Featuring the Charmed books!!!

The booklist:

Created by Constance M. Burge

1. The Power Of Three - Eliza Willard

2. Kiss Of Darkness - Brandon Alexander

3. The Crimson Spell - F. Goldsborough

4. Whispers From The Past - Rosalind Noonan

5. Voodoo Moon - Wendy Corsi Staub

6. Haunted By Desire - Cameron Dokey

7. The Gypsy Enchantment - Carla Jablonski

8. The Legacy Of Merlin - Eloise Flood

9. Soul Of The Bride - Elizabeth Lenhard

10. Beware What You Wish - Diana G. Gallagher

11. Charmed Again - Elizabeth Lenhard

12. Spirit of the Wolf  - Diana G. Gallagher (by May 2002)

13. Garden Of Evil - unknown

Bloopers and Trivia

The Charmed books are published by Pocket Books, the first book (Power of Three) published in 1999.
Overall the books get more and more exciting, and I was having high hopes for Beware What You Wish. Too bad it sort of let me down... Of the 10 books published so far, only the Power of Three follows a show script (Something Wicca This Way Comes). You can purchase these books at your local bookstore or on Amazon.com. For Singapore, the normal cost of the books ranges from $6.00 for second hand books to $7.90 at Popular, Times, or MPH. That should be it.

Book #11, Spirit of the Wolf is coming out on March 2002 (according to Amazon.com). The book review will be added as soon as the book hits Singapore! Hopefully it will have more action than #10... 
From an inside source, I was told that the titles to books #12 and #13 are Garden of Eden and Charmed Again. However it may change because the books are not penned yet. Check this space for more updates.

Book 1: The Power Of Three (Eliza Willard) | Back to top 

Spells:
To get the power
The oldest of gods are invoked here.
The great work of magic is sought.
In this night and in this hour,
I call upon this Ancient Power!
Bring your powers to we sisters three,
 We want the power.
Give us the power!

To vanquish Jeremy the warlock
The power of three will set us free  × 3

A protection spell (done by witch Serena)
Ancient One of the earth so deep, Master of moon and sun. 
I shield you in my Wiccan way, here in my circle round, 
asking you to protect this space, and offer your sun force down...

Prue, Piper, and Phoebe Halliwell didn't think reading a magical incantation would really work. But it did. Now Prue can move things with her mind, Piper can freeze time, and Phoebe can see the future. They are the Charmed Ones - the most powerful of witches. But being enchanted has a price. There's a warlock who wants to steal their powers. And he'll do it anyway he can - even if it means killing them!

My review:
This book is actually an adaptation from the very first episode of Charmed, Something Wicca This Way comes. Same quips and action. But as I said, it is an adaptation, after all. Some parts are changed.
For those who are familiar with the episode, you should know roughly the plot of the book. Piper's boyfriend, Jeremy Burns is actually the warlock who had been waiting to get the sisters' powers. The story also started with a witch (Serena) being killed by a hooded figure, whom I suppose is Jeremy. Then Phoebe goes up into the attic and reads the incantation, Prue trashing the pharmacy, Piper freezing time in her audition... Read the book and find out. 

Book 2: Kiss Of Darkness (Brandon Alexander) | Back to top

                             Spells:
Love spell
For kisses sweet to turn to passion,
You must be willing to take this action.
With a potion sweeter than wine
Make the one you love become thine.
But beware, for if you falter,
You lose your chance,
And this spell you can never alter.

Love Counterspell
The power of love comes from the heart, 
The desire to kiss is but a start. 
Remove the spell that separates the two, 
Remove the spell placed on Prue.

To vanquish Lascaris
I call upon the Power of Three
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
We imprison Lascaris because we must.
To spare the innocent, to protect the meek, 
We reduce your evil power to the very weak.
Into a prison you must go, 
Never again to be our foe
(Additional objects: Ashes from a fire, spiderwebs, sage, mistletoe and candles.)

