Product Description

The circle's power has lured her home

Customer Reviews (31)

A Fun, Highly-Enjoyable Read
Despite so many positive reviews, I have to admit that I was not expecting much from this novel in the beginning. Not only am I twenty years old (a few years past the age of the typical young adult reader), but I have been disappointed by L.J. Smith's work before. Though I did love the Vampire Diaries series, I have found the majority of her novels to be so full of ancient myths and folklore that it seems as if she is trying to impress you with her knowledge rather than tell a good story. However, The Secret Circle contained just enough folklore to keep the reader interested and not overwhelmed.

The story begins on beautiful Cape Cod, with seventeen-year-old Cassie Blake bored to death by the self-absorbed musings of local know-it-all Portia Bainbridge. Though Cassie feels very insecure in the presence of this girl, she is comforted by the fact that she and her mother will be returning to their home in California in a couple of weeks. As Cassie is reveling in these thoughts, a strange young man wonders onto the beach and a perceptible tension fills the air. Though the natives react so strongly to the arrival of this newcomer, Cassie sees nothing abnormal in his appearance or demeanor. But when she meets his eyes, she is startled by the intense notion that she is somehow connected to him. From this observation, the following events progress very quickly--a little too quickly, if you ask me. All of the sudden, a group of men is chasing this strange young man at gun point, and he asks Cassie to divert their attention so that he can escape. She succeeds in saving him, and he rewards her with a beautiful piece of stone; promising her that as long as the stone is in her possession, he will be able to find her. They share a kiss, and in just a matter of 25 or so pages, our heroine has met The One. However, her happiness is short lived. When she arrives back at the vacation home, Cassie's mother informs her that instead of returning to California in two weeks as planned, they will be living permanantly with her grandmother in New Salem, Massachusetts. Cassie is quickly enrolled in the local high school, and from there, her nightmare begins. On her first day, Cassie notices a strange "Club" of students within the school. This group seems to be capable of getting away with anything (including setting fires in trash cans and rolling blading down the hallways), and the student body and faculty alike seem to harbor some strange combination of fear, disgust, and admiration for the them. When Cassie angers the leader of the group--the strikingly beautiful Faye--she finds the entire school mysteriously turned against her. But just when she can no longer take the threats on her life from Faye or her status as a social pariah, someone intervenes. Her name is Diana, and she is the most beautiful, kind, and charitable person that Cassie has ever met. The two become friends, and Cassie quickly finds that her status within the school is changing, as Diana turns out to be a member of the Club as well. This fact greatly astonishes Cassie. After all, why would the kind and generous Diana be a part of something that includes the evil and manipulative Faye? But when a freshman student is found dead, Cassie learns the secret behind the Club's existance. Not only is the Club a coven of witches, but with the freshman girl dead just a matter of days before her initiation into the circle, Cassie is the only one who is eligible to take her place--having been the descendent of a Salem witch. Though Cassie is proud to find the place where she belongs, her troubles are far from over. Not only does she become a pawn in Faye's wicked intentions for the coven, but she must deal with her love for the boy she met back on Cape Cod while preserving her friendship with Diana. Also, when several brutal deaths occur in the town, the circle must determine whether the culprit is some unknown dark force...or one of their own.

Overall, this is a very enjoyable novel. LJ Smith succeeds in conveying the emotions of first love and belonging with such accuracy than anyone will be able to relate. Also, the incorporation of historical events and true Wiccan practices make this novel highly believable. I recommend it for anyone who loves the supernatural with a taste of romance and historical fact.

Good reading
My orders from Amazon arrived promptly and as ordered.Good to have a place where I can find the books I want and at a doable price.

The Secret Circle
This book was somewhat of disappointment to me.I didn't grab me and to be honest I don't even know why I had bought it.I didn't like the main character.She seemed childish to me.For instance I really disliked how she threw a fit over the fact that she was moving.Also the fact that she was obsessed with a total stranger.I realize he's her soulmate.Maybe it was just me, but I simply didn't enjoy this book.

Perfect Teen Series!
I actually finished reading this in April, but am just now getting to the review, lol. I read the first omnibus in the fall, and had wanted to continue for a while, but didn't get the book into April. That said, I finished it pretty quickly after I got it. It's not great literature, but for the genre it's in -- supernatural teen drama -- it's definitely a step above the rest.

Continuing from the previous book, Cassie is being blackmailed by Faye ever since she spied on her and Adam kissing. Cassie struggles with herself not to tell Diana, her best friend and Adam's girlfriend, but she decides against it, since it would makes things worse. Faye forces Cassie to dig up the crystal skull that gives the Circle's members odd visions. Students continue to be murdered, and Faye is elected coven leader, since she forced Cassie to vote for her against Diana, whom everyone assumed would win.

Faye in charge, the Circle seemed to decline and Faye was often excluded from meetings and such, leaving her vicious and angry.

In "The Power". Cassie continues to force herself not to be in love with Adam, but it's too hard, and they are soon together again. There's a new principal in school , who appears to know more than he's letting on, and Cassie's family suffer a terrible fate. Cassie takes charge and becomes the leader of the group, leading her to her destiny.

I am SO sorry for butchering up the plot; I'm good with my thoughts, but suck on actual reviews. MOVING ON:

I really love Cassie's evolution. She started out as a shy, awkward, Bella Swan stereotyped wallflower character, but quickly evolved into a confidant and strong, both physically and mentally, Buffy Summers type leader. Almost all the main characters had some type of change from the beginning to the end. Diana basically remained the same, though she was once thought of as the perfect girl, some of her flaws start to seep through. Faye, the villain of the series, evolves from a basic high school bitch to a clever, malicious bitch :P. She does evolve into better things later, though. All of the guys are literally the same -- except for Adam and Nick. Adam, like Diana, was thought of as the perfect guy, but you see he has little will-power, since he cheats on his girlfriend all the time. Nick starts off as the aloof, strong but secretive character, but he starts speaking up later and even tries to win Cassie's heart.

The horror aspect of the series was handled really well, I thought. It was suspenseful, but was aware of its target audience. It was clean, but again, aware that high schoolers would typically be reading this, so was spiced up a bit with some curse words and like I said before, mild scares. One scene I thought was actually a little creepy was the death of a certain character in the boiler room that takes place in the second book.

One thing I thought was lost after the first book was the familial aspect between Cassie, her mother, and her grandmother. They seemed to genuinely care for one another, and by the end of the first book, are basically forgotten until the end of the third, and even then it's really only the grandmother that comes back into play.

So, overall, this series is DEFINITELY worth checking out.

Any other L.J. Smith books I should be checking out? Please and thanks!

A long time LJ Smith fan disappointed...
I absolutely adore LJ Smith--works that include the Night World, Forbidden Games, and The Vampire Diaries. Sadly, The Secret Circle left me disappointed. I wasn't too crazy on this story from the moment it got republished. However, my friends assured me that if I truly did like LJ Smith, then this book would please me, too.

Basically, Cassie moves from California to gloomy New Salem. Upon arrival, she immediately feels drawn to a group of teens called the Secret Circle. It is a coven of powerful witches. You get the picture.

These are my problems with the story: *SPOILERS FROM THE SECOND BOOK BELOW* (This is a review for both The Initiation, captive pt. 1 & 2 and the Power)

1. Characters. I usually don't mind if I hate the story but there are a few redeeming characters in it (Private Series), or if the characters suck but the story as a whole is brilliant (The Maze Runner), but, sadly, this book does not fit in either of theses cases because I hated the story and almost all the characters. First we have Cassie, the main character. Can anyone say Mary Sue? First, she gets the boy (who also happens to be the boyfriend of her best friend), and still remains friends with her. Not to mention we have the old cliche of a someone who is beautiful but doesn't know it. On top of that, she is also the most powerful, and becomes the leader very, very quickly.

Then there's Faye, the main antagonist of the story. She, to me, was the only thing that kept me reading. Unfortunately, LJ Smith's attempt to redeem her fell short. What? She just says a couple of words then all of a sudden I'm expected to accept her? Yeah, right.

Last but not least was Diana. Wow, now she was too naive, stupid, and nice for own good. I mean, she finds out Cassie and her boyfriend, Adam, like each other and she's totally fine with it? How is this normal behaviour? Unless, of course, Diana is about 200 year more mature than anyone else in the book.

2. Plot. We have this suspenseful plot all building towards a single battle. You know what happens at the battle? "Blah, blah, blah...." "Yadda, yadda, yadda..." *enter big light* The End.

So in conclusion, I really wanted to like this story--I really did. But, in all honesty, it was probably one of the poorest written books I read. Sorry LJ Smith, but you can do better. ... Read more

Product Description
When an earthquake shakes California, Alys, Janie, Charles and Claudia suspect it isn't just a typical earthquake. A year and a half after their journey into the Wildworld, they believe that the Passage between their world, the Stillworld, and that parallel universe of legend and danger may no longer be stable.

With their parents overseas and the great sorceress Morgana Shee traveling north to find the epicenter of the quake, the siblings are left on their own. But peril lurks around every corner. A magical attack sends the Hodges-Bradley kids' on a journey that will test all of their skills, including Janie's sorcery and Claudia's ability to communicate with animals. 

Morgana's archrival, Thia Pendriel, is waiting. With Heart of Valor, the Forgotten Gem she has stolen, Thia's power is almost limitless—and she is ready to spring her trap. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

A decent follow-up
This book being the sequel to Night of the Solstice, I was glad to see that it detailed a lot more of Morgana's past. No longer was she seen as the sorceress who had a very magical mystical-sounding name, but she was tied back to the Morgan of Arthurian legend, giving her a depth even beyond what Smith writes of her character.

We see a significant growth in maturity for the four main characters, too. Their personalities are much the same as we saw them in the previous book, but their adventures last time, plus their continued presence around magic, has helped them to grow and strengthen. It was nice to see characters who grew without changing completely, and remained familiar without acting as though the past never occurred.

This wasn't a spectacular novel, but it was a fun one to read nevertheless. It had good pacing, a good mix of calm deduction and heavy action, and would be a good read for mid-grade kids who enjoy a good modern-day fantasy story involving ordinary children getting to save the world. Teenagers and adults may still get enjoyment from this novel, too, though perhaps more as a fluff read than anything else.

If this book has any one flaw, it's that it takes trips to Exposition City. Crazy things happen, and when all is said and done, somebody has to recap and fill in the blanks with information that they have cleverly deduced somehow but that never actually gets a mention in the story itself. It ties up loose ends, certainly, but it makes for a weak ending.

