Tag: Witches

I liked “The Witches of East End” by Melissa de la Cruz, but it didn’t read to me like it was young adult – as promised by Amazon.com’s list of new hot young adult reads. In fact, it says right on said Amazon page that it is meant for readers 18 and up. Maybe that is more of a lesson for me to read carefully.

That being said, even though it wasn’t written for teens, it is exactly the kind of book I would have loved in high school. It has magic, sisters and enough sex that I would definitely have been intrigued, but not so much detail that it would have felt trashy (something I have obviously gotten over).

The story follows three Beauchamp women – Joanna (sacrificing mother), Freya (free spirited little sister) and Ingrid (the cautious and uptight older sister).  For those of you that don’t know me, this pretty much mirrors my family make up exactly.  The women live in a quiet town in main, holding on to a huge secret – they are witches banned from using magic. What happens when they can’t help themselves?

It’s kind of Bewitched meets Chocolat meets the Crucible, but with more sass and descriptions of what the women are wearing. The story is very fast paced. The plot has some holes, but the characterization is enough to make you overlook the book’s flaws.

Aside from some strong writing, the book has some very unique and imaginative uses and explanations of magic. They involve many cultures mythology, current conceptions, and plenty that I’d never heard before in any book.  I’d love to say more by I will let you read for yourself.

This one wasn’t my favorite, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and will probably keep reading the series!

For further reading and reviews:

• Washington Post Review 
• LA Times Review
• Youtube clip of author interview 
• Interview with Melissa de la Cruz from Author’s Unleashed