Evil you are, evil you shall remain
But not in this world, where you can inflict pain.
The kiss you gave others took their life,
The kiss I gave you sliced our bond with a knife.
My lips to yours is the stronger power,
Within the emerald, live inside your blackened tower.

Something changed Prue Halliwell on New Year's Eve, when a stranger gave her the most passionate kiss of her life. Now Prue feels driven to kiss every man she meets. At first, Piper and Phoebe think the new Prue is fun. But when Prue grows weaker with every kiss, the Charmed Ones know that evil is at work. Now Piper and Phoebe must save their sister, but can they do it with only the Power of Two?

My review:
The book seems a little dull, and with a little influence from my friends, I never got to finish this book until quite late. The whole story basically is about Prue, who is possessed by the spirit of a warlock Lascaris. He draws strength by making Prue kiss every guy she sees. Sort of boring... Piper and Phoebe, on their parts, just worried about her and ran around with their assumptions. No, they did not express delight at the so called "new Prue" as stated in the summary.
There was a part where Piper was going to a premiere with a guy, Jake. Her skirt got ripped off and she had to do a disappearing trick. That is sort of funny but I was thinking, wouldn't anyone notice???

Book 3: The Crimson Spell (F. Goldsborough) | Back to top

Spells:
Unbinding
Loosen knots, dark magic unbind, 
Free the one whose heart is tied to mine

Binding
Green as grass, green as the ocean's curl, 
Light becomes web and bind he who harm the girl. 
Green is the light, green shall it bend, 
Bind this warlock and hold till time's end

"Unbinding"
Magic strands with power true,
Never fail to bind these two.

Restoration of Powers
Magic that binds will now unbind,
Restore their powers in full and in kind

Prue, Piper, and Phoebe don't know that a coven of warlocks is hunting them. They don't know that one of the warlocks has entered their loves disguised as a friend. And they don't know the coven's mission - to drain them of their magical powers, even if it means destroying them to do it! Not the Charmed Ones must figure out which of their friends is really their enemy. Because sometimes what you don't know -  can kill you

My review
The exciting part is waaayyy behind in the book, more than halfway through. That was when the Charmed Ones had their powers reversed. (Even the spells they chant will be reversed.) It's sort of funny when Piper tried to freeze the bad guys (who by the way are trying to streal the B.O.S) and ended up freezing herself. Prue pulls a car towards her in an attempt to save herself (actually, she wanted to push it away, but her powers are reversed). Each sister has a "friend" from the coven, Prue has Adrienne (someone who is running a Wicca store), Piper has Celest, (her charge from a mentoring program) and Phoebe, a cute guy named Kenji. I also think it's quite dumb of the coven to hunt the Charmed Ones since they had no clue that such a thing called covens exists! Courting death I'd say. Oh well, baddies are dummies I guess... 

Book 4: Whispers From The Past - Rosalind Noonan | Back to top

Spells:
Breaking of enchantments
Day to night,
Night to day
Break the spell,
Cast it away.
(Additional objects: Something the Enchanted One values, a sign of family and a symbol of evil to be cast away)

To banish the demon (Falcroft)
Friends of light and sister sun,
Winter moon and summer shower,
Send this demon back darkness,
Banish him, destroy his power.
(Additional objects: Soil from the earth where three roads meet, spices, thimble, tea leaf, nutmeg kernel, two flat stones, Queen Anne's lace, feather)

Phoebe Halliwell is having a very bad day: A demon has pulled her centuries into the past. She has no way to tell her sisters she's alive, no way to get back to her own time - and the demon is trying to kill her. Back in the present, Prue and Piper are devastated at losing their sister. But that isn't their only problem. Something is wrong with them, too. Somehow, they're turning... evil. But why? And how can they stop it -  without the Power of Three?