Still, I can't say I didn't have fun reading this one, even if for me most of the fun was in the nostalgia of the book, reliving a few days in high school when I'd found a copy of this tucked back in the shelves.

Heart of Valor
What a great book.It is a part two of a two part series. The Night of the Solstice is the first book.It is about two sisters and a brother that go into another land through a mirror with the help of a witch that they befriend and the adventure never stops until the last page of the story.I could not put the book down, it was an easy read and you can follow the story even though they meet a few characters along the way.I recommend this book to anyone who likes action, humor
and happy endings.

No Better or Worse than "Night of the Solstice"
'Heart of Valor' is set a year and a half after the events of the previous book in this two-part series (though both can be read as stand-alone novels), in which four siblings helped the sorceress Morgana Shee prevent the evil sorcerer Cadal Forge from emerging through her magic teleporting mirrors and causing havoc on the world. At the end of 'Night of the Solstice' the doorways to the Wildworld were closed, Cadal was destroyed, and his ally Thia Pendriel managed to escape with the immensely powerful Heart of Valor, a magical gemstone.

All has been quiet since then, with the quirky Janie studying magic under Morgana's guidence, Claudia enjoying her newfound gift to speak to animals, and Alys and Charles simply getting on with their lives. But after what seems like a typical Californian earthquake, the children and the sorceress begin to suspect that Thia is up to something - perhaps trying to re-open the portal between the Wildworld and the Stillworld. Morgana hurries north in order to prevent her, while the children begin to experience dangers of their own - the park is now full of strange and dangerous creatures, bizzare signs can be seen in the sky, and finally their house is attacked by groups of strange elementals. With the sword Caliborn, that gives Alys dreams of ancient Arthurian lore, the children hurry to find Morgana and help prevent Thia from whatever she is planning next...

If in the last book you thought the name 'Morgana Shee' rang a bell, your suspicions will be put to rest here - in the Arthurian legends that L. J. Smith mixes into this book, Morgana plays the part of Morgan LeFay *and* the Lady of Lake, set against the tricky, but somewhat malevolent Merlin, in an interesting re-working of the old myths.

However, the structure of this book is rather shaky - after conveniently disposing of the children's parents via an overseas voyage, the children do not participate in much of the action till over halfway through the book when they go after Morgana, and the events occuring in the Wildworld (when it should get *really* interesting) are jammed into the last few chapters of the book. What was supposed to be the climactic showdown between Morgana and Thia lasts less than a paragraph, and the ending is so hurridly wrapped-up that readers might feel a bit short changed (plus confused at how Alys plans to spend a year in the Wildworld without her parent's knowledge).

L. J. Smith's protagonists are always female - three of her four children are girls, and she's at a complete loss as how to handle her only named male character Charles, who ends up being merely a device to draw yet another female character -Elwyn Silverhair- into the plot. I'm all for strong female roles (I am a girl, by the way), but L. J. doesn't to much to extend her reading material to the opposite of sex. If you're a parent looking to get your son/nephew/grandson/whatever interested in books, unfortunatly 'Heart of Valor' probably won't help you out.

However, despite its faults, this book is a reasonable, entertaining read, and on par with its predecessor 'Night of the Solstice'. L. J. Smith went on to better fame with her teenage-horror-romance novels, but there are a few hints of her books to come in her first fantasy novels, for instance: the dog attack here resembles that in "The Fury", Claudia's ability to speak to animals is like that of Anna Whiteraven's in the "Dark Visions" trilogy, and the name 'Thia' pops up again in her Night World book "Spellbinder", with different spelling: 'Thea'.

A Wonderful Book
This book is the sequel to L.J. Smith's first book, "The Night of the Solstice."In it, four siblings come together to help the sorceress Morgana Shee, who is the only hope of their world's safety.I enjoyed this book more than the first one because it combines Arthurian lore, otherlegends, and an original plot, which is a talent L.J. Smith has continuedto show in her more recent books.Unlike her recent Night World series,these books were more for children than young adults, and focus more onfantasy than romance.They are wonderfully simple, with an easy-to-followformat, but contain things that even adults can enjoy.Unfortunately,relationships and characters, especially the underused Morgana, are notexplored very deeply, but this book is perfect for readers of anyage...especially fans of magic and legends.

This was an absolutely thrilling book.
I read the whole book in a matter of 3-4 hours, I just couldn't put it down!I'm dissapointed that I could never (and still can't) find one single copy of Night of the Solstice. I have read Heart of Valor acountless number of times.L.J. Smith is the only adolescent author that Ibuy and read their books nowadays (I'm 16, but I started reading adultnovels when I was 7).That is really something too, and I give all of herbooks that I have read great! reviews. ... Read more

Product Description
When Claudia Hodges-Bradley meets a fox, she knows it will be an extraordinary day. Not just any fox, this vixen is the magical familiar of the sorceress Morgana Shee. For years Morgana has guarded the solitary gate between Earth and the Wildworld, a shimmering parallel universe where legends still live. She alone holds the secret of the mirrors that serve as the last passage to enchantment. But Morgana has been betrayed and imprisoned in Wildworld, and the fox is determined to recruit the Hodges-Bradley kids for the rescue mission.

Armed only with courage and determination, Alys, Charles, Janie and Claudia must save Morgana before the Winter Solstice when the evil sorcerer Cadal Forge plans to escape Wildworld and conquer Earth. And with December 21 only two weeks away, there is no time to lose?. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Nothing special, but still fun.
The problem with reading books intended for younger audiences is that it can be very hard to put ones mind back to the age group the book is intended for. As such, my adult mind was saying things like, "They actually expect the 'doll under the bedcovers' trick to actual fool parents?" and, "Does anyone not know how to solve that trick/riddle/game?" at regular intervals while reading Night of the Solstice.

The writing style was nothing special. It didn't stand out as particularly amazing or particularly bad. However, that wasn't necessarily a drawback, as sometimes with books the writing style can actually detract from enjoyment of the story being told, whether the style is good or bad, and in this case I could just move with the words and see the story unfold instead of being wowed or disgusting with phrasing or horrible copyediting. Not sure if that's a bonus. Let's call it a neutral point, but still one worth commenting on.

The story itself was quite interesting. A group of siblings discover that magic is real and that they need to save a sorceress in order to stop a bunch of people from another world punching through the fabric between worlds and causing all kinds of chaos. Not sparkling original, I'll grant you, but still fun, and there are a thousand and one ways that story can be told in an entertaining fashion. Mixing some Celtic mythology, the hidden history of this world, and playing around with some fantasy elements to make a creative and interesting setting was pretty well done here, and I like the effect. The world the children end up in isn't overly analyzed or picked apart, it isn't glorified or put down. It just is. And so much was glossed over because of the pressing needs of the questing kids, but that in itself lends a bit more magic to the Wildworld. You can't help but wonder what you're not seeing.

For those who enjoy a good mid-grade fantasy, or for those who have or who know children who'd enjoy a good epic fantasy quest, I do recommend this book. For most, though, this book is a take-it-or-leave-it kind of book. It kills some time on the bus, but ultimately my life wasn't changed by reading it.

Won't stop me from reading the sequel, though!

The Best Book For Children By L.J. Smith
Wow. This, of all L.J. Smith's books was the best for kids. I'd say 10+. It had a very different concept unlike all of the redundant books in the world. That's L.J. Smith's talent, giving readers something new. No cussing, no sex (very little romance), not gruesome at all. A great magical world that readers of all ages will enjoy. It really is an amazing book.

WHAT THIS BOOK IS ABOUT:
Four siblings, three girls and a boy, all have stumbled into a world through mirrors in attempt to save the world by freeing a magician who can save our world. They have to defeat and outsmart evil magicians and creatures. There is even a little folklore in it. Over all, a good read.

The Night of the Solstice
I really recommend this book. It's as good as her other's. I love L.J. smith's books. Very good for kids too. My boy is 8 and he is reading it and likes it.

THe Night of the Solstice
The Night of the Solstice
By: Lisa Jane Smith
Reviewed by: T. Sun
Period 1

This story is about Alys, Charles, Janie, and Claudia who are trying to save their world from an evil sorcerer named Cadal Forge. They also have to save Morgana Shee because only she can prevent Cadel Forge from conquering the Stillworld, Earth. They embark in an adventure that takes them to the magical world of the Wildworld. They travel every night through the mirrors in Morgana's abandoned house. It takes them to the Wildworld version of that exact same house. They search every room they can open and run away from the sorcerei of the Society. In the end Janie figures out which room Morgana is held in and they free her. But they had to battle through the Society, Cadel Forge, and Thai Pendriel; she is a councilor of the Wildworld. In the end they send all the sorcerei who escaped into the Stillworld on the winter solstice back into the Wildworld, except Cadel Forge. He gets trapped in the mirrors. Every thing goes back to normal but all isn't too well, because Thai Pendriel stole Heart of Valor, a Forgotten Gem with incredible power. Morgana and the others will not worry about her right now. Morgana rewards each of the children with a gift. Alys gets a horse, Janie becomes Morgana's apprentice, Charles gets a sample of Kryptonite, and Claudia gets a charm that lets her talk to animals.
I liked this book because it's funny, has a lot of action, and is magical. There was plenty of fighting with magic, which I liked. For example: " She whirled back on the last words, and in her hands was the Gold Staff, dazzlingly bright. Out of the head of the staff shot a golden ball, which plummeted to the ground only to erupt upwards as a tree of living crystals, which grew with lightning speed. Needle-sharp branched burst our in all directions, transfixing sorcerei on every side." This quote describes a battle-taking place in Fell Andred in the Wildworld. Morgana is trying to stop Cadel Forge from entering the Stillworld. And she sort of failed at first, but in the end she traps him in the mirrors.
The only thing I disliked about The Night of the Solstice was that a Quislai (fairy) named Elwyn. She is Morgana's half sister. Morgana is only half Quislai while Elwyn is full. Elwyn's personality is very annoying and frustrating to understand. The reader, like me, can feel how the characters felt when they were trying to make Elwyn corporate with them. For example: " `Do you realize what Cadal Forge is Planning?' Elwyn pursed her bright lips. `Cadal Forge spoke rudely to me once.' She mused. Charles stared "Did he? Did he really?' `Perhaps I just dreamed it. Do you dream?' `Have you understood a single thing I've said?' `Of course I've understood a single thing you've said. You're Charles and you're not thirsty. But perhaps you'd care for something to eat?'" As you can see Charles isn't having a very easy conversation with Elwyn. He's very frustrated with her because she keeps changing the topic.
My favorite part of the book was when Alys, Janie, Charles, and Claudia found Morgana and the vixen. Then they battled the Society and Cadel Forge. I like this part because it has the most action and tension in it. It's is so much fun to visualize Morgana battling Cadel Forge and Thai Pendriel with magic while trying to protect the stillworlders (Alys, Janie, Charles, and Claudia). I am very content with the description of Morgana's stress as she tries to stop this madness

A Passable Children's Fantasy
"Night of the Solstice", followed by its sequel "Heart of Valor", were Lisa Jane Smith's first novels, targeted at younger readers, unlike her later (and more popular) horror/teen romance novels surrounding the lives of vampires, witches, shapeshifters and the like.

