L. J. Smith Books

I am a Physics Ph.D. student and I have had this book since I was a freshman. It is the most useful book I bought as an undergrad. It has almost everything you need to know about math: geometry and trig reviews, integral tables, differentiation rules, limits, and series. Combine this book with The Cambridge Handbook of Physics Formulas by Woan, and you will have the best two-volume quick reference set available!

Anyone who has to do research in tourism knows how difficult it is to find the right techniques. This excellent book covers just about all of them. I've used it and recommended it for others to use so many times that it's paid for itself many times over. Lucid? yes. Helpful? yes. Well organised? yes, which without doubt makes it THE classic in its area. It's a must for the bookshelf of any academic, student or practitioner in hospitality, travel and tourism.

Ugaritic Narrative Poetry edited by Mark S. Smith, Edward L. Greenstein, Theodore J. Lewis, David Marcus, Simon B. Parker (Society of Biblical Literature) (Paperback) The Ugaritic narrative poems all come from the ancient city of Ugarit, which lies half a mile inland from the Syrian coast opposite the eastern tip of Cyprus. The city was discovered after a farmer's accidental exposure of an ancient tomb nearby in 1928 and has been excavated almost annually since 1929. The excavators have uncovered a large palace; an acropolis with two temples, the house of the high priest, and the house of a divination priest; and numerous other large and small buildings, both sacred and secular. These all date from the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries B.C.E. The levels from this period lie closest to the surface, have been most extensively excavated, and have yielded several archives and libraries. The uninscribed and inscribed remains together disclose many aspects of the city's culture during the Late Bronze Age.
Ugarit was well situated for trade. Trade routes extended by land east-ward to the other major cities of Syria, to Mitanni, and to Assyria; by sea westward to Cyprus and the Aegean; by land and by sea northward and westward to Asia Minor and the territory of the Hittites; and southward to Palestine and Egypt. Through economic and cultural contacts with these various regions, Ugarit became a rich and cosmopolitan city in the Late Bronze Age.
Excavators have found in the city the scripts and languages of several of the cultures with which it had relations. Two languages and scripts predominate, however. Akkadian, the language of the Assyrians and Babylonians, was the international language of the period and was used especially for communications between states, including Egypt. (Ugarit was predominantly under Egyptian influence in the first part of the Late Bronze Age but after ca. 1350 B.C.E. was dominated by the Hittite state to the north.) Akkadian was written in the complex cuneiform writing system, in which each of several hundred signs consisted of a cluster of wedge-shaped impressions on soft clay and represented a syllable, word, or indicator of a semantic category. But Ugarit also had its own native language, related to several Semitic languages, but generally classified as Northwest Semitic, reflecting its proximity to the hypothetical ancestor of the first-millennium languages of Syria-Palestine: Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician, and so on. To write this language, the scribes of Ugarit devised their own script. They exploited the alphabetic principle that had already inspired the invention of the Canaanite alphabet farther south, but devised signs using cuneiform impressions on clay, as for Akkadian. The Ugaritic alphabet consists of thirty simple cuneiform signs, each one representing a consonant (except for three which represent the same consonant -a glottal stop-with three different vowels). In this script the scribes of Ugarit wrote numerous internal administrative records of the city government, many letters and religious texts, and a few literary texts.
The Ugaritic texts include the only collection outside of the Bible of native poetry and narratives from pre-Roman Syria-Palestine. These narrative poems are of unique value as a source of information about Syro-Palestinian poetry, narrative, and mythology toward the end of the Bronze Age. As such, they also provide us with a sample of the traditional background of some of the poetic, narrative, and mythological material in the Hebrew Bible. We find in the Ugaritic narrative poems representatives of a developed poetic tradition that lies behind the poetic achievement now pre-served in the prophetic, liturgical, and wisdom books of the Hebrew Bible; versions of traditional tales or motifs that are later recast in Hebrew prose narratives; and a world of gods, with their conflicts and assemblies and interventions in human affairs, that is still dimly reflected in the surviving Hebrew literature.
The Ugaritic narratives are all apparently poetic; that is, they consistently use parallelism and/or poetic formulas. Parallelism, familiar from most biblical poetry, refers to the juxtaposition of phrases or clauses in usually two, sometimes three, and occasionally more, poetic cola of similar syntactic structure and/or semantic import. Poetic formulas include standard epithets for common characters, including gods; standard expressions for the introduction of direct speech, for a character's arrival at or departure from aplace, for the passage of time, and so on; and standard pairs of words or phrases used in parallel cola. Many formulas constitute a complete colon and even appear in pairs or larger clusters of cola. While a prose translation that did away with these features would offer a more fast-paced and engaging narrative to the modern reader, we have retained them in the interest of giving a sense of the traditional, poetic character of narratives that would have been not read silently but recited orally.
The first three narratives translated here, Kirta, Aqhat, and Baal-stories of a king, a patriarch, and the gods respectively-are recognizably literary works, whatever the social purposes they served. Several of the other, shorter narratives, however, appear to have some more immediate, practical use, as is suggested by references to ritual acts, prescriptions, or social circumstances in conjunction with which the narratives were recited. This suggests the immediate power of specific narratives in relation to specific situations.
The first three works are best known and have been translated several times. The other, shorter texts have in many cases not been included in the standard translations of Ugaritic texts, and the translations that are available sometimes exhibit the translator's creativity and imagination where a sound basis for determining the meaning of the original is lacking. The more fragmentary and obscure texts are included because of their obvious relations with those that are better preserved and understood and also because they have been used in some bold hypotheses concerning Ugaritic mythology and religion.