My review
One of my most favourite books. The story starts off with the sisters chasing the demon, action starts when the demon pulls Phoebe back, and she ends up naked in Salem, Massachusetts in 1676. If you know your history (which I don't, cos I don't take that subject now) it is the year of witch hunting. We meet their ancestor (who was not mentioned in "The Power Of Three.) Prudence Wentworth, who is the daughter of Melinda Warren. This is the weird part because in The Power Of Three, it was mentioned that Cassandra (Prudence's daughter) is the daughter of Melinda.  Prudence is under an evil spell (caused by root tea. Erm...ok...) and suffers mood swings, nearly killing Phoebe once. There's the flirty warlock, Hugh Montgomery and the green demon, Falcroft, sowing "seeds of evil" into the Halliwells' family tree. While Phoebe is suffering in Salem, Prue and Piper in the present have fun by sucking up warlocks power, turning evil. There was only enough time for each sister to steal a new power before they received a letter from Phoebe (through the BOS if you wanna know) and turned good... (So easy? A totally different story in "Bride of Gloom"...)
One memorable part when Prue asks why they couldn't steal powers from some other sources (i.e. witches) Piper quipped "Because we couldn't steal power from a loaf of bread?"

Book 5: Voodoo Moon - Wendy Corsi Staub | Back to top

Spells:
None

The Halliwells are on vacation. It's time to party in New Orleans. But on Prue, Piper and Phoebe's first night in the Big Easy, Phoebe has a dream filled with images of strange, violent rituals under a full moon. Soon after, a new friend of Prue's disappears - on the night of the full moon! When the Charmed Ones try to find her, they are drawn into the dark world of voodoo sorcery... a powerful magic like nothing the sisters have ever seen.

My review
Voodoo magic takes center stage here. There are many things about voodoo like their "gods" are called loas, practioners make a deal with these loas and in turn, serve and worship them. There is the good and the bad loas, good aka the Rada loa and the bad, aka the Ptero loa. Phoebe was poisoned by the bad guys (Gabrielle Toussaint and her boyfriend Andre) and turned into a zombie. (She was revived by Cajun healer, Yvonne.)
No warlocks, no demons. The baddies were eaten up by the evil loas in the end. But I won't say it's boring...

Book 6: Haunted By Desire - Cameron Dokey | Back to top

Spells:
To summon a ghost
Guardians of Time, pull back the curtain.
Let mysteries of the past be certain.
Past from present no longer divide.
Send a spirit to lead me inside
The actors are gone, yet let me see
As I will it, so must it be.

Time altering
Curtain of Time and all's that concealed, open the past and it's secrets reveal. 
Past into present, show yourself to me, As I will it, so must it be.

Phoebe Halliwell thinks taking a college course will add some intellectual excitement to her life. And she is definitely excited when she meets Brett, a gorgeous guy in her class. Too bad he's got a jealous ex-girlfriend, Wendy. When Brett and Phoebe spend time together on a class assignment, Phoebe starts to receive threatening notes. Wendy's the obvious culprit, so why does Phoebe sense that the notes are from someone else - someone with supernatural powers?

My review
Let me correct the synopsis given by the book: First, Phoebe is NOT interested in Brett. Second, Brett volunteered to be her partner in this extra assignment (It's not a class assignment). Third, not the entire book is about Phoebe, there are juicy catfights between Prue and Piper over a guy named Dylan Thomas who is actually a warlock. Funny they did not mention this fact. Prue and Piper are under a love spell put on them by "darling" Dylan, thus the petty arguments. Quite juvenile I say, spoiling each other's dresses, catty remarks... Even using their powers against each other! As for Phoebe, she was assigned to investigate the Halloween Murders, summoned a ghost, and nearly got killed because her sisters were too busy fighting each other.  But everything ended perfect... Baddies killed, sisters kiss and make up...
A blooper in the book is the author said Phoebe is the one with the ability to astral project. But we all know that big sis Prue is the one with the power!