In her delving into the fantasy world, L. J. Smith introduces us to the four siblings, responsible Alys, normal Charles, kooky Janie and dreamy Claudia who have absolutely nothing to do with each other. All that changes however, when a red vixen lures seven year old Claudia to the strange house upon the hill and asks for her help in saving her mistress, the sorceress Morgana Shee. Convincing Claudia to bring her brother and sisters to the house, the vixen soon inlists all three of them to help her in her quest.

She explains that the house is called Fell Andred - the House of Mirrors, and that it serves as a gateway between this world, known as the Stillworld, and the Wildworld. Each mirror within the house leads to the Wildworld, and it is through these mirrors that Morgana's kidnapper, the twisted and evil sorcerer Cadal Forge, plans to journey through on the Night of the Solstice to exact revenge on the world that once betrayed him.

But when the vixen diappears, the children are left on their own, with only two weeks before the Solstice, to master the mirrors, rescue Morgana and prevent Cadal Forge and his sorcerei from entering their world.

Its seems a magical premise, but often L. J. Smith's writing style falls short of the narrative. She is best at human nature: relationships between people, responses to the supernatural, the meeting of challenges - all this she handles with ease. However, in the context of the fantasy world she presents exposition of how the Wildworld runs in large, confusing chunks, (usually through someone talking or reminising) instead of a gradual unwinding of figures and facts, and often dwindles on the wrong situations - rather than conveying the potentially fascinating history and information of her world in an interesting manner, she gives us Janie overhearing a catty conversion between two school friends that really lends nothing to the story. This is unfortunatly a constant trend in the novel: skipping over what could be the most interesting scenes and giving them to us in hindsight (such as Charles luring Elwyn, the creation of the Heart of Valor, and the trio of children [minus Janie] being confronted by the sorcerei).

The pacing is exhausting - the conflicts and problems flit by in rapid succession, jumping from scene to scene with no respite in between from one crisis to the next. Some may consider constantly moving action a good thing (one is never in need of excitement during the course of the story), but sometimes the pacing needs a little rest: it is in restful moments were we get to know the characters a little better, and let them reflect on their thoughts and circumstances.

Solutions to problems often fall into the children's heads out of nowhere, or at least from very unlikely drawn conclusions: (Claudia for example identifies an imposter by the size of her feet as compared to barely-glimpsed footprints in the dust, and Charles sudden awareness of how to combat the Groundsler by its scantily-revealed clues seems out of the blue) and for the most part the narrative goes nowhere - the children travel through the mirror, triumph over a certain obstacle and then return, often with little or no progress in their overall quest.

However, despite my critism, young fantasy fans *will* enjoy this: it's exciting, suspenceful and inventive, and L. J. Smith paints vivid pictures of family relations and child perceptions. The comparisons between our sunlit world and the shadowy, night-time Wildworld is delightful, with Morgana's house as a clever gateway between the two. She is a master at creating interesting names (Elwyn Silverhair and Thia Pendriel, for example) and all her plot threads flow together nicely.
Though she is certainly *not* up to the standards of Susan Cooper and E. Nesbit (no offence to the reviewer who thinks she is), L. J. Smith's first novel is a strong, colourful and compelling, and leaves room for a sequel - make sure you have a copy of "Heart of Valor" on hand after finishing this one. ... Read more

Product Description

Caught in the struggle between good and evil . . .

Customer Reviews (16)

Secret Cirlce 2
I just loved the secret circle trilogy! It is exiting and you can't put it down! It is pretty rare that I really don't want to go to sleep because I want to keep reading and this trilogy did that to me. I liked it so much that I hope that L. J. Smith will do the same to this serie as Vampire diaries and will write a return.

I don't want to give away the story because it is the most fun if you find out everything yourself! My advise if you like the style of L. J. Smith and like the supernatural you have to read this series!

A Dark Tale of Witchcraft and Romance
The first book in this series lacked real suspense and action. I wasn't going to read this one, but my sister convinced me to give it a try. I discovered that this book is extremely suspenseful, as well as surprising and dark, with many twists and turns. The characters are so believable that I began to consider them my own friends as well asCassie's. Each member of the Circle has a distinct personality and realistic points of view on each problem they deal with.

The danger in this book forces all of the Circle's members bond and stick together through thick and thin. Half of the time, it was like a horror movie, with me screaming at Cassie' NOT TO OPEN THAT DOOR or NOT TO GO IN THERE ALONE! Of course, Cassie never listened and left me gripping the edge of my seat while she the delves deeper into the world of magic and secrets.

L.J. Smith has done it again! She is a master of creating wonderful characters and tense plots. Her books always leave me wanting more. Bravo!

better then the first one
I liked the second book better then the first one. You have to read the first book first because it is one big story and not two seperate ones.

One of the best series i have yet to read - not a dull moment.
It was very well written. I loved it. L.J Smith is one of those writers where less is more. She doesn't get into all this detail of characters or objects, but everyone and thing is unique and unforgettable. I think it is brilliant.

OMG, WHAT A PLOT!!!
This book is chock full of plot.Geesh, I'm 100 pages away from finishing this 2nd book and man...life is just getting in the way.I know I'm going to be up late reading so that I can finish up.So far, this book is going very well and I like it better than the first book.Not a lot of romance in it though, but it's nice to see Cassie's growth and self discovery.

OK, so I finished reading the book last night and I must say that it wrapped up very well.I was really wondering how it was going to end.There is obviously a soul mate thing going on with LJ Smith.It is found in all of the Night World books and in this one.I WISH IS COULD SEE THAT SILVER CORD!!!I recommend this book, however it is not tops on my romance list. ... Read more

Product Description
To lose the game is to lose your life in bestselling author L.J. Smith's THE FORBIDDEN GAME. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (27)

Not the best...
This is the first book I have read by this author - and did so based on the reviews being so complimentary on Amazon.I can say that I will not be reading any more by L.J. Smith after this.While there was a plot/story line, it was very amateurish - I'm assuming the author is not a teenager but I would not be surprised if she was given the writing style.I think the story had a lot of potential to be good but never quite got there...not enough details and not particularly strong characters.This was not the worst book I have read, I did finish it, but it is definitely not one I would recommend.I'm really surprised by the rave reviews here.This is the first book I have seen so highly rated on Amazon that I did not care for at all.

WOW!
Here, is an AWSOME book, I would recommend it to anyone who longs for adventure, this book gives you thrills, chills, and romance, what more could you ask for?

loved this book
I for one am a big fan oo L.J. Smith.I love of the books that she writes. This book is full of suspense.I just love following Jenny in finding herself in all three of these books.These three books in one kept my attention from the very beginning to the very end.I was not dissapointed in these books.The only thing that I would change was how clingy and needy Jenny was in the beginning of the first book.I would reccomend this book to anyone

This rating will change ...
as soon as this book is made available on Kindle for people in the US.

Why even allow a sample to download if the book itself isn't available?Bad advertising, people.

Edit:Got in contact with Amazon and managed to convince them that the book is, in fact, available as an e-book in the US, as both Barnes&Noble and Borders Books can attest to (considering they both sell it).They fixed the issue, so all is well.

Now that that's taken care of, I changed the rating to four stars, because the book itself is really very good. I already own a paperback copy, but I've read it so many times it's starting to fall apart.While The Forbidden Game isn't classic literature, it's definitely one of LJ Smith's best trilogies, and the book that made me a fan.If you're a fan of the movie Labyrinth (which I am), think of this story as a darker version of the movie, and Julian as a slightly more evil (but no less sexy) version of the Goblin King.

I'd take a slightly sadistic shadow man like Julian over sparkly vampires with no personality, any day.

I can't believe how fast I got this.
You guys are wonderful! I got this book so fast. You made the effort to ship my item fast and I got it in just about a couple of days. i am so impressed! I will definately buy from you again! Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart!!! ... Read more

Product Description

Kaitlyn Fairchild has always felt like an outsider in her small hometown. Her haunting eyes and prophetic drawings have earned her a reputation as a witch. But Kait's not a witch: She's a psychic. Tired of being shunned, Kait accepts an invitation to attend the Zetes Institute, where she can have a fresh start and study with other psychic teens.

Learning to hone her abilities with four other gifted students, Kait discovers the intensity of her power -- and the joy of having true friends. But those friendships quickly become complicated when Kait finds herself torn between two irresistible guys. Rob is kind and athletic, and heals people with his good energy. Gabriel is aggressive and mysterious, a telepath concealing his true nature as a psychic vampire, feeding off of others' life energy. Together, Rob and Gabriel's opposing forces threaten the group's stability.

Then one of the experiments traps the five teens in a psychic link. A link that threatens their sanity and their lives. And Kaitlyn must decide whom to trust...and whom to love. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (64)

Dark Visions
I should stop with the L.J. Smith books.I never seem to like them.This may be the worst I have read so far.It didn't have a solid character, plot or storyline in it.I was lost most of the time and never really felt the urge to continue reading.I did finish this one however and was simply bored by it.I do not recommend you read this book.

not as good as nightworld
After reading L.J. Smith's 'Nightworld Series', I became hooked.I was hoping that Dark Visions would be just as good and interesting, but it was just okay.It dragged on and the lead character Kait, was a little boring and annoying.It's an okay read.

Not My Favorite...
Dark Visions takes us to an Institute for kids with psychic powers.Five kids from around the country, Kaitlyn, Gabriel, Anna, Lewis and Rob, all with different powers, are brought to the Institute for testing with the promise of major scholarship money upon completion.Friendship is formed and romance buds as they all live together at the Institute.But they soon discover that the Institute harbors some shocking secrets and working together to discover what they are, links them all in a way none of them expected and they find themselves on the run for their lives.

