The Secret Circle - Book 2 - The Captive

Book Two - The Captive

CAN THE SECRET CIRCLE SURVIVE...  

Lured into the most popular in-crowd imaginable, Cassie is intoxicated by her new found strength, a power as addictive as it is perilous.


Caught between two members' consuming desires to use the coven's mysterious force, Cassie turns to one of their boyfriends, Adam ... and falls captive to her own dangerous love.


Bewitched by the promise of love through magic, Cassie captures Adam's heart and upsets the delicate balance of power, unleashing a storm of fury no one anticipates.


...OR WILL THE DARK STRUGGLE OF GOOD, EVIL AND TORMENTED LOVE CONSUME THEM ALL?

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SPOILERS

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That's a bit better really isn't it? Alas; it has nothing to do with the book - clearly a blurb written by someone who hasn't read it yet!!

This - the middle book - suffers by more than a little. After a great lead in; it tries to dance that fine line between keeping the readers interest going for another book, without giving too much of the game away. There is also a slight information overload - we are clearly being given info to set up for the big finale.

It just about manages to maintain momentum but despite the info dump it really doesn't feel like an awful lot happens till the final chapter. 

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Faye knows that Adam and Cassie are soul mates having seen them get all smoochy on the Beach. The star crossed lover are desperate not to act on it and betray Diane - to the extent of swearing a blood oath. Faye blackmails Cassie into stealing the dark artifact that Adam brought back to the circle. 

Course, as soon as this deed is done - Faye naturally holds this act over Cassie's head and basically turns her into a slave...a captive as it were. This culminates in Faye overthrowing Diane as the leader of the Circle. 

Diane is crushed by what she sees as Cassie's betrayal. Cassie - caught between a rock and a hard place - begins to think that she is destined to be a dark witch - no matter what she tries she can't follow her heart.  Instead she is forced to watch as everything she has started to care about crumbles around her.


Things quickly spiral when Cassie finds another murdered student. While Kori had her neck broken; Jeffrey was hung. Additionally, when she returns to the local cemetery to retrieve a lost crystal; she find that all of the Circle teenagers lost a parents - or both - on the same day. Curious, she digs a little deeper and discovers that with the exception of herself - all the teenagers were born within a few weeks of each. Cassie can't quite put the pieces together but she realised that something is clearly afoot. 


Meanwhile, the power crazed Faye is using the Circle to explore darker and darker magicks. They are responsible for releasing a big bad oogily boogily. When the school principal is found crushed; his replacement immediately begins to try and curb the Circle's power. Cassie begins to see the pattern.  Faye has indeed brought Black John back to New Salem. The methods used to commit the murders correspond with ways in which witches were put to death.

He wastes no time in attacking the Circle - and specifically Cassie's mother and home. After a vicious attack; Cassie's grand mother is left mortally wounded. She quickly tries to prepare Cassie for what is likely to happen next.

Black John was one of the original founders of New Salem. He is powerful beyond the description of it, surviving throughout time. The last time he had any serious influence was in the 70's. He found the witches and manipulated them into pairing up - breaking up soul mates with his magicks. 

His goal was to create a new circle - more powerful than at any point in history. Through his actions; all the children were conceived within the same time frame - explaining all the birthdays being so close together.  


In 1976; those parents with great courage decided to tackle the evil that was Black John. He crushed them - killing all those that stood against him. The surviving parents - inherently weaker than their deceased partners - abandoned magic altogether, hid their book of shadows and resolved not to tell their children anything. 

Cassie's grandmother tries to impart one last essential piece of the puzzle but loses her fight and passes away. Sickened by what has taken place; Cassie tells Faye that she will not follow her any more. Faye - furious as losing one of her stooges - decides to tell Diane about Cassie and Adam.

Find out what happens in next week's exciting instalment...

 

The Secret Circle

The Secret Circle - Book 1 - The Initiation

The Secret Circle - Book 2 - The Captive

The Secret Circle - Book 3 - The Power

Dear Santa....

Dear Santa,

I've not been a particularly good girl this year. I've smoked and drank too much, and done naughty things. I know that as a Naughty Girl, I should be receiving nothing more than a lump of coal, but I also know that probably won't be the case and I will, in fact, be getting more lovely books for Christmas.

But, Santa, I know a lot of very good boys and girls, almost four million of them, and they won't be getting books for Christmas this year. Quite a lot of them won't be celebrating Christmas at all, which you and I know is fine, and doesn't mean that we have to do Wintervil or not say words like 'snow' like some people like to to "joke" we do, but, Santa, shouldn't they have books anyway? Because you know how important books are, Santa, I know you do. You know that if a child reads for pleasure they do better at school, that they feel better about themselves, that they will have better prospects in the future. You know this Santa, and yet, you don't seem to send a lot of children books.