Book 7: The Gypsy Enchantment - Carla Jablonski | Back to top

Spells:
To vanquish a Gypsy zombie
Minion of darkness, ancient Gypsy tool
Sent for destruction, mindless yet cruel,
We break your commands
We shatter your rules

Prue is in a serious funk. Her latest photo assignment for 415 is an in-depth article about the Carnival Cavalcade - circus acts in a tent and a midway with games and food. Prue hates circuses, but Piper and Phoebe are up for meeting tattooed snake-charmer, clowns, and especially Ivan, the handsome Gypsy animal trainer. But a dark sign seems to mark him, and Phoebe has a vision of Piper - being strangled by a handsome stranger! Could Ivan be a demon in disguise? A mysterious fire and a tragic death compel the Charmed Ones to use their gifts. Now it's the Power of Three against the magic of ancient Gypsy forces!

My review
Voodoo moon was about voodoo, and for this book, as the title suggests, gypsy magic. We see Dan and Jenny (finally!!!) here, and apparently Piper has already dumped Dan, but there's no mention of a third party (I'm talking about Leo here) Sparks fly between Ivan and Prue, and woo hoo! Phoebe has an admirer of a snake charmer, Raphael! It's quite cute to read about Phoebe trying to hide from him. Readers will gather that Prue already got her astral projection powers already. At the end of the story, we see the baddies pulling Ivan into an astral plane to try get him retrieve the Romanian ruby. (Prue astral projected in together with Ivan as well)

Book 8: The Legacy Of Merlin - Eloise Flood | Back to top

Spells:
Love spell
For constancy, this mallow blue,
Shall never give me cause to rue
Bloodred wort makes passion blaze,
Add fire of stars for length of days.
Behold the spell I weave for you!
Love, to me alone be true

For cleansing of Druid stones
In this place, upon this night, 
Cleanse these stones, bring them back to light. 
By the Power of Three, bring them back to light!

Prue lands a summer trip to England to buy medieval books for a collector, so Phoebe and Piper tag along to the quaint village of Hay-on-Wye, in the heart of King Arthur country. While Piper reads how to make love charms from flowers, Phoebe meets the darkly handsome Niall. But she's shaken by a desolate vision of him on a windswept heath, holding an infant. Is Niall a warlock? Then Piper discovers a secret Druid ritual in progress, with Niall at the center of it! She freezes the group and the Charmed Ones set out to discover Niall's secret. They learn that a local villager is in terrible danger from the Druids, and only a magical spell from centuries past can save her. The Charmed Ones are convinced that only a long journey can win against the Druids - a voyage back in time to Camelot!

My review
It's a wee bit weird why Prue should go to England to get the books, since she's already a photographer according to the last book. But who really cares. The story is focused on King Arthur and the Druids. We're all familiar with Merlin, one of the greatest Druids of all time. However, Diana wants power for herself. She summons Niall, the unknown child of Merlin into the present to "make a baby" the Druids way. Well well... Niall meets Phoebe and sparks fly, but too bad Niall couldn't stay as he'll crumble into dust by the stroke of midnight on Midsummer's Night. Piper experiments with flower posies and love spells (for LEO!) and accidentally made this elderly guy fall head over hills in love with her...

Book 9: Soul Of The Bride - Elizabeth Lenhard | Back to top

Spells:
To get through the camera portal
For an instant may we be, 
Ordinary mortals three. 
Take us where we want to go, 
Then back to powers let us go!

To turn time back
The bond which was not to be done, 
Give me the power to see it undone, 
And turn back time to whence it was begun

To turn time forward
The bond which was not to be done, 
give us the power to see it undone. 
And move time forward, for thee we shun!

Prue's editor at 415 magazine offers her a challenge: if she rakes a really fantastic photo, he'll run it on the cover. This could be Prue's big break - if she can come up with a killer concept. Then Prue gets the idea to shoot a group of models in the Halliwells' Victorian mansion. She'll even use an antique camera to capture the style of an old-time photo. But when Prue snaps the shutter, all the models collapse into a deathly slumber! To rescue the innocents, the Charmed Ones descend into Hades, fighting underworld perils and uncovering an unholy plot. To rescue the missing models, they must match wits with the greatest of the ancient Greek gods - and one of the sisters might not be allowed to return to her mortal life.