I'm a big LJ Smith fan.After Vampire Diaries, I was hooked and have purchased and read all but 3 of her books, so far.But I'm a little disappointed in Dark Visions.The story starts out promising, but underwhelms in the final act.I like the characters and the powers they each have, even though I think Anna & Lewis were a little under-used in the story.I would have liked to see more use of their characters.The romance seemed a little forced and cheesy between two of the characters.I didn't really care for the way the third book played out.There was one highlight of the last book of the three, for me, and that was Gabriel, and Kaitlyn's isolation.Loved that part! I didn't really care for the way the book ended though.I was hoping for a little more.

It's definitely not my favorite of LJ Smiths books.

Disappointing but not a complete waste of time
It has taken me a while to write this review because for a while I wasn't sure how I felt about this book at as a whole.

Dark Visions is broken up into three separate stories the first one is The Strange Power. I liked this story the best, and on it's own I would give The Strange Power 5 stars, it was a little cheesy and the character's weren't particularly original, but I liked Kaitlyn the main character in the book, she starts out as an outcast at her own school because people think she's a witch because of her psychic abilities. Then she's invited to be a part of a psychic study and brought to special institute in CA where she lives with four other teenagers all who have different psychic abilities.

From there the story turns into part mystery/part budding love triangle and for me the best part of all of this was probably Gabriel, the bad boy (for lack of a more creative term) who Kaitlyn can't help but be attracted to. The story was a little cheesy, but it had enough mystery and suspense so that once I started reading it I literally couldn't put it down until I finished.

Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for the other two stories that comprise Dark Visions... The Possessed and The Passion (which I would say are each about 2 stars).Not much happened in the Possessed, it felt like filler, it was a of running away from bad guys and I honestly thought it could have been cut in half -or just been written differently. For me it was just okay, I honestly only kept reading because I really like Gabriel- LJ. Smith is good at writing bad boys, and that is about the best thing I can say for the last two stories in this book.

I thought the Passion was just as bad as The Possessed, the characters didn't feel real in this story and to me it just wasn't very believable (given the context of the book because obviously the whole premise of this book is a bit fantastic -which I love!)

To sum up, I wouldn't say it was a terrible book, but I will say that it is my least favorite out of all the books of LJ Smith's that I have read. But if you're interested give it a shot... and if you're not after reading this or any other reviews, let me recommend The Forbidden Game by LJ Smith that is another 3 books in one book and that book I loved! It was so fun to read! And I totally would recommend that book over this.

Riveting
I love this book, it is unique in every way.Gabriel is the perfect bad boy - truly flawed but you can't help but hope for his redemption.Most books are pretty predictable but Dark Visions really held my interest and I became very invested in all the characters.Well, except for Rob, he's just a little too good to be true and even a little annoyingly so at times.However, the rest of the characters are believable and likable.
The plot keeps you reading straight through, it feels like one giant novel instead of 3 separate books.And no waiting to see what happens!I enjoyed it so much I didn't want it to end.I immediately bought her Night World series which is excellent as well. ... Read more

Product Description

ALL THE SECRETS AND LORE OF THE
NIGHT WORLD-NOW IN ONE SPELLBINDING BOOK!

You loved Secret Vampire and are counting down to the Strange Fate apocalypse. But who was the first made vampire? How do you properly greet a witch? And why are shapeshifters and werewolves rivals? Prepare to test your Night World knowledge with trivia questions from all nine books; get the inside information about the clans, the soulmate principle, Circle Daybreak, and the four Wild Powers; and take two quizzes to find out how you fit into the Night World.

Best of all, L.J. Smith shares her inspiration for the series, answers the questions you've been asking, and even reveals fun facts about herself in this official guide. Plus, look for the sneak peek at the dramatic conclusion to the series, Strange Fate! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Night World Fan Guide
As a fan guide this falls short on several fronts.Other then being a concise location for Night World facts and some insights into the novels themselves from the creator (a lot of which can be read on her website) there isn't a whole lot of *new* information.This is basically like having the Night World wikipedia in book form (except, of course, with better editing and fact checking).

There's brief accounting of each of the 9 Night World books currently avail (at time of publication), character descriptions for the 'major' players and interesting notations on when characters overlap into each book (such as the fact Ash Redfern pops up in 3 novels) and the trivia questions could be fun for Night World fans to quiz each other with.

However, when the words "Ultimate Fan Guide" are used, more is expected.Better insight, more detailed histories and character breakdowns, deleted scenes or plot lines, what it took to update the books form their original late 90's release to the recent re-release (since the original novels cited the year 2000 as the day of the big event, because the books were more or less contemporary to their publishing dates, but when Strange Fate was finally announced as being publish Smith mentioned having to update the other books to coincide with the near year in Strange Fate).

This 'fan guide' doesn't deliver enough for the longtime fans.For new fans, who only recently came into the series, this may be enough.For those of us who have spent the last decade (and more) discussing what will happen in the mythical tenth book, getting excited over new short stories and blurbs on Smith's website, hopeful the half a dozen times a rumored release date for Strange Fate surfaced...its not up to par.

Just Wait for Strange Fate...
Like many of you, I'm on tenterhooks waiting for the release of Night World: Strange Fate, and so this Ultimate Fan Guide naturally caught my eye at the local department store. Whilst waiting for my little sister to try on clothes, I'd read it cover-to-cover.

There are some interesting insights here from L.J. Smith as to the inspiration behind several of her heroines (such as her fear that Poppy was too much like Bonnie from The Vampire Diaries), as well as some hints as to what to look forward to in "Strange Fate" (such as the fact that the Wild Powers Jez and Delos may not get along), but apart from that, it really is a rather pointless book.

There are quizzes, images of old book covers, and basic information on characters, books and species - nothing that you couldn't get from the books themselves, or from the average fan website. It all just seems filler in order to get a respectable page count, and the giant font doesn't help matters either. When I first picked it up, I honestly thought it was a "large print" version for the elderly. And of course, the fact that this is the "ultimate" guide will become obsolete once "Strange Fate" comes out.

Needless to say, it is also far too overpriced. If this were an entree to the larger course of "Strange Fate," then it barely whets the appetite.

There is a chapter from "Strange Fate" at the end of the book, but then, there's one at the end of Night World No. 3 as well. I've waited over ten years for the finale to the Night World series. I can wait a little longer...

Night World: Ultimate Fan Guide
Night World: The Ultimate Fan Guide, by L. J. Smith

I would recommend you buy this book only if you are a die-hard, can't live without it, Night World fan. It's overpriced in my opinion, and doesn't really contain anything that new. The best parts were L. J. Smith's insights into her writing process, thoughts behind the Night World, and insights into some of the characters, but I would say you could easily read those flipping through it in a bookstore.

The quizzes and answers that take up some of the book are a bit silly in my opinion, but might be good for a girl in the 10 - 14 range. Some of the things, such as a gallery of book covers, seem to be included just to take up page space; I don't think they add to the guide. There is some useful information if you're new to Night World, but 95% of it you would get from reading the books.

2/5.

Night World
I remember reading my first Night World book in my secondary school library about ten years ago, and thinking it was the best series I'd read since The Famous Five. It's no longer my favourite series (hello, Twilight), but I still love it, and I think a lot of today's supernatural fiction owes a big thank you to L. J. Smith's fantastic imagination.

Night World: The Ultimate Fan Guide is a must-read for fans of these books, and is an entertaining compendium of facts, figures, quizzes and information. I patrticularly like the original US cover gallery, and the interview with L. J. herself. It's fascinating to get an insight into her mind, and her letter to the fans is nothing but sincere.

You'll be a Night World expert by the time you finish this book and, after reading the Strange Fate excerpt at the back, no doubt you'll be counting down to its release just like I am. Everything you ever wanted to know about the characters and creatures is present in this fan guide, and I can't wait to see if a similar Vampire Diaries volume will follow.

Definite fun read
I'm surprised that no one reviewed this yet. I read it earlier today, and it came as a surprise that it was actually quite enjoyable. The guide book comes with all that you need to know as far as the history of the Night World and its' members are concerned. There is also a couple of quizzes included in the book, and also a foreword written by none other than L.J. Smith herself, and while you're at it, there are a few pages also where she answers the readers' question. There's pages of tidbits of what you need to know about witches, ghouls, shape shifters, and vampires, their origins, and more pages dedicated to a bit of a Q and A session.

To top it off, the Night World guide book also includes a chapter except from the upcoming NW book, Strange Fate. As being a long-time reader of L.J. Smith, I absolute recommend this book to all those who want to brush up on their Night World history. ... Read more

Product Description

Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

In Secret Vampire, Poppy thought the summer would last forever. Then she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Now Poppy's only hope for survival is James, her friend and secret love. A vampire in the Night World, James can make Poppy immortal. But first they both must risk everything to go against the laws of Night World.

Fugitives from Night World, three vampire sisters leave their isolated home to live among humans in Daughters of Darkness. Their brother, Ash, is sent to bring the girls back, but he falls in love with their beautiful friend.

Two witch cousins fight over their high school crush. It's a battle between black magic and white magic in Spellbinder. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (97)

Love this book
This the best book ever!!! I mean it I so dig vampires and other such thing now. You should so read this book.

Night World Volume 1
Night world volume one consists of three novels.

The cover caught my eye. It was clear and not busy with too big of a picture. I was intriqued to look some more at this novel. I noticed the first story in this trilogy volume was published in 1996. I guess I missed this book. I'm glad it came back on the market.

The first story Secret Vampire is pretty good. It was an easy read and moved along pretty fast. I liked how L.J. Smith grew her character Poppy all the way to the end of the book. It was also nice to see that vampires can be good guys too.

There was not a lot of emotion with this story. Even though it did have a bit of romance at the end of the book. I would definitely recomend this book to ages 9 -13. Even a slow reader would find this book to hold their attention long enough to finish this book.

I give this part of the trilogy 4 1/2 ****

The next story in the book called Daughters of Darkness is a little bit more fast paced. I liked this part even more. I had a hard time putting the book down after the very first chapter.

This book has a very strong character, Mary-Lynnette. But I am not really clear about this character in the begining of the story, but by the end I do know enough about her to begin to really like her.

This story has some mystery to it. A nice attempt by Smith. Maybe next time she will be able to write a better mystery. It is a pretty good story again for ages 9-13.

I give this part of the trilogy again 4 1/2 ****

The last story in this book is called Spellbinder I really liked this story most of all. It is a story about two teenage witches. I really like the tension she used between the two girls. It was on the idea of sibling rivalry. The plot is very strong in this book. One can almost guess where the story is heading. It is another fast paced story. I like how it was more about witches and less about vampires. But the over all Night World concept is well thought out.

