are slim. The risks of being recaptured and enslaved by Romulus are high, and the boys’ search becomes increasingly perilous as they get closer to the hounds’ trail. But an unexpected discovery leads them to the one person who may be the key to winning the inevitable confrontation to come.

Meanwhile, Bliss Llewellyn is adjusting to humanity after giving up her immortal vampire life. As she and her aunt Jane unravel the clues surrounding a disturbing attack on a young girl, they find themselves stalked by a terrifying force, so stealthy that Bliss doesn’t know who to blame until Jane is taken by the hellhounds themselves. Bliss will do whatever it takes to save her—even if it means joining forces with the insolent, dangerously good-looking boy with a wolf’s soul and a too-intimate knowledge of Jane’s captors.

I read some of the Blue Bloods series when it first came out, but that was before I started blogging, and to be honest, I never finished the series.  Thankfully that didn't make any difference to my reading of the first part of Wolf Pact, but I am now convinced I have to go back and read them all.

Wolf Pact is a novel in four parts.  Part I was published a week ago, Part II on-sale October 23^rd, Part III on-sale November 13th , and Part IV on-sale December 4th.  I LOVED part one, and I cannot wait to read the rest of this story.  There is just enough in part I to get you really interested and then leave you hanging.  At least we won't have too much longer to wait for the next part.

There is just enough going on in Part I to get you interested and attached to the characters.  I was ready to tell you all about Part I, but I really don't think I can do any better than the words from the publicist

Once enslaved in the darkest pits of the underworld, Lawson and his pack were destined to become Hounds of Hell. Escaping to Earth bought them a little time, but their old masters soon catch up with them and take away the one thing Lawson is desperate to keep hold of – the girl he loves. Now, Lawson needs to hunt the beasts he was running from if there's any chance of seeing her again. When Bliss, a mysterious ex-vampire, turns up to search for the Hounds, it seems she might hold information that will help. But will she be able to trust this insolent, dangerously good-looking boy when she knows that he has a wolf's soul?

WOLF PACT, a timeless and romantic story of love and loss,will delight both readers who are encountering Melissa’s storytelling for the first time and devoted and long-time fans who are eagerly awaiting Blue Blood’s dramatic climax in Gates of Paradise.

 Getting a new novel like this, in parts, is a bit like the Chinese water torture - you know the next drop is coming, but you just have to wait for it - however, in this case I'm sure it will be worth the wait. I already have the dates on my calendar.  A must for fans of the Blue Bloods series, I'm sure you'll enjoy Wolf Pact as much as I have,  so far anyway.

When asked Ms de la Cruz had this to say:

“When my publisher approached me to publishWolf Pact in this format,” says de la Cruz, “I jumped at the chance. Each part of the story is dependent on the next, and the wolves’ story had to be told first in order for the finale of the Blue Bloods series, Gates of Paradise (out January 2013), to make sense. The speed and convenience of this format allowed me to give my fans a richer backstory to finish off the series.“


If you'd like to read more about the series and see the covers, plus hear some thoughts from Melissa, check out this link for USA Today

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.

Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz

Published: June 2011
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Copy: Arc received for review
Summary: Goodreads


From the author of the highly addictive and bestselling Blue Bloods series, with almost 3 million copies sold, comes a new novel, Melissa de la Cruz's first for adults, featuring a family of formidable and beguiling witches.



The three Beauchamp women--Joanna and her daughters Freya and Ingrid--live in North Hampton, out on the tip of Long Island. Their beautiful, mist-shrouded town seems almost stuck in time, and all three women lead seemingly quiet, uneventful existences. But they are harboring a mighty secret--they are powerful witches banned from using their magic. Joanna can resurrect people from the dead and heal the most serious of injuries. Ingrid, her bookish daughter, has the ability to predict the future and weave knots that can solve anything from infertility to infidelity. And finally, there's Freya, the wild child, who has a charm or a potion that can cure most any heartache.


For centuries, all three women have been forced to suppress their abilities. But then Freya, who is about to get married to the wealthy and mysterious Bran Gardiner, finds that her increasingly complicated romantic life makes it more difficult than ever to hide her secret. Soon Ingrid and Joanna confront similar dilemmas, and the Beauchamp women realize they can no longer conceal their true selves. They unearth their wands from the attic, dust off their broomsticks, and begin casting spells on the townspeople. It all seems like a bit of good-natured, innocent magic, but then mysterious, violent attacks begin to plague the town. When a young girl disappears over the Fourth of July weekend, they realize it's time to uncover who and what dark forces are working against them.


With a brand-new cast of characters, a fascinating and fresh world to discover, and a few surprise appearances from some of the Blue Blood fan favorites, this is a page-turning, deliciously fun, magical summer read fraught with love affairs, witchcraft, and an unforgettable battle between good and evil.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of Witches of East End for review a few weeks ago and had fun reading this newest novel by Melissa de la Cruz, this time written for an adult audience, instead of YA. The premise of Witches is your basic Good vs Evil, but there is really nothing basic about it.

Joanna, Ingrid and Freya are strong, interesting women, who happen to be witches, but with a lot more to them than meets the eye.  The story gives nods to the Salem witch trials and Norse mythology,  (which seemed strangely apt after having just watched 'Thor' at the movies) .  Wait a minute you're saying - Norse mythology in a book about witches.  Yep - I said there was more going on than meets the eye.  Weird things are happening in North Hampton, and part of the appeal of this story is the 'who dunnit' aspect.  There's murder, mystery and mayhem and so much more.

Romance - you betcha!  Ingrid and Freya are at complete opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to dating.  I particularly loved the crazy bumblings of Ingrid and Matt - they are just so cute!  Freya and ??? - you'll have to read it to find out what's going on there. Every time I thought I had worked out where things were going, something changed, which kept the story interesting and fun.

All in all I really enjoyed Witches of East End.  A great summer read. It might also be a nice cross-over novel for older YA's - no more or less sex and violence than in most YA's and a lot less language.  But Melissa, what's with the epilogue?  Are you trying to kill me?