Santa, I don't really think it's fair that one in three children in this country don't have a book of their very own when the Prime Minister's family use a knife that cost £20 to spread their butter with. I know there are a lot of unfair things in this country. I know that a lot of people are angry, and scared about the future. I know a lot of people don't have places where they can live safely, or money to buy fuel. I know there are an awful lot of things to write to you for...

....but Santa, one in three children in this country do not own a book. A book. And I know that a third of the grown ups in this country don't feel that great about books. I know that even people my age, who are my friends, find the idea of reading a bit weird. That it must be 'geeky' or 'strange'. That there must be something wrong with someone wanting to read. Don't you think, Santa, that the two things might be, you know, connected?

Santa I'm not sure what to do. I can't afford to buy a book for four million children, and I don't know how I would give them to them if I could-I can't fly around the world in a night like you. I wish I could make books, and give them away from free, like the World Book Night and World Book Day people do, but I'm only one Elf, and I'm a bit stuck.

Santa, do you have any room in your sack for a book for every child? And if not, do you know anyone who does?

Thank you Santa, I shall make sure to leave you a mince pie and a tot of Port (and carrots for the reindeer, obviously!)

BookElf xxx

Oh and PS, Santa, I know that I deserve nothing but coal (especially after this twee bit of heart string pinging nonsense) but I would really really like Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons. Thank you xx

Christmas Read-A-Long - Stave Four

Nearly there folks! How goes the pressie shopping? What d'ya mean you haven't started yet!!!

After the dark and gloomy...prepare for...well...more dark and gloomy.


Honestly; its all worth it! I swear!!
























A Christmas Carol Rough Guide

Stave Four  - 2nd December
Stave Five  - 16th December


FREE versions of A Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol for Kindles

A Christmas Carol for iBooks

While you can download the whole book here from Project Gutenberg in a number of different formats. 

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Christmas - Table of Contents

A Level Poetry 1... UTTER FILTH

So we'd made it. Finally we'd made it to Sixth Form. What a revelation. Not only could we wear our own clothes (which quickly esatblished itself into a uniform of black jumper, blue jeans, thong (2001, innit) and black boots), not only could we smoke!, we also got to do the sex...

I remember the first English lesson where Michelle (wonderful wonderful woman and brilliant teacher-thank you) mentioned 'lust' out loud in class. You could have knocked us over with a feather. There we were, the creme de la Scarborough, thinking we was well hard, and this grown adult woman starts talking about shagging! In a English class!

This was my first introduction to the world of lurve poetry, and someone who was quickly established as my favourite poet, Elizabethan philanderer-turned-priest John Donne.

Donne wrote a lot, but we studied his earlier, pre-finding God stuff, which was mostly about removing women's clothing and all that goes with that. The first one we read as a class, To His Mistress Going To Bed, still makes me giggle like a seventeen year old at the line

"License my roving hands, and let them go
Before, behind, between, above, below."

Hee hee hee hee hee...

Other favourites include The Flea, in which Donne compares loosing your virginity with getting bitten by a flea, which, as a person allergic to the little shits I can think is a billion and one times worse, in my experience!

And then we come to my favourite, The Sun Rising. One day, one day, I'm going to awake in a Florence hotel room with big windows, and a wonderful man is going to quote this poem to me.... *

BUSY old fool, unruly Sun,
Why dost thou thus,
Through windows, and through curtains, call on us ?
Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run ?
Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide
Late school-boys and sour prentices,
Go tell court-huntsmen that the king will ride,
Call country ants to harvest offices ;
Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,
Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time.

Thy beams so reverend, and strong
Why shouldst thou think ?
I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink,
But that I would not lose her sight so long.
If her eyes have not blinded thine,
Look, and to-morrow late tell me,
Whether both th' Indias of spice and mine
Be where thou left'st them, or lie here with me.
Ask for those kings whom thou saw'st yesterday,
And thou shalt hear, "All here in one bed lay."

She's all states, and all princes I ;
Nothing else is ;
Princes do but play us ; compared to this,
All honour's mimic, all wealth alchemy.
Thou, Sun, art half as happy as we,
In that the world's contracted thus ;
Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be
To warm the world, that's done in warming us.
Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere ;
This bed thy center is, these walls thy sphere.


*Yeah I know, I know, I'm a stupid idiot. I shall re-read Westwood whilst eating lasagna IMMEDIATELY. CAN'T A GIRL JUST DREAM SOMETIMES? EH???? EH????