I will be looking forward to reading the next two trilogys in this series of books.

Tasty YA brain candy 3 1/2 stars
These books fall into the YA paranormal romance category but they're much better than many others that fall into that genre. The paranormal twist in these books is the existence of the Night World- a society of vampires, shapeshifters and witches. The Night World is a secret from humanity, and the two main rules are (1)don't tell humans about it and (2) don't fall in love with humans (because of reason 1). Breaking either of these rules means death for both the Night Worlder and the human(s) involved.

Each book is reasonably short and involves a different love story with sometimes only loosely connected characters. L J Smith seems to have a gift for establishing distinct and likeable characters; the lead characters of each book have different personalities which is something of an achievement given the number of stories told (9 to date). So if you like variety you will find it here; from ditzy to down-to-earth heroines, and from dangerous to gentle heroes.

There's also an overall story-arc that develops through the series - change is coming to the Night World and pro and anti human factions form, prophecies are fulfilled and suchlike. Sadly the final showdown is yet to happen as the last book(s?) in the series have yet to be published.

General criticisms:

- Does everyone in these books have to be sixteen or seventeen and at high school? Fortunately a lot of the stories don't focus on the high-school element, but some of them are very much Gossip Girl meets Vampires. I realise that YA usually features YA characters, but surely one or two nineteen year olds who'd left school wouldn't be too much to ask?

- Whilst there is a strong non-vampiric element in the Night World books (shapeshifters, witchers) the vampires do seem to get most of the starring roles (most of the books feature a vampire as a lead character, a couple feature witchers and only 1 features a shapeshifter as the heroine). Which I guess if you love vampires is actually a positive point. I'm a little bit out-vampired now though, so I much preferred the non-vampire stories.

- Lack of consideration of more serious issues that would have added depth to the books- e.g no discussion of what it will be like for one partner to grow old and the other stay young in the stories where one partner chooses not to become a vampire, not being able to have children, the morality of changing children etc.

- The Soulmate Principle. Whilst this is reasonably well used in this series with some lovely 'connecting' scenes between soulmates, I'm always deeply mistrustful of books that use this plot device. Can't people just fall in love the normal way sometimes?

That said, if you're looking for decent YA books with happy endings that you can relax with, look no further. If you've enjoyed the other YA paranormal stuff floating around out there, give these a try, because I really do think they're a better quality brain candy than many of the popular YA titles.

Used Paperback
I received this book in a timely manner and in very good condition.Do not be afraid to order from this vendor.

The Night World
I always seem to have trouble with L.J Smith's books, however this series is the exception.I throughly enjoyed the entire series.True, all of the stories are romance and somewhat corny, other than that I like the stories.The book contains werewolves and vampires, but it also includes witches.Points for originality. ... Read more

Product Description

To save the two vampire brothers who love her, Elena Gilbert sacrificed her life.

Customer Reviews (196)

I'd rather watch the TV series
It started off good enough, but quickly went down hill. I was completly unimpressed with the story line after the first book. Even if you are going to write about mythical creatures, there should be some part that the reader can grasp on to, something believable, this book series went too far out there without the base structure to support the ridiculous things that were happening. If you like the TV series then avoid these books at all cost.

Seriously?
Okay, L.J. Smith has completely lost it. And by "it" I mean everything about writing. She cannot make a story flow, she cannot make dialogue flow, and her ideas aren't fascinating...more like nauseating. I liked her first book or two, I mean they were okay (nothing earth-shattering, naturally)but I will never look her up as a potential source of entertainment ever again. Blah. I couldn't even finish this book. Seriously bad writing.

Good, but not best in series...
I love the Vampire Diaries series however, while The Return: Nightfall packs just as much danger and romance as the previous books, I didn't feel it was quite as well written. There were some parts that were a bit difficult to follow that I found myself having to read over again. All in all though it was still a great story. I'd strongly recommend this book to anyone who's read the previous Vampire Diary books because the book after this one, The Return: Shadow Souls, is really good, it's my favorite yet!

If only I could give zero stars
This book is AWFUL, possibly the worst book I've ever had the displeasure to read. I enjoyed the first two, but only an unwillingness to give up on something I'd spent money on made me finish this book. The characters are terrible, the plot wanders all over the place, the book drags on for far too long, and it's soppier and more melodramatic than Twilight (a tough accomplishment). And Elena's new powers/wings? Good only for serious eye rolling. Also, if I'd heard the words "lapis lazuli" one more time I may have screamed. We get it, Elena's eyes are blue. You can stop with the aggressive descriptions now.

The first two books may have been enjoyable, if not exactly great literature, but I'll probably never read another LJ Smith after reading this.

Books Vs TV Series
The books and the tv series are like two totally different story lines. However, I still enjoyed both. The books are definitely worth the time to read. Will you recognize the story line if you have only watched the series? No. ... Read more

Product Description

A deadly love triangle

Customer Reviews (153)

What I thought
If you like vampires or the tv series then you will love this book. I was surprised at how different the show was but I still love the book and can't wait to read the rest.

MY FAVORITE SERIES !!!
I loved this series ! It was exiting and had a really well written storie line . My mom and I bolth read the series and we bolth loved it ! The charectors have very difforant personalitys and back ground . exept for the brothers Damon and Stefen ! Eleana who is torn between the two brothers is from a hole difforant backround . I loved this book and the series is very exiting , and somthing is always happening ! I would recomend this book to anyone . It was defenetly a book you can't put down !

Great book!
After watching the new TV show, I just could'nt get enough. So I started reading the books. They are great!!!

Vampire Love Triangle
The premise of the novel is a little cliche, but it's a guilty pleasure read. I'll admit that the vampires felt like actual non-Twilighty sparkle vampires, which was a major plus for me. Despite some of the grammer mistakes, this was a very good read.

Elena wasn't exactly my most favorite main character, but I think that's because she was created to be like that. She's selfish and bratty, but she was also a popular girl so her character was kind of sterotypical. I don't believe that she and Stefan were in love for having so little contact with each other, so I think it was just lust.

Damon and Stefan's interaction in the story were fairly intense. I liked the fact that they were rivals.

The ending was kind of open ended so I'll be checking out the second book in the series.

The Vampire Diaries The Awakening by L.J. Smith (Student Review)
The Vampire Diaries The Awakening is the first book of this series by L.J. Smith. This novel is 253 pages. The novel starts off with Elena Gilbert writing in her diary about how summer is over and she doesn't know how to face school again after the death of her parents. Elena is stuck in a boring house living with her Aunt Judith and younger sister. Even though Elena is the most popular girl in school and has so many friends she feels empty inside. Then, Elena meets Stefan Salvatore, the new guy in high school. Stefan is the mysterious type of guy which interests Elena. She makes it her goal to get to know Stefan as best as she could, even though he has many secrets.
During the school's Halloween dance, an incident occurs that has everybody frightened. Mr. Tanner, the history teacher was murdered. All the students think that the new guy, Stefan had something to do with it. Stefan is forced to disappear for the night, but Elena follows him and learns a deep dark secret about Stefan. He is a vampire. Instead of being frightened, Elena realizes that she loves Stefan. Later, they discover that Stefan's evil brother, Damon has been the one behind all of the murders going on in the city of Fairview. Damon is also a vampire, but unlike Stefan, he is bad and murders innocent people. The book ends with Damon kidnapping his brother. Elena is left in the dangerous presence of Damon hoping to find her vampire boyfriend.
I decided to read this novel because I started watching the T.V. series on the CW, which I really enjoy. However, the book is very different from the show. I personally found this book boring and predictable. It is written in third person, therefore it is a bit slow. I feel like I couldn't get interested in the words. This novel disappointed me and did not reach my expectations. I don't think that I will continue reading this series. I recommend the T.V. show The Vampire Diaries, not the novels. ... Read more

Product Description

Set during the Civil War, against a backdrop of grand estates, unimaginable riches, and deadly secrets, three teenagers in Mystic Falls, Virginia enter a torrid love triangle that will span eternity.

Product Description
When her cousin Blaise, a witch of the black arts, sets her sights on star athlete Eric Ross, white witch Thea casts a spell on the young man to protect him and falls in love despite the rules that forbid a relationship. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

Night World 3: Spellbinder
Night World #3: Spellbinder, by L. J. Smith

"She knew the drill. Another year of living with them, of walking quietly through the halls knowing that she was different from everybody around her, even while she was carefully, expertly pretending to be the same (p. 4)."

Thea and Blaise are cousins, raised as closely as if they were sisters. They're also both witches, members of the secret Night World. And they are high school students, starting at their fifth high school, having been expelled from four others - mostly because of Blaise. But this time, it's Thea who will jeopardize their future when she breaks the cardinal rules of the Night World; which are 1) Never let humans know about the Night World, and 2) Never fall in love with a human.

On their first day of school, Thea meets Eric, and the two are like swans - they know they are destined for each other immediately. There's only one little problem - Eric's human. Thea tries to push Eric away for his safety, but the two are soulmates and nothing she tries will keep him from her. But will she give up everything for him?

I read "Spellbinder" pretty quickly, in about 90 minutes, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Normally I don't care at all for romances, but mix in some supernatural elements, good writing, and interesting characters, and I'm hooked. I really liked Smith's portrayal of Thea - you start out thinking she's the quiet type, overshadowed by her vivacious cousin, but she develops believably into someone with backbone, someone caught between a rock and a hard place who doesn't know what way to turn, but tries to do the right thing, but sometimes doing it the wrong way. I also rather relished Smith's detail to the spells and especially the components. I had the feeling "Wow this is cool" when reading. The spells also allow for a nice twist at the end.

"Spellbinder" is a great installment in the Night World series, and gives an in-depth look at the witches and their origin in Smith's created world. I for one definitely want to know more about the history of the Night World, and am looking forward to reading more.

4/5.

Good Witchy Fun!
This is one of my favorites in the Night World series by LJ Smith. I have a thing for witches, and all the information about actual spells, spell ingredients, circle casting, and witch history was simply fascinating. Thea is a great character, and her relationship with her soulmate Eric is endearing, but the real standout star in this book is Blaise.
Blaise seems like your typical wicked witch, but despite her disdain for humans (that's how she was raised so you can't really blame her), she's supremely loyal to her family. What she does in the end for Thea almost made me cry.
What I love about LJ Smith's books is that the main themes go much deeper than just supernatural characters; her books explore and highlight the importance of relationships, love and loyalty. Spellbinder is one book I know I'll be reading over and over again for the rest of my life.