The premise of The Awakening is pretty basic and not very original. Elena Gilbert sees Stefan Salvatore--a vampire haunted by his past--at school and decides that she must have him. That last line is actually not made up, as later quotes will show.

Of course, Stefan avoids her, deeming the relationship too dangerous to pursue, and Elena becomes offended and does whatever possible to be noticed. Now, where have I heard this storyline before? Might Stephenie Meyer have read this before writing Twilight and gotten a few ideas? This series was published well before that one (1991), although the premise itself has been used countless times. I'm not saying anything, though it is an interesting thought. Stephenie Meyer's story is different in many ways but also similar in many ways...but so are a lot of other vampire stories out there. Things are just so unoriginal these days.

The main problem I have with this book is not due to the recycled storyline but with the main character, Elena. Have I said she's unlikable? Within the first twenty pages this is quite evident.
The author gives evidence before the reader even becomes well acquainted with her:
..."Elena Gilbert, cool and blond and slender, the fashion trendsetter, the high school senior, the girl every boy wanted and every girl wanted to be (3)." Now, I have always had an aversion to characters who are so described, but if their personalities prove greater than their first introduction, I can get past it. In this case, Elena proves that she fully backs the description. She has a crowd of people waiting for her when she gets to school, refers to herself as the "queen of Robert E. Lee (57)" high school, and even seriously argues with one jealous former friend about scepters and thrones.

Upon seeing Stefan for the first time she becomes obsessed, and within minutes of seeing him, forces a girl to get his class schedule. This is just how nicely she asks:
"Well, I want his class schedule. Get it from the office if you can, or copy it from him if you have to. But do it (21-22)!" I don't like name-calling, but what a little snob...If I were to describe the character of Elena Gilbert, the choicest words would be selfish, snob, brat, rude, and conceited.

When Stefan thwarts her first attempt to meet him (it isn't very nice, but, well, neither is she) Elena, egotistical maniac who thinks everyone loves her, is absolutely shocked and mortified. Like a child, she cries and hides from family and friends because of some imagined, horrible shame. But what shame? So, the guy didn't feel like being escorted around the school by a liar...big deal. Following his rejection, the author writes that Elena will "have him, even if it killed her. Even if it killed them both, she'd have him (31)." Okay...getting a hint of psycho here. God forbid if someone should become angry with Elena, then there would be a massacre, but personal rejection, oh no! How unspeakable!

Her view of boys also fails to endear her character to me.
"After all, what was more important than boys? They were the mark of how popular you were, of how beautiful you were (20)." Oh, so beauty doesn't come from the inside and popularity really IS important? Along with this little admission, there is also a part where she recalls being told by former boyfriends' friends and sisters how she made them feel, and the reaction?--"Elena had always found such stories amusing (50)." Well, I find Elena to be quite cold.

There are a few passages when her character seems almost normal, but these are quickly swept away. Of course, once she finally gets with Stefan, (and her ego is sufficiently stroked) she spends the rest of the book with her thoughts set solely on him and not on her own perfect self.