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School Days Over

Leaving Certificate Poetry

• Eavan Boland
• William Shakespeare
• Michael Longley
• John Keats
• Seamus Heaney
• Elizabeth Bishop

GCSE Poetry - T'Elf

If I Have To Leave - D.E. Barrell

Natalie Williams

A Level Poetry 

• Utter Filth

O Level Poetry

• They Walked and Talked - Uche Okeke

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School Days Over Table of Contents 

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Full Table of Contents 

Christmas Books vs Christmas Films

Meandering past the book aisle in the supermarket my attention was drawn by the array of festive themed covers of 'chick lit' books. I've never really noticed a huge amount of Christmas themed books launched around this time before despite the fact that the movie business seems to rake it in, but this year there are masses of them. Seriously, in the average small supermarket section about 60% of the books are these romantic comedy style books. Much more than the ubiquitous celebrity autobiographies that you normally see at this time of year.

The reviews promised 'bubbly', 'sparkling' writing with 'unputdownable' (I kid you not, that was on the cover of one of the books). They were all adorned with cartoonish drawings of attractive young women with Christmas trees or typical Christmas scenes like snow-covered villages and masses of presents. I couldn't get hold of a Christmas-themed Mills and Boon, which is a pity, but I picked up what I thought was a cross-section of the rest to test them out and see if I'm better off picking up a book than turning into True Christmas Movie Channel 24+1.

The first book I read was the most promising - Miracle on Regent Street by Ali Harris. The story of an underdog storeroom girl who is unloved by all and decides it's up to her to transform the fortunes of the ailing department store which is similarly unloved in the lead up to Christmas. Guess what? Along the way she finds love and friendship, and realises that Christmas really is magic after all. It was easily-readable, and the writing moved the plot along without jarring, but it was a predictable affair with little of the charm I'd hoped for. The sort of thing I'd read on a beach, but I wouldn't want to read about Christmas on a beach.

Film comparison: like those Christmas films that are made for tv with someone like Robson Green in it. Alright, but it's not exactly Muppets' Christmas Carol is it?

The second book I read was Something From Tiffanys by Melissa Hill. A whole book based around the premise that Tiffanys jewellery store is magic. I've been there, it's beautiful, but it's not enough for a book. The plot is even weaker than the premise, but the writing holds a few twists and turns to keep you reading long past the point you're fed up of the characters muttering the words 'that famous blue box'.

Film comparison: a TV advert; but a good one. Like that John Lewis advert where you're aware they're manipulating your heartstrings, but you still go 'aww' when he rushes past his presents to get his mum something.

The third book was Comfort and Joy by India Knight. I didn't realise this was a sequel until after I read it, which annoys me because now if I want to read other things by the same author the first book is ruined. It didn't say it anywhere on the book. Bad publisher. Otherwise, it was...an odd book. More about the relationships between the family than any actual plot, it focused on the Christmas period over a number of years and glossed over the remaining months (including a marriage breakdown being reduced to a sentence with no explanation). It all seemed very bitty, and the culmination of the story taking place abroad meant it even lost the little Christmas cheer it had (I want Christmas to be snowy and reference mulled wine or eggnog. Always.) I've never read anything by India Knight, but it seemed to be of the more 'ooh I'm a firecracker, look I'm using swearwords and talking about sex for no reason' end of chick-lit. Again, not massively what I want at Christmas.

Film comparison: The Christmas day special of a soap. Like Eastenders, where someone will die and a family will get blown apart, but hey we put some fairy light on the Queen Vic! Not really Christmassy at all.

The last book I read was Chocolate Wishes by Trisha Ashley. This one promised the most 'traditional' Christmas offering - the cover had a small village covered in snow and it had chocolate in the title. The book itself seemed very confused, and read like those stories in People's Friend where the characters seemed very confused about what era they actually live in (they reference the internet, but otherwise I would've said this was a reprint from the 50s. There was also some sort of narrative about religion in there that just made it even more muddled, and the main character was the most unlikeable person I've read in a long time.

Film comparison: Like a true life movie, but a really naff one. The ones that don't even have a child star that's now grown up in them.

So if I had to choose between books and movies this Christmas based on this cross-section of offerings? I'd choose movies. Then I'd make a big pot of eggnog and break open the celebrity autobiography I've got used to on Christmas day.

What are your favourite Christmas books? Is there hope out there? Let us know in the comments.

Don't forget we're reading a good Christmas book, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, throughout the rest of the month. Check out more details here and feel free to join us for a Christmas drink on 2nd December

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Christmas - Table of Contents