Excellent paranormal, Night World 3
I always have a bit of trepidation approaching paranormal novels not vampire or were- based. They're often a bit inaccessible to me, especially those based on witches, loaded down with spells and difficult-to-follow lore.

But as with the others of Smith's "Night World" I have read thus far, "Spellbinder" is much easier to approach than the norm, written for young inductees into the paranormal phenomenon.

Good witch Thea and dubious cousin witch Blaise are alike and yet quite dissimilar -- Blaise is a virtual goddess of love, while Thea's lie more in the arts of caring for animals. The two have few disagreements in contrary to what one might expect, though they share the mantle of Blaise's ongoing penchant for trouble.

Upon arrival at their new school and last chance, Thea's skills with animals are instantly tested, and resultingly she finds herself drawn to human boy Eric, a veterinarian to be (and one of the most compelling "Night World" heroes).

Things would be hectic enough with Blaise's attempts to claim Eric for herself, but soon even Thea is working forbidden magics of her own, and eventually the full burden of responsibility for their actions comes to bear down on the witch-pair.

While I very much (and surprisingly!) enjoyed this book, there are a few flaws. I found myself questioning a few subplots -- most notably Blaise's former pet and his appearance at the school seemed a bit embryonic and not thoroughly explained, and the book's resolutiooon, while surprising and fulfilling, still leaves one wondering if justice really has been served.

All in all, fun, with good characters.

7.8/10

I love this book!
This book was one of my favorite. I actually loved Blaise, she was sucha bad girl hehe

I even use her name as my SN!

"Feminism is the Radical Notion that Women are People"
"Spellbinder" (also published as "Enchantress") is the third book in L. J. Smith's `Night World' series, concerning the secret world of supernatural creatures that live among normal human beings. Called the Night World, there are several rules imposed upon the witches, vampires, werewolves and shape shifters that inhabit this world, namely that they are to never tell a human being about their secret society, and never to fall in love with one of them.

This is the first book in the series to deal with witches rather than vampires, and concerns the lives of two seventeen year old witch cousins who made their first appearance in "Secret Vampire": Thea and Blaise Harman. The two girls are complete opposites; Thea is fair and quiet, whilst Blaise is black-haired and someone who enjoys playing with the human world for fun - making boys fall in love with her and then discarding them. After a series of expulsions from high schools around the country (the last one having resulted in the school burning down), the cousins are brought to live with their grandmother Edgith Harman - the Crone of All the Witches, a prestigious position within the Circles of Night World witches. In other words, the cousins are on thin ice.

But Blaise doesn't trouble herself with things like this - she's always played her love games and doesn't plan on stopping now. Thea however, is desperate to live a quiet, peaceful life. But then she finds her soul mate: Eric Ross, a human. Their connection is powerful, but Thea knows that should they be discovered, it could result in executions for both of them, or in war among the factions of the Night World. When Blaise finds out about Thea's feelings, she decides the only way in which to act is to separate the two of them: by using her own charms to divert Eric's attention away from Thea...

The blurb would have you believe that Blaise is an out-and-out villain, and the focus of the story is on the two girls fighting over Eric's affections. This however is not so - the main conflict in the story comes from Thea's attempts to protect Eric by summoning up a benevolent spirit. However, when the spell goes wrong, Thea finds that a murderous witch-ghost is on the loose, and perfectly capable of killing. As well as this there are numerous sub-plots, including Edgith's failing health, Blaise's exploits at her new high school, a few spells and meetings with other witches, Thea's various attempts to allure/dispel Eric's affections and an introduction to Eric's family and his radical-feminist little sister.

All this equals a rather slip-shod plot that slides all over the place. It's not that the story isn't interesting, but L. J. Smith doesn't seem quite sure on where it's going, or where the true conflict lies. Instead it comes across as a series of magical events and workings that don't quite have the urgency and suspense of other books in the series - especially the later ones.

Furthermore, many of the plot points and characters in the book were rather familiar - Smith has been recycling her own work, most particularly "The Secret Circle" trilogy. Blaise and Thea are almost identical to Faye and Diana (and both sets were cousins!) whilst things like the vengeful spirit, the death of a school student and the forbidden love affair all have their counterpoints in this previous trilogy. As such, the story has a lack of originality (and the coupling of Thea and Eric doesn`t come across as *that* genuine).

But there are some nice touches throughout: we get another piece of the ever-growing history of the Night World (this time it's the story of Hellewise and Maya), some names of other characters that have either been in previous books or will pop up in later ones (such as Aradia, Ash, Quinn and Thierry) that make the book feel like a small part of a larger whole. Smith also makes good use of folklore and mythology, weaving little bits of `real' legends and practices into what the characters say and do - like the Cup of Lethe or the many allusions to Aphrodite.

All in all, not a bad contribution to the 'Night World' series, though by no means the best: things only get really interesting when we hit book five: "The Chosen".
... Read more

Product Description

Vampires, werewolves, witches, shapeshifters -- they live among us without our knowledge. Night World is their secret society, a secret society with very strict rules. And falling in love breaks all the laws of the Night World.

The apocalypse is drawing near. But four Wild Powers can save the world from the impending doom. Circle Daybreak, an underground organization with both Night World and human members, is searching for the four who can stop the darkness.

A vampire hunter -- who is half vampire -- stalks her own kind to protect humans in Huntress.

In Black Dawn, Maggie stumbles upon an old Night World kingdom where the ruling vampire prince is both an enemy and an ally.

And Circle Daybreak hires Keller, a shapeshifting panther, to guard a new Wild Power in Witchlight. But when Keller falls in love with the Wild Power's soulmate, her love could destroy everything.... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (44)

Nightworld
So far, the best.As I have said in a previous review this is the only L.J Smith series I have liked all the way through.This is the very best in the series.The book contains the three stories: Huntress, Black Dawn and Witchlight.

The Main character of Huntress is Jez.Jez is an incredible vampire who is part of gang that torments humans.But when she discovers that she half human, she swiftly changes her ways.Abandoning her gang she goes to live with her human cousins.She becomes a vampire hunter and never returns to her vampire ways.But suddenly all that her and the others need is the one with the blue fire, and Jez must return to her gang to get to the one who owns the blue fire...

Black Dawn is truly a dark and mysterious story and my favorite of all nine stories of the three books.Maggie discovers that her brother is dead, but she has her suspicions about his girlfriend that was there when it happened.Desperate to avenge her brother she follows his girlfriend to her house.Soon she discovers that his girlfriend is really a witch.She is then abducted and taken to a completely hidden world of vampires and shapeshifters.She is able to escape from the wagon.When she is on the brink of being killed she is saved by the one who controls the blue fire.It turns out he is the prince of the world in which she is in.And with his help she might be able to save all the slaves in his world...

Witchlight is about a shapeshifter.This is the first book where a shapeshifter is the main character.The main character is able to take the form of a panther.Her job is to protect the last being who controls the blue fire.With the help of a witch and others they are able to protect the being also with the help of the charming prince shapeshifter...

Bargain Price
I received this book in a timely manner and it was in very good condition.I will gladly purchase from this vendor again.

night world book 3
I just love thesebooks,order 2nd and 3rdfrom amazon, as i couldnt wait the store to get them in stock,so now imon the 3 book,witchlightand got to chapet 7,5 pages in to the chapter, and blank pages till chapter 9most of 9 was blank.then the story is back,what the heck,had the bookover a month asi had to read second book.hmmmmmm want to exchangefor another book,wotking on that now, need to talk to amazon.

Great series!
I think I now understand better why so many L.J. Smith's fans crave the last, 10th, installment of the Night World series - Strange Fate- to be finally published. Throughout this series of paranormal romances Smith has created a fascinating supernatural world and gradually built up to a great end-of-the-world showdown destined to happen in the final chapter of the story.

This collection of 3 romances is of the same quality as two previous Night World tomes. What you have here are these scenarios: i-didn't-realize-i-was-in-love-with-my-long-time-guy-friend ("Huntress"); my-soulmate-is-a-vampire-dark-prince-but-my-love-will-cure-his-badness ("Black Dawn"); omg-my-soulmate-has-to-marry-someone-else-for-political-reasons ("Witchlight").

Yes, I know how it sounds, but believe it or not, these books are solid stories with strong heroines whose priorities are straight, who are not TSTL and whose lives do not revolve around their boys. The books remain simple and innocent (no action beyond first base here), maybe a little juvenile. But at the same time the plots are great and the mythology is imaginative. Night World books are basically better than 95% of paranormal YA fiction I've read these past few years.

I am now going to wait for Strange Fate too, but seeing that L.J. Smith has lost some marbles over the years and produced new Vampire Diaries of atrocious quality, maybe I shouldn't.

Better than Vampire Diaries
This is my favorite series by L.J. Smith. I love that the books are independent of each other, but each one has a link to a previous one in a sometimes obscure and unexpected way.I wasn't sure how I would feel about this after getting so attached to Poppy & James at the beginning but the series just keeps getting better.Branching off to show the story from a completely different perspective keeps the series fresh and lets you fall in love with new characters while knowing that you haven't seen the last of your old favorites.I can't wait to see how it all comes together in the end. ... Read more

Product Description

Torn between two vampire brothers

Customer Reviews (47)

Teenager Book
We all said Stephenie Meyer's books were for teenagers... this one is for sure for them. The verbiage is teenage level... easy read though that kept me going through the end.

Reading with Tequila
I'm really getting into The Vampire Diaries, despite my initial misgivings with The Awakening. I really like how this story is turning out. I like how all of the characters' motivation is so clear, at least it seems to be. I can't wait to find out what happens with Stephen, Damon and Elena. I'm also really enjoying Bonnie's ability. The evilness of Caroline and Tyler brings a normal problem to a supernatural situation and I felt that worked very well.

The Struggle had a better sense of finality than The Awakening. It feels like a full story, left slightly open-ended to allow for another book to follow. Instead of being separate books in a series, these books seem like all parts of the same book. I read this book immediately after The Awakening and it seems as though these books are best read one right after the other.

LOVE IT
My 11 year old daughter is hooked on vampires but some of the books out there are just too mature for her so I heard about this series and thought I would read it first to be sure it wasn't too dirty for a young girl. I really enjoyed it and so did she. We are hooked to this series.