I also found their relationship preposterous. What would a 600 year old vampire want with a selfish teenage girl? Elena has no admirable qualities. The one time I felt sorry for her was when I found out she had lost both parents. Sorrow and death hardly excuse her attitude and behavior. So the idea that a vampire, six centuries old and while attending a high school (and probably knowing more history than his teachers), falls in love with Elena Gilbert is unbelievable. I think the author attempts to form a correlation between Elena and his past love in a semblance of credibility. She looks like the girl he once loved, so I should buy it, right? It does not work.

Interspersed between these things are the introductions of Stefan and a mysterious dark presence, whose induction into the story is as follows:
Elena sees a crow watching her from a tree and the author writes that it's "Looking the way boys looked at her when she wore a bathing suit or a sheer blouse (6)." While I knew what was coming later, I found this funny. And how does one beady-eyed crow leer at a teenage girl?

Stefan, surprisingly, is not a bad character. He stands up for several badgered, minor characters. The reason I gave this a two-star rating instead of one is potential. There is potential in Stefan's past (when he becomes a vampire), which remains the most interesting part of this story. Were the author to have written this about six centuries back in time, moving forward, dropping Elena entirely, and just going from there, well, it might have been something. The idea itself is intriguing. Too bad this is the way the story turned out. Stefan is too good a character for Elena, and the plot stays weak.

I have noticed a strange thing with L. J. Smith. For the most part, her main female leads are usually rude snobs and the guys are gentlemen. Why can't there be a balance in leading roles, say two likable protagonists? It would make her stories so much more enjoyable.

Elena might go through a character transformation (not the vampire kind...) in the next book(s). Will I be there to find out, though?--No. Judging from past experience and a few reviews I've read, Elena will remain just so, and the rest of her tale, and ultimate fate, will remain a mystery to me, because I don't really care. I loved L. J. Smith's Forbidden Game trilogy, although the lead in that is also unlikable. I am very frustrated with bad main characters. For me, they really ruin a story.

There are such good ratings for this book, so I had high expectations. But reading the book, I quickly noticed the author's average style of writing. While I love cheesy romance and vampires, the romance in this book was not realistic enough to be believable. As someone said, it was too "lovey-dovey." The main character was somehow annoying. For one, her "friends" are more 1-dimensional side-kicks than actual people of free will. It was very dramatic for a slow paced book.

Overall, I gave it 2 stars b/c the storyline was at least acceptable.

It had a verry slow start and a lot of rmabling. I did fall in love with the mail charector even though I could not relate to the main charector it is kind of buffyesk. I identified the main character as cordila form the buffy serisbut still liked it. I was up set to find out the third book in the seris is out of print and hard to find. Good seris but don't start reading till you can get all the books.

This whole series is one of the best that I have ever read. Her writing brings you right there into the heart of the book and you find your self lost in the pages. My main purpose in writing this review is to beg the author to PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give us more of these characters. It has been many long years. Readers, this is probably her best series so i recommend the purchase. You will fall in love with the characters. I read an extreme amount of literature, and I am very picky as to what I call a good book. I rate her right up there with Robert Jordan (the wheel of time series) and he is one of the best fantasy writers of all time. Read this book, you will not be sorry. Author: please give us more

I had so much fun reading this book that by the time I got to the end I was tearing my whole house apart looking for the next, I stole the first from my older sister and I never found the next :( so now I'm waiting for them to come in the mail, its really hard just sitting here typing about the first. I was so into the first that I read the whole intire thing in only three days. This book like all L.J Smith book is a must read. So far I've only read it two times in the last month, trust me thats good for my nirotic brain to function on any other books (but they happen to be by L.J Smith of course). So just take my word for it and read it. You'll never regret it!

This book is one of the best!The magical way LJSmith wrote drawn me into a magical world.A twine of magic,adventure and romance,you can hardly put this book down after you started.And I have been reading the same book for like 10 times!You should also check out ALL her books.They will draw you into suspense...

First off I must say that this was the first of Smith's books that I picked up, and I have read it many times since then. The latest news on Strange Fate is that Smith has almost finished it, and is planning to release it to publishers soon. She is also looking at editing the rest of the books in the series. No definite dates set, but let's stay hopeful!

