The Isle of the Lost
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Series: The Descendants #1
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling
Release Date: April 14, 2015
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Summary:
Maleficent, Mistress of the Dark: As the self-proclaimed ruler of the isle, Maleficent has no tolerance for anything less than pure evil. She has little time for her subjects, who have still not mastered life without magic. Her only concern is getting off the Isle of the Lost.
Mal: At sixteen, Maleficent’s daughter is the most talented student at Dragon Hall, best known for her evil schemes. And when she hears about the Dragon’s Eye, Mal thinks this could be her chance to prove herself as the cruelest of them all…
Evie: Having been castle-schooled for years, Evil Queen’s daughter, Evie, doesn’t know the ins and outs of Dragon Hall. But she’s a quick study, especially after she falls for one too many of Mal’s little tricks.
Jay: As the son of Jafar, Jay is a boy of many talents: stealing and lying to name a few. Jay and Mal have been frenemies forever and he’s not about to miss out on the hunt for the Dragon’s Eye.
Carlos: Cruella de Vil’s son may not be bravest, but he’s certainly clever. Carlos’s inventions may be the missing piece in locating the Dragon’s Eye and ending the banishment for good.
First Sentence: Once upon a time, during a time after all the happily-ever-afters, and perhaps even after the ever-afters after that, all the evil villains of the world were banished from the United Kingdom of Auradon and imprisoned on the Isle of the Lost.
I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for this review.
My Review:
Ever since I saw the words “Disney” and “told from the point of view of the villains,” I just knew I had to get my greedy hands on The Isle of the Lost. Add a premise of all the villains of the many Disney characters we know and love are trapped in an island without any magic of their own and I am sold. I was extremely lucky enough to get an early copy of The Isle of the Lost, which turned out to be a fun read, although it does have its faults.
“Who are you?” she demanded. “Are you some kind of prince or something?”
…
“You know who I am,” the boy said. “I’m your friend.”
Mal was instantly relieved. “Then this is a dream,” she said with a crafty smile. “Because I have no friends.” (ARC 16)
The Isle of the Lost features a variety of characters from different Disney movies we know and love, along with a few new characters: their kids. A minor problem I have with this is that The Isle of the Lost features Disney characters I don’t remember, and also mentions them quite often. I mean, as a kid, I wasn’t a fan of 101 Dalmatians, so I had absolutely no clue who Cruella De Vil was and honestly, who on Earth bothers to remember Cinderella’s stepmother’s name? I know I don’t. (Cinderella’s stepmother’s name is Lady Tremaine by the way.) Some of the characters are explained – like Cruella De Vil’s two henchmen – but some are not.
In the prologue of The Isle of the Lost, the main characters were age six and then was sixteen once the actual story began. My main problem with The Isle of the Lost is that the characters don’t act their age. Even though the characters were sixteen, they acted between the ages of twelve and thirteen, probably because the book is going to be made into a Disney movie, which is mainly for very young children to watch. Because of this, The Isle of the Lost felt more like a middle grade novel than a young adult novel.
“Excited to see me?” Mal asked with a smile.
He nodded yes. Except that Carlos wasn’t excited.
He was terrified.
Somewhere, deep down, he even wanted his mommy. (ARC 72)
I am disappointed with the way The Isle of the Lost ended. Overall, The Isle of the Lost felt like a filler book for the rest of the series and an introduction to the movie. Nothing much happens and nothing was resolved; The Isle of the Lost only gave us tempting hints of what was to come.
Despite these problems, The Isle of the Lost was a fun, quick read. I am curious how the book would look on the big screen with all the Disney characters we’ve seen in different movies all in one place and how it’ll portray the characters’ thoughts and feelings without it looking out of place.
I have to admit that the cover is what really caught my attention with this book. And, even now, in my forties, I’m still kind of a sucker for Disney – so I’ll probably pick this book up at some point. Shame that it didn’t have much substance, though.
Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction recently posted…Top Ten Books I’ll (Probably) Never Read
Nice review! Though I admit, I am scared to read it since I just ordered it. I did hear it was a middle grade book more than YA and that had me nervous. But I love Disney…so what to do?! I still don’t know. I did buy it, so I might just read it anyway! Again, very nice review! I will go in slightly better prepared for this one!
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I just followed your blog. I LOVE the style. :) I read an earlier comment and someone talked about the cover but I think that was the one thing that made me back away from it. Is it just me or does that vine wrapped around the apple creep you out just a tad bit?? (okay, okay. Maybe it IS just me.)
