2015, 2015 Reviews, Books, Disney, Geeky, Hardcover

Villains : The Next Generation:: A Review of Melissa De La Cruz’ The Isle of the Lost

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As a child, it was hard not to breath a sigh of relief when the evil Disney villain was defeated. The Evil Queen, Jafar, Maleficent and many MANY more were completely awful to the characters the movies were focused on making us love and want to emulate. But, what if, after the happily ever after, the villains survived and were exiled to an island of their own? This is the basis for Melissa De La Cruz’ The Isle of the Lost : A Descendants novel.

Mal remembers the party she wasn’t invited to as a child, and she remembers her mother, Maleficent, banishing Evie and her mother, the Evil Queen, away from the rest of the villains in exile on the Isle of the Lost. But it’s been over ten years, and a new year of school; Mal is ready to make her Mom proud and when she hears rumors of magic returning to the island via her mother’s scepter, she sets out, along with a few other teens to recover the artifact. No Matter What.

It was great to read this story, and I am greatly anticipating the tv movie about the children of the villains. It was great to hear that Cruella De Ville, Jafar, and even Gaston had children, but part of me was wondering where the spouses were. Sure, the villains don’t get the happy ending, but how do kids happen on this island?

There were also parallels to  Auradon—the island where King Beast and Queen Belle live with other princes and princesses living closely in other regions of the country. I enjoyed reading the pieces of story that the Prince was given, especially considering he keeps dreaming of a purple-haired girl VERY similar to someone on the Isle of the Lost ( ::cough: Mal:Cough:: ).

Melissa De La Cruz continues to write in a compelling way, and really tackles the ensemble cast well. While Mal was clearly the star, there were elements where Evie, Jay and Carlos were equally balanced and developed. De La Cruz also writes the converse of the Isle of the Lost, Auradon very well.

I recommend this to young and old, go out and pick up your copy today (it came out on May 5th in hardcover) and, if we get enough sold, maybe we can get this to be a bigger series!

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