Trisha's Book Blog Review
This book was as good as the first one, if not better. I really liked Stefan and Elena's relationship in the book.
The book starts off with Elena yelling for Damon, Stefan's evil brother. Shocking, I know! She is yelling for him because he has taken Stefan somewhere and Elena can't find him. She only knows that he is in trouble.
Elena goes through quit a bit of trouble in this book. She get her diary stolen, only to find out that it was someone she thought was her friend took it to get back at her. Also, Damon, Stefan's brother keeps getting into her head and talks her into doing things that she doesn't want to do. He wants to steal Elena away from Stefan. And at the end of the book she gets into a car accident which makes the ending totally awesome! Sounds weird saying it, but you have to read the book!
I actually found myself rooting for Damon at the end of the book. I think his "powers" came out of the book and worked on me. :) But before I finished I was rooting for Stefan again.

Book purchase
I purchased this book along with The Awakening for my daughter as part of her Christmas gifts. She had asked for both. When I received the book, I should have checked it over carefully. Having always been pleased with Amazon purchases, I quickly wrapped the books for her to open Christmas morning. Much to our dismay, this book has several torn pages and is missing pages 47 through 50 something. Of course I purchased it in Nov. so the 30 day return time is past. I realize it is my fault for not double checking my order, but I do hope everyone else will always check theirs and not do like me assuming things will always be good. My daughter was terribly disappointed and so was I. I now have a book no one will want. ... Read more

Product Description

Love can kill

Customer Reviews (41)

Best Series Ever
If you like vampire books (and I don't mean Twilight crap) then this book is for you. I have always like vampire stories since I was really little and this series is awesome.The best vampire series out there without all the fake stuff that put into other vampire books.These books came out in early 90s so Twilight fans, this was out before your precious book was even thought of.If you are true vampire lover, and enjoy good books that are written very well and make you feel like you are apart of it then read this series.

LJ Smith's writing is far better than most books that I've read.Her descriptions and the way that she says things are so clear that you feel like you are there in the book with these characters.I really enjoy a book or series that can make you feel like you are one of the characters inside the book going along with them in their adventures.

One of my favorites!
Estou impressionada, impressionada, impressionada! Para mim, A fúria, é o melhor até agora da saga. Simplesmente maravilhoso. Eu não estava esperando nada deste livro porque não fui muito com a cara do um, o dois foi mais agradável, mas amei total o terceiro.

A tapada como eu sou, hehehe, fiquei sabendo hoje que os quatro primeiros livros foram lançados nos anos 90. Eu não sabia nem falar quando o primeiro livro foi lançado. hahaha Acho que gostaria mas da história naquela época, onde os vampiros não estavam tão em alta.

Fiquei feliz comigo mesma, mesmo não gostando do começo eu fui atrás e continuei dando uma chance a saga. Dou graças a Deus que eu dei mesmo uma chance para Diários do Vampiro.

Eu odiava Damon antes, mas em A fúria isso mudou completamente. Eu amo o cara agora. hahahaha E tudo no livro me pegou de surpresa. Nada de clichês e o livro foi contado com mais detalhes. A fúria é ótimo do começo ao fim. O final então: M-A-R-A-V-I-L-H-O-S-O! Totalmente inesperado...

Reading with Tequila
I really like the progression of The Vampire Diaries. The Awakening was okay, The Struggle was good and The Fury was pretty fantastic. I completely stand by my earlier opinion that you must read this series in order and preferably one right after another. This series has moved from being one of your generic vampire stories with the required love triangle to being so much more.

Elena's becoming a vampire was surprising and the revelation of the ultimate villain of the series was truly shocking. The Fury is a wild ride leading to a sad and unexpected ending. I love how Elena learns that having a few close friends you can count one is so much more important than having a pack of less than loyal followers and hangers-on. The Fury is definitely my favorite in the series so far.

Review From One Book At A Time
I liked this book the best so far.It was dark, dangerous, and left me guessing until the very end. Elena was interesting as a vampire.Damon continues to surprise me.I just wish Stephan would get some life in him.He's so engrossed in Elena and his past relationship with Catherine, that there doesn't seem much else to his character.In the show, the choice is obvious, but not so in the books.I like how all the characters pull together to battle what is controlling the town.I wonder how they will play this book out in the TV show.

The Vampire Diaries : The Fury
Received book in very good condition and seller was very nice.Also, received this book within just a few days of ordering. ... Read more

Product Description

In Dark Angel, Gillian is saved from drowning by her guardian angel. Only visible to Gillian, Angel will fulfill her heart's every desire. But when Angel starts making strange and sinister requests, Gillian must question who he truly is and where he came from.

Armed with a wooden stake, martial arts, and the will to resist a vampire's mind control, Rashel struggles to avenge her mother's death in The Chosen. Then she meets Quinn, her soulmate, who is part of the world she has vowed to destroy.

Hannah receives notes warning her of incredible danger in Soulmate. But if death is her destiny, is the Lord of the Night World's love strong enough to save her? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (47)

Vampires, witches and weres...oh my
I'm a mid 40-ish mom and have read all Twilight books after my teen daughter was so intriqued and couldn't put them down and decided to find out what the hype was all about. I've been reading the Night World #1 of this series and I bought all three books at once and truley wasn't a mistake.I've read 1/2 way through the first book and it's very very good and if you're looking for age appropriate for your tween or teen.If you like reading a book with teen love and light romance,taboo situations and curiousity into the night world, then this fits the bill. Each book appears to have 3 sections with many chapters; each section relates to the one just read, characters jumping into the next chapter and adding more intriguing characters to the mix. Happy reading!

Nightworld
Great!This second installment is better than the first.The three stories are called Dark Angel, The Chosen and Soulmate.

Dark Angel is good.Our main character is a under confident girl who after experiencing a near death experience, receives a guardian angel.At first it's nice.She suddenly becomes more confident.But soon things take a turn for the worst.It becomes evident that her Angel is not truly trying to help her, but trying to control her.She soon finds out that she is not just a human, but a witch.

The Chosen is my personal favorite.Rashel watched a vampire kill her family and friends when she was very young.Now she is all grown up and a swears to kill every vampire that crosses her path.She is now a well-known vampire hunter.When she stumbles upon something huge, she must become a huge player in a vampire game.

Soulmate is pretty self explanatory.Hannah realizes that she is reincarnated and obsessed with someone she has never met.That someone is a vampire and not just any vampire-the leader of the vampires.He will stop at nothing to convince her that he is not going to kill her, but loves her.

A great read!

Fun if you like Vampire love stories
So for some asinine reason I picked up this book before reading NIght World book 1, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn't necessary to have read the first three Night World' books in order to understand what was going on. But, after reading this book I decided to buy the rest of the series. I really liked it!

Like the other night world books this book is composed of three independent stories. All of which were paranormal love stories, that were clean, easy to read and fun -albeit a little predictable at times.

The first story, Dark Angel, I found to be the least predictable. In this story Gillian dies, but then is brought back to life by her guardian angel who then sticks around to make all her dreams come true, only after a little why some of the request he makes of Gillian aren't very angelic and she begins to question who this guy really is. Once I started this book I could not put it down. Gillian I found a little annoying at times, but I thought she was a realistic character, the story moved fast, it was interesting, and unpredictable. Not terribly deep, but It wasn't totally shallow either, which is kind of what I look for ina book. I just want to escape somewhere and all these stories definitely do that.

The Chosen was the second story in this volume and this is my favorite. Rashel becomes a brutal vampire hunter after seeing her mother killed by one when she is a child. She hates Vampires, then she meets Quinn, one of the most heartless vampires in the Night World who just happens to be her soulmate (sorry if this gives anything away, but since it says it on the back of the book I thought it was safe to add.)
Anyhow, this story is my favorite because I love both Quinn and Rashel, they are both strong semi-complex characters and L.J. does a really good job with their chemistry. For me this story was worth buying the whole book!

Soulmate was the third book in this series and this was my least favorite, though I have read other reviews were people loved it -and I did like it, I just didn't love it. This is a story that deals with past lives -which is an interesting concept, as well as vampires -which I love, no matter how many books are written about them, and it has a nice love story, but for me it was a little too predictable. I still really enjoyed it, though, as I did the whole book which is why I recommend this book! That is, if you like this sort of stuff, or are a fan of L.J. Smith, which I am (except for her newest vampire diaries books :( which I still feel sad about).

love it books
I got Night World at walmart because I was bored. Now im a Night World fan. I fell in love with these books. I own all of them and awaiting Strange Fate. Love it.

Please start with one and read all three in the series.
Just a short comment, there are three stories in each book, do start with the first and real all three. They are a fun easy read. ... Read more

Product Description
Book description to come. ... Read more

Product Description

Elena: the golden girl, the leader, the one who can have any boy she wants.

Customer Reviews (172)

It's not the tv show
I read this book years ago, and it almost turned me away from the television series which is actually pretty good.Soapy but entertaining.
The characters were flat and one dementional, I didn't really care for Elena, and Stefan was, well how can I put this delicately... a idiot. Moaning after how long over Kathrine and blaming himself for her death? How old are you supposed to be? For someone of any significant age you would think that you'd actually have some personal insight after over a century of living.Not to mention the whole drinking animal blood and feeling bad about killing the animals afterwards. Seriously wanted to yack after reading this book. It was every cliche without anything of substance. I could have cared less if Elena got Stefan or if his evil twin wiped out the town. In fact the book would have been better if the evil twin had killed everyone.
If you're looking for something close to the tv show I would avoid it. It was a serious waste of time.

Mixed reaction
Blood and Sunlight: A Maryland Vampire Story

The TV seris is a guilty pleasure of mine (don't tell my wife) so I definitely wanted to check out the books. The first thing that surprised me is just how many elements of Twilight were borrowed from this book. Girl from a disjointed home moves in with another relative to another town, the mysterious, hunky boy with a troubled supernatural past. And hey, let's throw in another supernatural rival. Meyer obviously borrowed heavily.

The other thing that surprised me was just how little I liked Elena in the book. She's self-absorbed, shallow and never really undergoes any sort of transformation (except now she's shallow, self-absorbed and infatuated with a vampire). There also isn't a great deal of merit to their attraction or continued relationship (I wanted more beyond loaded looks).

The most interesting character is the brother (probably on the show as well). He's dark, hell-bent on revenge, and very, very powerful. I'm sure the author didn't intend for me to be rooting for the bad guy though.

For now, I'll stick with the tv series.

If you've run out of other teenage vampries...
At first I thought I liked this volume, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it was really just okay, but good enough to pass the time if you really like YA vamps.

The story's not bad, though it could be better written, perhaps with more suspense. Some of the internal monologue-ing will make those who yelled "saccharine melodrama!" at the Twilight Saga even more nauseous. (And really, if I hear the phrase "inhumanly beautiful" one more time, I may scream.) She also used redundant vocabulary - yes, we know he's from "Renaissance Italy," you can abbreviate now! The Virginia setting is part of what drew me to the series, but the action could happen in Kansas, for all the influence it has on events.