I fell in love with the nightworld books a long time ago, and
bought each one when it came out and reread them over and over
again. When I got the internet I looked for strange fate with no
luck, now supposedly there is. I reordered used copies of two books because I lost them. I'm looking forward to rereading the
series which I haven't done in ages because I've been so annoyed
I couldn't find out what happens next. I only hope that there is
a U.S. release of strange fate, I hope both the publisher and L.J.Smith realizes that not to do so will be unfair to all U.S.
readers who bought her books and have been waiting so long for
the concludsion. It would be like J.K. Rowling saying I'm only
going to release the last Harry Potter book in these places the
rest of you too bad, you don't get to find out. And we all know
that isn't happening to the potter books so why should a publisher do it to a series which have been popular in the united states do it to strange fate now? we deserve to know the ending, we have been waiting just as long as eveyone else to read
the final tale. I would preorder it in a second if I saw the title on the booksite for release. I only hope that it will be
availble to me here in the U.S..

I liked Keller. I liked Galen. I even like Iliana. It was as usual a great story.
I just didn't think the romance was very well developed in this book but as usual the way Lisa Jane Smith writes draws me into the magical world she has created. I am desperate to read another book by her, having read every book she's written except Heart of Valor and that only was because I can't get my hands on it. If anyone else is looking for someone to read until L.J.'s next book here are some of my suggestions:Annette Kurtis Clause, Sweep series by Cate Tieran, Isobel Birds Circle of Three, Companions of the night (Vivian Vende Velde? I think that's how it's spelled) Christopher Pike and the daughters of the moon series.

This latest story set in the Night World is L.J. Smith at her best. Galen, the hero isn't the usual tough guy. He's kind and sweet without ever being wimpy. Keller and Iliana are amazing characters as well, even if Iliana does start a little ditzy. You (or at least I) can't help but care about the characters and hope that somehow everything works out at the end.

The back of the book is slightly misleading - Galen is NOT destined to be the Iliana's soulmate - he's destined to be her husband. As those familiar with the Night World know, that's a big difference. For those who aren't familiar with the Night World this book probably isn't the one to start with. If you don't want to start all with the first book in the series (Secret Vampire), which is also absolutely amazing, you might want to try Huntress (book 7)as that's the book where the concept of Wild Powers and the end of the world is first explained.

I've read four in this series and this is the best one. I recommend it. Sometimes you have to trick white folks into reading about Africa. This does the trick. I love the humor and dialog and philosophizing. And I'm in love with Precious Ramotswe, a most precious lady.

Second book in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.

Newly engaged Precious Ramotswe continues to solve local mysteries as she negotiates her relationship with master mechanic Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. Watching them decide where to live, the matter of the engagement ring, and the surprise arrival of two foster children is gently humorous and true to life.

Absolutely wonderful. I especially recommend the audio version.

This was the first book in this series that I have read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The plot is exciting but relaxing to enjoy, and there are so many subplots that make it truly fun. The gentle, eye-opening descriptions of a truer Africa were fascinating to me. I heartily recommend this book!

In this second book in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe is newly engaged to her friend Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. Her fledgling detective business in Gaborone, Botswana, is doing well, and she takes on several new cases, including those of a cheating wife and a son who disappeared under mysterious circumstances. She also learns that her secretary, Mma Makutsi, has some detecting talents of her own.

What is quickly becoming one of my favorite aspects of the books is the subtle ways the author provides small morsels of cultural information to the reader. Although chances are small I'll ever be fortunate enough to visit myself, I feel like I'm slowly getting to know Botswana.

Loved it! This author writes with clarity and passion such that I find myself immersed in his work. Truly a don't miss!

Hannah thought she was going crazy. She kept receiving notes, in her own handwriting, that told her she would be dead before her seventeenth birthday.... A great horror series for those aged thirteen and up. Each in this series is a book in itself, but all come together in a greater picture. You see characters of previous books in cameo shots which make the plot even more realistic. Excellent!

This is, by far, the most romantic book I have ever read by L.J. Smith.

We're introduced to Hannah Snow, a human girl from Montana, in the midst of seeking therapy. She's finding notes written in her own handwriting, but she can't recall writing them. And they're such strange notes, too, such as, "Dead before seventeen."

We learn Hannah is an Old Soul--a human who has been reincarnated over and over again. We're also finally introduced to the depth of a huge Night World figure we got a glimpse of in Secret Vampire, the first book: Thierry Descoudres. And, of course, Thierry is Hannah's soulmate.

What follows is a twisted tale of love, betrayal, misconceptions, and lies which span all the way back to the prehistoric ages. Hannah was once Hana, and Thierry was once Theorne, of the same tribe as the legendary Maya and Hellewise.

