The Secret Circle: The Initiation and the Captive Part I

I haven't completely finished it, I'm halfway through the book now as I'm writing this, but this book is so good! If you've watched the tv series that was canceled after one season, just be aware that this book is way different (and way better!). Like other reviews, once you begin reading, you won't want to put the book down. I read it in every free moment I have! I'm glad I bought the whole series because I will go through it fast.

RESIST THE URGE TO READ THIS BOOK.....Until you can get your hands on all three books in the series. Seriously. Once you start reading, you won't want to put it down and the books don't stand on their own. They are one story. I have to say that I love L.J. Smith's writing. I have everything she's written. But this series, The Secret Circle is one I've read over and over again. The others are good and I certainly enjoyed them, but there's something about this one, whether it's the historic setting in Salem or the idea of (good) witches or just the angst between a girl, her best friend and a boy. The characters were enjoyable, even the bad ones, which were really bad. I'm so glad to see Ms Smith is re-releasing her work again and I do hope that means we'll finally see her last NightWorld novel, Strange Fate soon.

Lucky for me I had the second book ready to go because I read the first book in 1 day. It was so good I kept reaching for it whenever I had a spare moment. Really this is a great read. I wish I had read it in the 90's when they were out and I was younger- LOL. Personally, I feel L.J. Smith's books are better than the Twiglight Series. And they were written before Twilight. Hmmmm...Maybe S.Meyer read L.J Smith when she was younger... **Make sure you have the second book ready because it is originally a trilogy. So each of the 2 Secret Circle books has 1 1/2 of the original books from the trilogy in them:o)

Ah, The Secret Circle. Quite simply, I adore these books. I'm absolutely thrilled that they're being re-released, as my old copies are now quite creased and have started to fall apart. I finally get to replace them! Though I'll never throw the originals away, mostly because I would feel like that was sacrilege, but also because I don't like these new covers nearly as much as the old ones. Yes, these books are THAT good. I first read them as a young teenager, because my sister and I were both big fans of Smith's Vampire Diaries saga. At first we were both confused, because we thought these TSC would be about vampires, too. We quickly decided that witches were just as much fun to read about as vampires! (very minor spoilers below, beware) The heroine of this trilogy is Cassie Blake, and she is a character that every girl reading the books will both relate to and admire. As a younger reader, I remember feeling really elated by this, because if I was even a little bit like Cassie, I must be a better person than my teenage mind gave me credit for. And I think that new readers will come to the same realization. As the story starts, Cassie is fairly ordinary, or at least she sees herself that way. She's average looking and fairly shy. She doesn't stand up for herself, and she's easily intimidated. Smith never writes her as a COWARD, though, just as a timid, typical teenage girl who desperately longs to fit in with her peers. When she first sees Diana (who later becomes her best friend), she assumes that Diana is out of her league because Diana is beautiful. A very realistic reaction, in my opinion, and one I had many times in high school. As the books progress, so does Cassie. She slowly begins to realize her own potential without compromising who she was in the very first chapter. She's a character who follows her heart and tries to do what she really believes is right. She makes mistakes, definitely, and is far from perfect, but even when she deliberately does the wrong thing, she feels guilty about it and tries to clean up whatever messes she helped cause. When forced to choose, she almost always chooses her family and friends over her own wants. I think she's a fantastic role model for tween readers (and adult readers, too, come to think). All of Smith's characters are very richly developed. Diana, the beautiful best friend, seems absolutely perfect at first. She's eternally kind and loving and generous and innocent. But it becomes clear that she's also TOO naive at times, TOO trusting. Faye, who is the anti-Diana, isn't as bad as she is initially portrayed. Her selfish/nasty aspects don't go away (which would be unrealistic and less fun), but her more redeeming qualities are brought to light the more the reader and Cassie get to know her. This story is exciting and interesting. At its core, it's about Cassie discovering who she is. It just so happens that she's from a long line of witches. At the time when I first read The Initiation and

I wrote a review for LJ Smith's "Secret Circle" trilogy when I was a teenager--years, even, after I had read it. Now that the books are being re-printed, I decided to write yet another review for the trilogy as an adult. It should say a lot about an author when, 11 years after the very first time I read this trilogy, I am here rating it five stars and continuing to praise it as one of the best paranormal teen series I've ever read. Cassie Blake is an outsider in the small town of New Salem--after living in California, her mom decides to pick up and move to the town she grew up in. Cassie lives in an old colonial style house on a road that seems to evoke fear in students at New Salem High whenever she mentions where she lives. Cassie soon discovers the reason the townspeople fear the kids living on Crowhaven Road is because they're all witches, bonded together in a private Circle. When Cassie befriends Diana, the Circle's leader, she begins to long for membership into the exclusive club. When one of the circle members turns up dead, Cassie is initiated instead and discovers that not all the members of the circle are as good as Diana. And when she starts falling in love with Diana's boyfriend, she worries that it may destroy not only the circle, but her best friend as well. "The Initiation" holds a really special place in my library, because it was the first paranormal book I had ever read and is singlehandedly responsible for making me such an avid reader in the first place. Cassie is probably one of my favorite heroines in teen literature, mostly because LJ Smith writes her as sensitive and shy. But at the same time, Cassie isn't very outgoing and isn't the kind of girl who will be particularly noticed in a crowd. She's a deep and thoughtful wallflower who is willing to sacrifice her happiness for the wellbeing of others. But LJ Smith never writes any of these traits as negative or irritating. They just ARE a part of Cassie. Cassie never internally angsts about not being pretty enough or good enough. She is a rational and levelheaded heroine who becomes EXCEPTIONAL to those who become close to her. And in the course of the "Secret Circle", Cassie becomes a leader. But unlike in some series, where this evolution may make the heroine increasingly into a Mary Sue, LJ Smith keeps Cassie grounded in her convictions, in her intelligence, and in strength that is internalized rather than shown off. Even in the writing, its almost easy to overlook Cassie amid the other characters in the circle in the beginning. But she TRANSFORMS in the books, not only for the characters inside the story, but for the reader as well. Until one can see the true strength that was easily overlooked because it wasn't so put out there. And that makes Cassie's character refreshing. And the other characters? LJ Smith never fails there too. There's Diana, the classic beauty who represents almost the complete opposite of Cassie. She's strong and intellig

I began reading L. J. Smith when I was twelve years old, and continued to read and reread her books as I grew older. This edition of the Secret Circle is the same as L. J. Smith's previous editions of the Secret Circle which were released in the mid to late 1990s. Out of all her books though, The Secret Circle trilogy has remained one of my favorite series by far. In the books Cassie a young girl moving to a new town is in for a surprise when she finds out her mother was raised in a small town run by the families on Cassie's street. Cassie is both welcomed into this fold as a member of the street and excluded from the fold as a half-outsider and finds herself surrounded by a mystery she feels compelled to solve. Throw in some romance, drama, and a tad bit of magical mystery and the series is pretty much explained. A great read and if you enjoy this series check out my other favorite books by L.J. Smith, which include her Dark Visions Trilogy and the Nightworld Series.