Rotten to the Core: A Melissa De La Cruz Book Review
Two decades after Belle broke the spell and Beast returned
to his human form, they created a nation for their kingdom and the surrounding
kingdoms while their villainous counterparts were banished to their own island.
There, they lived under a dome that separated them from the castles they once
terrorized. Their magic was gone forever. Not only did they have to suffer the
consequences of trying to outdo good, but their children had to suffer as well.
The Isle of the Lost,
the first Descendants novel by Melissa
De La Cruz, prequels the Descendants
film that premiered on Disney Channel in 2015. It introduces the four main
villains – Mal, daughter of Sleeping
Beauty’s Maleficent; Evie, daughter of Snow
White’s Evil Queen; Jay, son of
Aladdin’s Jafar; and Carlos, son of 101
Dalmatians’ Cruella De Vil. While they are living on the Isle of the Lost, they
attend school to further their education in Evil Schemes and Selfishness, eat
leftover slop sent from the United States of Auradon and bask in their parent’s
disappointment that they are not as evil as their heritage. When a sudden break
in the dome causes a temporary lift on the use of magic, Maleficent’s talisman is
brought back to life and it’s only Mal who can find it. She cons the others to
assist her on her journey to the Isle of the Doomed where her mother’s former
castle lays and their misadventure turns them from frenemies to tolerable
acquaintances.
The second novel, Return
to the Isle of the Lost, picks up after the film where the four are sent to
Auradon to attend school in an order by King Ben, son of Belle and Beast, who
wishes to prove that there is more to them than their evil parents. Despite
defeating Maleficent’s attempt to steal Fairy Godmother’s wand and release all
the villains from the Isle of the Lost, Mal and her friends find out that her
mother might not be under lock and key after all – and neither are the rest of
their parents. They must journey back to their former homes in search of their
families and try to resist reverting back to their old ways.
The recently published Rise
of the Isle of the Lost is the third novel in the series. It introduces a
few more villainous children including Uma, daughter of The Little Mermaid’s Ursula, and Harry, son of Peter Pan’s Captain Hook. While Uma’s former friend is enjoying the
life of royalty in Auradon, Uma is plotting her own way to get off the island,
and that includes finding her mother’s gold shell necklace and retrieving King
Triton’s trident. It’s a race of who will get to the trident first – Uma or Mal
– and if good will once again overtake evil or not.
Each novel paints a picture of life after the classic films
that have served generations and gives a new generation a new story. From
reading about the daughter of Maleficent to the son of Belle, with sub stories
of the son of Dopey to the daughter of the Fairy Godmother, nearly every Disney
film makes an appearance. The stories accompany now two Disney Channel Original
Movies and blend perfectly from one plot to the next. The emphasis on adventure
grabs the reader from the get-go and the emotion of loving to hate villains keeps
the pages turning quickly.
Melissa De La Cruz is on to something with this
next generation of Disney characters. Where the next chapter leads can be
guessed after watching Descendants 2,
airing on Disney Channel now.
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