And who should want Thierry so much as to kill him but the first, original, and strongest vampire: Maya.

There were some minor things L.J. Smith doesn't cover--such as, being the first vampire, how Maya knew Thierry (the first made vampire) wouldn't be able to have children, before she had even turned him. But suspending those questions, these characters are so real and solid and warm (or cold, depending). You FEEL Thierry's pain when Hannah hates him, and you can't help but admire Hannah's desperation to put things right near the end, so that she puts her life in danger.

This was just before the Wild Power stories began, and turned out to be good in allowing L.J. Smith to tap into her emotional side. Her characters are always solid and believable, but this was the first time she had my heart absolutely hurting for these characters.

Forget Ash and Mary-Lynnette--Thierry and Hannah's situation is much more intriguing, far more realistic, and grabs a hold of your emotions and refuses to let go until the very last page.

This was the best book I have read in years. The book was done really well. My oringinal copy is falling apart because I've read it so many times!! Hopefully oneday L.J. Smith will continure the series. She for some reason stopped.

If I could take one nightworld books to a desert island this would be it. Thierry-what a great guy!He has waited for centuries for Hannah to be reborn but each time she is she dies! Enter Maya the first vampire and a absoultly evil, souless being ( just read what she did to become a vampire!!)This ebony haired vamp has wanted Thierry since when they were cave people and her single minded obsession has torn Thierry and Hannah apart again and again through the ages. Can Hannah trust Thierry again? Will Maya seek therapy for her unhealthy fixation? Can things end happily for Hannah this time around or is she doomed to die again?

It is my opinion that Hannah and Thierry are basically the poster children for the soulmate principle (hence the title). When you read the book, you will understand why.

Hannah is a normal girl with a normal life and normal friends. She aspires to be a palaeontologist and will be quite content with her life if she dies with nothing but the knowledge that she has discovered the nest of a duckbill platypus.

Then her ENTIRE world is turned upside down when she begins to find notes in places around that only she could put them. Notes in her own handwriting, warning her of a danger, a danger that was coming. Dead Before Seventeen...

She goes to a psychiatrist, who is supposed to help, but he unlocks a Pandora's box of memories when he suggests the idea of hypnotism, and past regression. Hannah is an old soul, someone who has been reincarnated time and again, ever since people lived in caves. A stranger tore her life apart, brutally murdering her tribe out of a madness born of torture and self-denial...until, he finds his soulmate, the one who he is destined to be with, in the eyes of a dying girl.

The stranger's name is Theorn, and he is a witch...or, he was, before he was made into the second vampire to ever cross the face of the earth...full of self hatred, he runs away from his tribe, but cannot contain his hunger for blood for long. He attacks a small human girl, and in return, her tribe torture him. Only one person dares to try to help him. A human girl by the name of Hana.

Unfortunately Theorn goes insane and he regains his mind to late. Almost all of the tribe are dead, including the one person who tried to help him. Stricken with remorse, he realises that this girl, who he has just killed, is the person who is meant to love for evermore. But the Hana is not dead yet. She forgives him, and extracts a promise from him. A promise that he will never kill again.
Now the stranger is back. He has kept his promise, and searched for Hannah throughout the years, trying to make amends, waiting for her to be reborn. Now he is Thierry, the Lord of the Night World -- and nothing in heaven or hell will keep him from his soulmate again. However, Thierry's maker, Maya, the most powerful vampire in the entire world is obsessed with him, and she hates Hannah with a vengeance. She will stop at nothing to destroy her...
So, it Hannah's destiny is death, can even Thierry's love protect her?

this book was g8 but i thought it was to short. elena comes bak rite at the end i want to no wot hapens next. so L.J.Smith is there gonna a next book and if so whens does it come out? im dieing to no!!!!!!

One thing about this book that bothered me was the description on the back. To me, it just seemed totally wrong. Maybe they just wanted it to sound all dramatic? I'm not really sure.

Well, the book revolves mainly around Bonnie. The three main characters that fans came to love throughout the first three books have shrunken roles, except for perhaps Stefan who is present frequently.

Dark power is at hand as Bonnie starts having dreams about Elena. After a frenzied warning from her lost friend, Bonnie summons Stefan for help. When she merely mentions Elena, he is compelled to go to her, joined by his brother Damon.

