Rating: Summary: A *GREAT* series Review: When Kate tries a spell in a book she finds in the library to make the cute senior jock, Scott, to fall for her. When this works out, she casts another spell to do well on the test. These spells end up backfiring and cause quite a few people to hate her, and she ends up making it worse for the other people in her school, including her friends. She has to find someone to help her get out of this huge mess, but who? This book is one of the first books I read on Wicca, I got interested after my Wiccan friend lent it to me. It's really good and includes the most important elements of witchcraft to make sure no teens try the spells they find in cheap spellboks, as well as being entertaining. The author gets you involved in the book, and does a great job in getting into a modern teen's mind.
Rating: Summary: So Mote It Be ... Review: For a young adult book on Wicca, Isobel Bird did a great job. I bought this book because I didn't really understand what Wicca was, and the main characters were about the same age as me. Of the other novels I've read about Wicca, this series comes as close to what it really is (without having the whole 'Sabrina the teenage witch' thing). It starts with Kate Morgan, a normal teen who is sort of popular, and who has a crush on the 'hot, popular, unattainable' senior, Scott (typically, he plays football). Since she's only a sophmore, Kate knows she has almost no chance of a romance. She finds a book on spells after borrowing books on the Salem witch trials from her school library for a project, and discovers the 'come to me' love spell. Of course, being a non-believer of magic, Kate does it, and the next day, all the guys at her school are in love with her. Unfortunately, the gals hate her, and after a while (she does get Scott), Kate decides that she needs to get rid of the spell. She looks at the book that she borrowed and notices that a person had previously borrowed it seven times. The person? Annie Candrall, the shy, chemistry genius loner. Kate, desperate, seeks her help, and after the two of them try a counter-spell, everything goes from bad to worse. So, using the same method of looking at who borrowed the book last, the two girls find Cooper Rivers, the antisocial, different-colored-dyed-hair-a-month girl. These three unlikely friends finally figure out a way to stop Kate's crazy spell, but unfortnately, Kate's old friends (the popular crowd) look down at Cooper and Annie. Kate has to decide whether she will stand up for herself and lose popularity, or to follow the status quo and not be follwing her heart. This book ends at a cliffhanger, which is an effective way to get the reader to buy the next book. Overall, I thought this book was great, despite the cliches. It's mostly about Kate, the semi-popular, everyday teen, who changes into a young woman who can stand up for herself and what she believes in.
Rating: Summary: Awesome Series Review: I have only read the first two books in the Circle of Three series so far, but it's fast becoming one of my favorites! The characters are great and the storyline keeps you interested. I can't wait to read the rest of the books!
Rating: Summary: Finally, a series about REAL witchcraft Review: Yes, this is a fun, quick read. But there is a lot of solid information in here for young people (or anyone) looking to learn about Wicca. As a practicing witch for many years, as well as a young adult librarian, I've read everything out there for this age group on witchcraft. The SWEEP series is fine--but it's fantasy. The SECRET CIRCLE books are, well, misleading. Only Isobel Bird's CIRCLE OF THREE presents magic in a realistic way without sensationalizing it. As for Kate being a poor choice for the POV character because she's shallow, that's the whole point of the book. She needs to change her life, and she will do that through magic. Witchcraft is about empowerment and about changing your life--not about hocus pocus and wand-waving. They're great reads, and invaluable if you want to find out what being involved in Wicca is really like. Save SWEEP and CHARMED and BUFFY for your fantasy time. Read CIRCLE OF THREE and get lost in the power of true magic.