However, I think the main problem was the characterization. It was a start, but it was flat. If you read the description on the cover, you basically know all you're going to know about the three main characters. Elena = "golden girl" + "leader" + "gets any guy she wants." Stefan = "brooding" + "haunted" + "mysterious." Damon = "sexy" + "dangerous" + "driven by revenge." That's it. They're so very static, except perhaps Elena, who starts to care for people other than herself eventually. Added to the flatness, the characters are all pretty unlikeable.

I thought I would never say this in my life, but don't judge the show by the books. The television series is much, much richer in terms of plot/action, setting (the Civil War in Virginia plays a HUGE part), and especially characterization.

So like I said, not a waste of time to read this series, but not the best in the genre either. I'd recommend it to fans of YA vampires who've read everything else (I think I'd recommend Blue Bloods or Vampire Academy first). I wouldn't recommend it to fans of the show.

Not as good as the show
The first 2 books were ok but the second 2 were a great disappointment. I did manage to read the whole thing but I would not read them again

Easily beats Twilight
Actually purchased this book after hearing all the hype and having seen TV series which is a totally different to the books BUT both are good to great in their own way.

The books are easy to follow, with plenty of description so you can imagine the story line, its been a few years since leaving school but still easy to follow what is happening.

The plot mainly revolves around Elena Gilbert and her friends Bonnie / Meredith, "ex" Matt, her female "competitor" Vicky, Tyler Lockwood all attend the Robert E Lee High School but things change when a new student begins attending Stefan Salvatore from then on people start getting attacked and some cases killed.

There have been some negative comments made about such things as "teen brooding" reality very little especially in comparison to TV show, the author jumping from one "scene" to another reality - what is the author supposed to write about after the character has gone to bed - use some common sense.

TV SHOW Differences - I wont ruin your reading but simply the characters are the mostly the same - Elena Gilbert the girl desired by both Vampire Brothers, Bonnie the witch, Meredith, the "ex" Matt, the jock Tyler Lockwood, history teacher Alaric Saltzman(apologise on the spelling), Elena has a sister in the books, and of course the brothers Damon and Stefan Salvatore.

AND lastly the Vampires dont sparkle in the daylight ... Read more

Product Description

On the run . . .

Customer Reviews (105)

Shadow Souls
Being a huge LJ Smith fan, Shadow Souls was one of my most anticipated releases of the year. After reading Nightfall, I was worried, but Shadow Souls restored some of my faith in the series.

A pretty huge improvement from the previous book in the series, Shadow Souls introduces so much new... everything, that you have to keep reading to learn more. There were parts that dragged on and on, but you were soon captivated with new conflict and action.

The characters that I had grown to love (and hate) didn't really progress at all, except Damon. Damon has grown so much through this book that I found myself so wrapped up in him that I got annoyed when something else stepped in and interrupted my Damon time. But the rest of the characters stayed the same.

LJ is a great writer, who's talent has grown with her many published works, and Shadow Souls was no exception. The description is so vivid, that you can imagine every little detail at any given time. Her style is also really unique and fluid. One thing I am sure of, however is that the editors of this book need to be fired immediately. I found so many errors and even a typo, which probably wouldn't bother the average reader, but as a writer, it caught me off gaurd.

I was told that the ending would throw me for a loop, which it did. Never saw that coming. But I feel that the problem could be fixed so easily that it isn't really a big deal.

A must read for fans of the series, especially if you are on Team Damon with me, Shadow Souls is sure to please. If you haven't read this series, or any by LJ Smith, I advise that you do immediately. In fact, I demand it!

It's a fantasy, people!
I can't imagine what else was anybody expecting from this book. I couldn't help it but almost cry of laughter at some of the negative comments regarding people's aversion to the developing of a new story line and the natural progression of the characters in this - as in any other book series - must undergo to keep the story interesting. How can anybody expect characters to remain the same throughout a book series is beyond me. In order to show a different level of dynamic in a book, characters NEED to change! If I wanted the characters to remain the same, I would just keep reading the same book over and over again... Looking forward to reading the next book with Damon in his new state!

the Vampire Diaries The Return Shadow Souls
when I opened this book Icouldn't put it down I would take it to school, read it in the car and read this book at around 10pm(when i'm supposed to be asleep!)

in this book Stefan is kidnapped by the Kitsune and Damon, Elena, Meredith and Bonnie go on a long journey to the dark dimenson and have to pretend to be slaves. Mean while Elena and Damon get very close and Bonnie and Meredith get very suspicous. they all have to find a key that is cut in half and is hidden in two places.

After they find the key they have to go to the prison and fight the guards to get to Stefan. in the end they find Stefan and they take him back to the real world.
mean while Stefan brang a bunch of flowers. Damon was curious about the black flower and smelt it when he suddenly coudn't hear others thoughts and started screaming, Stefan and Elena came down stairs and found him on the ground and Stefan was so angry at him for smelling the Black flower. this is because if a vampire smells it they turn into a human and Stefan wanted it for him and so he could be with Elena for the rest of their lives.

if you love these books then you should watch this show called THE VAMPIRE DIARIES on channel GO!(99) on mondays 8.30pm. trust me you'll be obsessed once you watch an episode i know i am!!!!!

My favorite in the series!
I've followed the Vampire Diaries series and have found this book to be my favorite yet! If you're a Damon fan, you're definitely not going to want to miss this book! ;)

Should have left it alone...
I think that Smith should have left the series alone and not attempted to bring it back just because there is a T.V. show now (sorry if this isn't the only reason). This book is horribly written and makes very little sense. I'm not convinced that an editor read it at all. And if they did then they didn't do a very good job. The dialogue is at best fake and almost embarrassing. At worst it's impossible to understand. Plus you have Elena claiming to love only Stephen which is rubbish if you ask me. It is obvious that she has something going on with Damon. In fact, if it wasn't for their moments than the book would have gotten one star from me. It's hard not to read it after reading the other ones. Brings back a great series I haven't looked at for years. But when it's this bad I think, as I said, it would have been best to let it be. ... Read more

Product Description
To capture the love of Jenny Thorton, Julian--a visitor from a dark world--draws Jenny and her friends into forbidden games; the contest for a human soul. The prize is Jenny's freedom. The stakes are all of their lives. Jenny's friends are determined to help her win. But Julian is the master of the Game. Jenny's most desperate fight will be with him, this eerily handsome boy with electric blue eyes. He knows her deepest secrets, her darkest fears. He has almost infinite power. And the only thing he wants is for Jenny to surrender to him--body and soul. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (82)

Great series!
This was the first book i read outside of school lol. I was not much into reading as a teenager. It is a great series, 3 part! It pulls you and and keeps you hooked! If you love Fantasy you will love this!

The Greatest book I wish I never read!
Okay, this is the weirdest review I have ever done, so don't give me a hundred "not helpful votes".I am just trying to be honest.

Okay here is the gist of the book from the author * "Julian--a visitor from a dark world--draws Jenny and her friends into forbidden games.If Julian wins, he gets Jenny - if Jenny and her friends win, they go free."

This was a great trilogy with a unique story line.I think it is a possibility that it is one of the best books I have ever read.

** Possible Spoiler** However, to do it all over - I would not have read the book!!!The ending broke my heart, literally.I cried so much at the ending that I was dripping tears on the pages.I have never reacted to a book this strongly.I finished reading it at 4am and cried in bed until 6am.The next morning my husband asked me what was wrong and I just started crying all over again and then I had to explain to him I was crying over a "fiction book".He hugged me and asked me to tell him the story and then he let me cry some more.(I have the best husband in the world!!)So...............I know this is a weird review.I wish I had never opened the book because it haunts me.

Fantastic trilogy
I came across L.J. Smith's name on one of the Twilight forums. Her books were regarded very highly, so I decided to give one of her series a try. My first available book happened to be The Forbidden Game trilogy. A little bit about each of three books.

The Hunter
In a few words, this is a story about Jenny, an ordinary good girl, and Julian, a "Dark Prince" who is in love with her. To lure Jenny in his world, Julian tricks her and 6 of her friends to play The Game, where all of them have to face their most horrific nightmares. If they win, they are free to go. If they lose, Jenny has to stay with Julian forever.

This is a very well written book, characters are very real and relatable. Like many other reviewers, I found Julian extremely attractive in a dangerous way.

The Chase
Julian is out and lures Jenny into another Game - "Lambs and Monsters," in which her friends are caught one by one by the Snake and the Wolf. Jenny has to find the Shadow Man's base in order to free her friends and to be released from the promise she has given Julian in the previous game.

I found this book less entertaining than "The Hunter." It took almost half of the book for Julian to appear, the game itself was much weaker, we didn't learn anything new about the Shadow World, and there was too little interaction between Jenny and Julian.

The Kill
Seriously, what a comeback after a snoozer the second book was!

Jenny, Dee, Michael and Audrey are playing the final game to save their friends. Only this time they have to find an entrance to the Shadow World to be able to play.

This book is everything I expected and more. We find out more about the Shadow World, about Julian and experience emotional growth of all characters.

The book is scary, intense, and romantic at the same time. The ending is sad but you know it couldn't have ended any other way...

Overall, a great YA fantasy series which I would highly recommend.

An alltime favorite!
I first read this when i was roughly 15-16. the dates don't matter, just the fact that its forever shaped my reading. it was the second series of L.J. Smith's that i'd read and forever cemented my adoration of this writer. Ever since, every six or seven months, i've pulled out these books and reread them, because as much as i know the series has ended i've forever waited for the possbility of more. this series has been the spark for most all interests i've had, be it demonology, norse mythology, and even ufo's and photography. the characters are amazing. each one finds a place in your heart, even (and sometimes especially) the djin/demon/devil of a bad boy, Julian. if you love any sort of supernatural romance, this will surely find its way in your all time favorites list.

Better than Twilight.
This series emerged when I was in middle school, nearly 15 years later, I still love it!Despite the fact that it's very dark and sexy, there's still a whimsical, innocent nature to it that no longer exists in teen novels.The author had a very interesting concept that was decently executed.To tell you the truth, however, I only read this series over and over again because I'm in love with Julian.He's like the Goblin King. (to all you Labyrinth lovers out there) If I were Jenny, I would have made different choices. =)Reading this again makes me wonder why Twilight is such a hit.I guess everything has it's time and place.LOVE THIS SERIES! ... Read more