I was actually pretty disappointed with this book. After reading the third installment to the series (and reading the back cover), I got excited and expected some magical, amazing conclusion. Instead, I found that I was clomping through it without much enthusiasm. First of all, the transition to focusing on Bonnie rather than the three vampire heroes was a bit disconcerting for me, and though the vampires played main roles, they were not focused on quite as much.

The entire plot of the book didn't captivate me, either. I had the sense that it had been thrown together for the sake of a happier ending. And while I'm on the subject, I really wished that the endings of the third and fourth books had been tied to a happier, less corny conclusion.

What disappointed me the most was the disconnection from Elena. Though her appearances were brief, she still managed to get her picture on the book cover. I missed her journal entries, which would have been impossible to conjure based on the storyline, but since she had been set as one of the main characters from the beginning of the series, it seemed critical to know more of her thoughts and what she was going through.

If you're not too sensitive about those sort of things, don't worry about this book - you'll probably love it, especially since the ending is considerably happier than the last.

I was so eager to read the Dark Reunion because the entire series up until this point had been nothing short of amazing. As I waited for the last book to arrive, I couldn't help but skim over a few reviews, most of which were not that positive. Oh, how I should've listened to the warnings. This book was AWFUL! I enjoyed it up until the point Damon decided to disappear for a few chapters (he and Bonnie are my favorite characters).

I was never a big Elena fan and I still don't quite understand why all the other characters in the story seemed to love her so much. She was only interesting based on her association with those around her who actually HAD personalities. That's the one thing I can say I appreciated about book 4- her 'sort of' absence. I also really enjoyed the triangle that was sort of developing btwn Bonnie, Matt and Damon (hopefully if I'm lucky, L.J. will introduce a spin-off that delves more into that delicious storyline). Anyway, Damon leaves and the book suddenly takes a sorry turn. I wish the author would've referenced her previous material, because based on what was revealed at the end of book 3, the villian that appears in the following book doesn't really make much sense. At least offer an argument against Katherine's claim. As if that weren't enough, just when I thought things couldn't be more silly or move any faster, tah-dah-Elena appears once again, but fereal this time and all is well with the world, I guess? I love how the author neglected to enlighten the reader on how (though more importantly WHY) this sudden manifestation occurs. Yet, for some reason I got the feeling that L.J. herself didn't care while writing this one. There was no passion involved. In fact, the last couple of chapters were almost like a big SCREW YOU to all those who were not satisfied with the conclusion of The Fury. And you know what the saddest part is? I was not only prepared for it, I WANTED someone to die, and I couldn't decide btwn Meredith or Stefan.

I will not recommend that devoted readers NOT read this book, because that wouldn't be fair of me. However, if you should decide to read my review before doing so, you cannot hold me accountable for any displeasure you are likely to experience after reading this Dark Disappointment.

Unless you're the kind of person who cannot stand to read a book without a happy ending...don't bother. The resurection of Elena is contrived...and it seems like it's just an effort to capitalize on the (well deserved) success of the first three novels. and um, it's a trilogy. why are there four books? It doesn't always make sense, and is pretty pointless. Don't beat a dead horse...this book proves it, even if they don't stay dead, it's just not a good idea.

Even with distractions, I read this book in about 4 hours. It was totally awesome. I was thinking that the ending would be another one that I'd be totally dissatisfied with(*cough cough* "Pearl of the Soul of the World" from the 'Dark Angel Trilogy' *cough cough*), but it's refreshing to see that love can WIN! Here's a spoiler though. I just wonder, is Elena a vampire still or is she human at the end. And did everybody end up seeing her goodies? That's what it seemed like when they kept talking about her being naked. Either way, if you like vampires and want an interesting read, then you absolutely need to pick up this saga.

The imagery L.J Smith uses is totally amazing. I was turned onto her first from reading the Nightworld series, but I find the Vampire Diaries to be more well written. Maybe it's because she has about 1200 pages to dedicate to one story rather than a couple hundred for 10 different scenarios and dozens of characters. I give it 4 stars because there were a few points where I felt that it was dragging and I was upset that we didn't even hear of the vampire brothers again until page 60. Damon was also a great character and I felt that he sort of went by the waist side. I didn't like at all how he just walked away. Not to mention, I think he and Bonnie would have been better together than Bonnie and Matt (thank goodness nothing was technically official with that though). I wanted to see a female personality counter his, one that wasn't Elena. He just didn't get enough attention to me. When you read the cover of the book, you read about Stefan, Damon, and Elena and you don't see as much as you should, I think.