My review
Another of my favourites, this time it features Greek mythology. Piper was complaining how boring her life is and poof! She gets to travel to Mt. Olympus to meet Zeus, the most powerful Greek god. Prue keeps fighting creatures from the Greek mythology, including a three-headed dog, a Harpy, a Gorgon (think Medusa), Sirens etc. Phoebe got kidnapped to be the bride of the prince of Hades, Nikos. Learnt quite abit about Greek mythology in this book. Piper was quite a geek in high school... First time they actually mentioned this fact. (Refer to the Season 3's "Coyote Piper"...)

Book 10: Beware What You Wish - Diana G. Gallagher | Back to top

Spells:
None

While photographing Stephen Tremaine, a wealthy business man running for public office. Prue notices an ancient stone statue from South America. Then, the next morning, Prue, Piper and Phoebe are disturbed by the number of tragic incidents in the news. Wishing she could foresee more calamities in order to prevent them, Phoebe suddenly gets dizzy, but the feeling passes. Soon Phoebe is having more visions than she can handle - and the sisters can't keep up with the impending accidents and disasters. Then a terrible vision sends the Halliwells to a charity carnival, where Tremaine will face his opponent. The Charmed Ones must summon the Power of Three to avert a tragedy and save San Francisco - if they can find out which disaster to stop!

My review:
I really expected more action from this book. But the most exciting part is like, when they sat on the Ferris Wheel to save the other candidate running for office, Noel Jefferson, from certain death. (Apparently if Tremaine gets elected, San Francisco will be gone in some nuclear holocaust) Sparks fly between Jefferson and Prue... Half the story is about the sisters running around and around saving people from really minor disasters (which is part of the story so I shan't blame the author) and as time passes, Phoebe's visions are like, 2 or 3 times more worse than it's supposed to be. The poor gal was so exhausted from all that.
The worst was that the sisters did not even have to vanquish the spirit at all! It is a wind spirit who absolutely hates witches and courted his own death by following Prue home (Why are they so dumb???). Then the spirit got angry when the sisters thwarted his attempt to fulfill Tremaine's wish that he blew across them and... disappeared? It must be that protection charm...

Book 11: Charmed Again - Elizabeth Lenhard | Back to top

Spells:
-N.A-

This book has not reached Singapore yet so I am unable to give the review. But Amazon.com says that its out... So let's just give it a spot here shall we?

Bloopers and Trivia | Back to top

• Leo was not mentioned until The Legacy of Merlin and he is referred to as Piper's "husband" in Beware What You Wish. And even in book 8 Leo was like, unofficially her husband. (Piper was making a posy for him)

• Dan and Jenny appeared only in the Gypsy Enchantment. Nothing mentioned on what happened to them after that. Dan appeared briefly in one chapter while Jenny disappeared after the sisters' had to rush off to the carnival after the fire.  

• Prue suddenly got her powers of astral projection and Phoebe the power of levitating in The Gypsy Enchantment and Soul of the Bride respectively.  

• The Gypsy Enchantment states Prue is a photographer, however she is a collector in The Legacy of Merlin.

• In Haunted By Desire, Phoebe was stated as the one with the power of astral projection. But no more was mentioned.

• In Whispers From The Past, Phoebe is not supposed to get any premonitions since she technically does not exist after she was pulled back into the past.

• In The Power of Three, a passage from the BOS read that Melinda Warren was betrayed by her lover Hugh Montgomery. Mr. Montgomery appeared again as a warlock in Whispers From The Past, supposedly the lover of Melinda's daughter, Prudence! I guess warlocks do not die... 
  Deja vu: Hugh betrayed Prudence to the villagers of Salem that she is a witch too.

• Piper worked in Quake only up till Kiss of Darkness. She opened her club in The Crimson Spell.

• Andy appeared only in The Power of Three. Nothing mentioned on what happened to him after that book.