I think I might just see this on the big screen. Since my current sched will have not have enough time for me to squeeze this into my tbr that keeps piling up. And if the ending is not that stellar well, might just push this back on a later date.
Good review. This book sounds interesting with the villains and the twists on fairy tales.
This book seems like loads of fun and I really want to get my hands on it but I can’t stand it when characters aren’t realistic and don’t act their age!! It drives me crazy and I end up not enjoyed the book as much as I would’ve
Lily recently posted…Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas
Okay I don’t know what is it about that cover cuz normally it is not my type but I just like it. Maybe it’s the colors :D
Like your review, somehow I am already expecting it to be around 3/ 5 and I was not wrong! :D
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I had no idea about Cinderella’s step-mother’s name. The movie looks really good, but I think I will wait to watch it after I read the book. Great review!
Meredith @ A Book Lover’s Corner
Meredith recently posted…Gathering Frost Review
I have never read anything by Melissa De La Cruz, but I know how much she is loved! This sounds really good. It does bother me that the characters act younger than their age, and the ending doesn’t sound all that great. I might check it out when it comes to the library, just because of the Disney characters.
Jaime Lester recently posted…Charlie, Presumed Dead – DNF review
I still watch the Disney channel even despite being in my twenties and I definitely knew about the Descendants movies before I heard about the book…which is weird right? And I felt like reading this book before I found out that the characters act childish instead of their age. Those type of characters are just annoying! Even though some kids really act that way, I never did, so to me characters should act more mature than immaturely. Especially if their older than thirteen…I really look forward to the movie but I don’t plan on reading this book. Thanks for your thoughts Kelly! :)
Thanks for your honest review! I had no idea this was a novel to be turned into a movie, but it makes sense that it’d be more middle grade that way. Maybe the movie will be more intriguing? ABC has done well with (most of) Once Upon a Time, and they’re a Disney-owned company, so there’s hope. :)
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Gorgeous review Kelly. <3 This book looks so pretty. Yet I was never interested in knowing more about it :p Probably not a book for me, lol. And seeing your review, I'm glad I didn't get it :) Though I'm really happy you liked it :D But oh so sad that you didn't love it. Sigh. But liking it a little bit is good. <3 But sorry you were disappointed :\ Thank you for sharing about it sweetie. <3
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I do love the cover!! And still want to pick it up just because of the cover! haha. Could be a nice easy read, for when you just need something to relax to and not think so hard. And yes, Disney! Best!! :) Thanks for sharing such an honest and amazing review. :D
The Cosy Dragon recently posted…Review: Sarah Vincent – The Testament of Vida Tremayne
Oh, well while this is a really excellent idea, and it’s something that would usually excite me endlessly, it doesn’t sound like the book for me. I’m not sure… having villains children in the story makes me feel like they’l end up being “good” and going against their parents and that wouldn’t be what I’m searching for. Much as I love my Disney movies, I don’t think I’d enjoy this. But who knows! It sounds like it could be really neat, if it were made into a film, so that’s something to watch out for.
Sorry it was a bit of a disappointment, especially being the first of a series and feeling like a filler. Do you think you’ll read the rest of the series? Nice review. Xx
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It’s a unique way of telling a story, through the villain’s POV!
It’s an interesting concept as well!
Perhaps the next book will be better :)
nice to know about the lack of ending; won’t be reading it
I am a sucker for Disney Channel movies, so I was pretty excited to read this book, albeit I knew it wasn’t going to be a book that makes you question your entire existence! Anyway, I ended up liking it more than I thought I would! I agree, it was a fun read!
Love Disney movies, but I get why you don’t think they act their age. Perhaps it’ll translate better on screen.
Lovely review :)
I’m sad to hear this book wasn’t amazing and epic. But you’re right, it’s becoming a Disney movie so it has to be readable for 10-12 year olds. It does sound like a fun story though. I appreciate your honest review.
I really love the cover of this book plus the fact that it’s under Disney!
I’m actually even more interested in this now. I’ve heard very little about this book, but even so it sounds pretty interesting. And the points you bring up make me curious.
I have a special heart for villains and retellings of fairy tales. Its like there’s a good and soft side of these villains that we think that they’re always bad.
The cover art is what attracted me, but then when I heard it would be about Disney’s villains, I knew it was not really the book for me. Your review has helped me see it from your perspective, which definitely helped me to still want to read it, in spite of the ending and Disney and all that.
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