Also, I thought the ending was a little rushed. It was like "Ok, Klaus is gone. Now we get to bring Elena back to life woo hoo." It just wasn't working for me and seems sort of out of the blue. Still, I was so happy for Stefan that I'll let it slide.

This is a depressing saga though. So much sadness and anger and hatred. I mean, the love in it was wonderful, but still, you can't ignore all the dreariness.

Also, I found myself predicting it was Klaus before I even opened the book. Just like by the second book, I was expecting Katherine to be the real bad guy. It was just a feeling I had. I think the first book was my favorite, but I totally loved Damon in the second one. He rocked in the third too. See, the problem is, it's hard to rank them. Also, since I have read them all together, it's hard to split up what happened in what. I just know that this volume was my least favorite, but for me to still give it 4 stars says a LOT because I still couldn't put it down.

As a reader who has read this seiries as well as the Dark Visions and the Forbidden game series, I can say that anyone who is a L.J. Smith fan is sure to love this book. It has romance that is not over the top mushy, and Smith incorporates real feeling into believable characters in a story that is sure to hold your attention until you have finished reading and even after you're done. I highly reccomend this book.

Lisa J. Smith is one of the most believable horror-fantasy writers for teens (if not, just plain the MOST)that I've come across. She takes the reader easily into a world where creatures such as vampires and werewolves do exist... and she makes the reader become part of that world.

It's a shame that the final book has not been written... or if it has, that it was never published. L.J. .. if you hear your fans, please publish that last book?

imo the rest of the story seemed alittle bit, I don't know it's hard to put my finger on it, but I quess it just seemed a little slow to me. The story is about Maggie who is trying to find her supposedly dead brother and who, because of her dangerous quest, is dragged into a land unchanged by time, a place of castles, and witches, and gorgeous vampire princes with hearts of ice. The chemistry between Maggie and Delos is great and Maggie, like Poppy, is not drop dead gorgeous as a human. She's just an ordinary girl with a big heart and extrodinary courage which Delos see's in her eyes and it attracts him to her. She is the warmth that is missing in his cold existence and the scenes where they are together just make me want to go "awww" because of how tender he is towards her.
Maggie seems, I don't know, I quess less archetypal to me then some characters and like a real girl. Like the kind who would at school get voted most popular simply because she's so nice to everyone.
An L.J. Smith book that in my opinion is not to be missed!

this is really one of the greatest books i have ever read and own. i was fortunate enought 2 own all 9 night world books and im still waiting 4 strange fate 2 come out. neways this book tells about a gurl name maggie who searches for her missing brother miles after when he and his girlfriend slyvia goes out mountain climbing but then disappears without a trace. maggie doesnt trust slyvia and thinks she is lying about her brother's disapperance so she follows her and then is captured and taken as a slave 2 a kingdom that is owned by the Night World and is ruled by a young vampire prince name delos. this is one the books that deals with finding the wild powers and needing 2 find all 4 of them that are needed at the end of the millenium. this is one of the best lj smith has written and i hope she will continue writing more books for the series. keep up the great work. and i pretty much think that strange fate is NOT the last book in the night world series.

I have read and own every L.J. ever printed (and loved every one of them), and am going crazy waiting for the last of the night world series!!!!! It's been years and still no book!!! HOW CAN SHE DO THIS TO US READERS!! (I'm sure it's not all her fault)...

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

This book was one of my favorite. I actually loved Blaise, she was such a bad girl hehe

I even use her name as my SN!

This book is one of the greatest of the nightworld series. This book is about gentle, nature loving Thea and her wild beautiful cousin, Blaise.Thea falls in love with a human but since the rules of the nightworld state that she can't love a human Thea finds herself in a situation that could turn deadly......
Blaise willing to do anything for her cousin tries to lure Eric into her trap and get him away from Thea for good!

This has to be my favorite of the series. It was interesting to see the nightworld from the witches point of view and Thea and Blaise are great characters. Especially Blaise, she's no airhead beauty but like her name a bright blaze of passion, intelligence, and loyalty.

While not the best Night World book, it's certainly a good read. Thea and Eric were almost too goody-goody as main characters for my taste, but they were still fun to read about. I thought Blaise was one of the most interesting characters, with so many layers it's hard to really figure her out. The author did a wonderful job creating characters you could care about.

"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".