Rating: Summary: A good start for a great series Review: I had planned to write reviews for each of the Circle of Three books as I read them, but I was just too bloody eager to jump into the next one each time to sit down and type. Therefore, this is really a review of the series as a whole. I think this is appropriate, because the books actually tell one story in 15 parts. I picked up "So Mote it Be" at the library because I'd been saying for years that there should be some Wiccan fiction for teens and young adults and figured that I should give this a shot. I was fully expecting to be as disappointed as I was by Silver Ravenwolf's "Witches' Night Out", but I was very pleasantly surprised. I am not a teen and have not been such for a few more years than I'll readily admit to in public. However, I was easily able to look past the slightly basic language and plotting. The characters seemed very alive to me almost from the beginning. I have known all these girls (even dated them all, in my younger days) and was amazed with how well the author portrayed the girls, their trials, their triumphs, and even their not always logical thought processes. Her characters were teen girls, not children nor adults, and they almost always rang true as such. As a Witch, however, what I was most pleased with was the presentation of Wicca. This is the Craft as it is really practiced. Perhaps, since it is so different from Witch to Witch, I should say "the way it COULD be practiced". This is not hollywood Wicca (as much as I love Buffy, the all female thing and the black-eyed thing always bug me a bit). This is so close to the true practice that an aspiring Witch could do much worse for source material. In fact, I really hope that the author decides to write a non-fiction book. The fifteen part story follows the girls from their first fledgling steps into Magick, through training in Wicca, and finally to initiation. I think that even the purists who will say that "we don't do it that way" will have to admit that one *could* do it that way, and be drawn into the story. Just let go your preconceptions about what YOUR path is, and have fun following the Circle of Three on theirs. You'll thank me. :) The circle is open, but never broken...
Rating: Summary: pretty good teen fare Review: I'm not a teenager, but this was an enjoyable read. Good, light fare. Likeable characters, and the plot is not too outlandish. Presented Wicca in a positive light, it might be a good way to introduce nervous family/friends to the idea that you are interested in Wicca.
Rating: Summary: So Mote It Be Review: A Review by Ashley Kate was a normal high school sophomore, or so she thought. She never thinks a simple spell from a book could do any harm, but she was wrong. Everything has turned into chaos and she doesn't know what to do. Will anyone be able to help her stop this or is she going to be an outcast? It is up to her to make some new friends to make this entire thing stop and decide between them and her old friends for advice. I like how this book is mesmerizing. You can't get out of it, it is like you can't wait to see what happens to Kate next. Even though it is slow at the beginning, this story keeps you wanting to read more, it is impossible for you to guess what happens to her. For example, when you think Kate is going to get into really big trouble, her new friends show up and save her from making a complete disaster of the case. When this happens you can't believe that she made it through. Isobel bird brings the characters to life. She makes everything that happens to them seem so realistic. Everything that happens to the characters seems to be things that could happen real life. Now I can not wait to read the next book in the series to see what happens to Kate and her friends. I would diffidently recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy, drama, and adventure all mixed into one. This book really keeps you on your toes though the entire story. It is some what of an easy read and very surprising.
Rating: Summary: YUCK! Review: Kate Morgan checked out a book of spells from the school library. As a lark, she did the spell to make a boy, Scott, fall in love with her. It worked, but now every boy in school was in love with her. She also cast a spell to help her ace a Chemistry test. She aced it, but that back fired too. Noticing another name that had checked out the book several times, Annie Crandall. So Kate went to Annie for help. Perhaps together they could figure out how to stop the problems Kate had started in the school. Annie had gotten tired of checking out the spell book, so she bought her own copy at the Crones' Circle, an off beat book shop owned by witches. But her spells had backfired too. She was still getting rats in her kitchen to prove it! So they went to the last name in the book who had checked it out, Cooper Rivers. Cooper Rivers had witches in her family tree, though she would never admit it to others. She reluctantly joined the attempt to correct everything though, with the help of the witches who owned the book shop. All three join forces to cancel out all the spells and end up becoming close friends. Only Kate's other group of friends (the ones she had before the first love spell was cast) was putting on some serious peer pressure. ** I purchased books 1 - 3 in hopes that this series would be as great as the series "Regeneration" and any L.J. Smith book. This first book leaves me wondering if I wasted my money. I am sure this book will appeal to others; however, nothing seemed to flow smoothly to me. It was choppy. The characters did not seem real to me. It did stress how careful one must be to understand something fully before jumping right in! I plan to begin book 2 soon and hope that now the three main characters are together it will get better. **
Rating: Summary: Excellent series -- even for an adult Review: I started reading this on the recommendation of a Wiccan, even though I'm an adult with no children. Each book was excellent! I've collected the whole series and can't wait for the next one. The characters are believable, the magic is real and not overly fantastical, and the challenges these women face as young adults and the way they learn to handle them are so well drawn. A must read, even for adults, if you want to know what real witchcraft is like.
Rating: Summary: This book was perfect! Review: This is my all time favorite book! Once you start reading you just have to read the next one. I'm already on book 7!
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