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The Secret Circle #4
The Secret Circle: The Divide
Keep your enemies close. . . .
For the first time since moving to New Salem, Cassie Blake feels normal. She's dating her soul mate Adam and making new friends in town. But between the secret coven of witches she belongs to and the incredible power she holds within her, Cassie is leading a far from ordinary life. When tragedy strikes the Circle, Cassie realizes being extraordinary can be a curse.
The Circle is being hunted by an unknown enemy—and anyone could be the next victim. As they struggle to protect themselves, alliances are formed and relationships are tested. No one knows who to trust or who to fear. Will Cassie be able to save the Circle . . . and herself? Or will her choices break it apart forever?
For the first time since moving to New Salem, Cassie Blake feels normal. She's dating her soul mate Adam and making new friends in town. But between the secret coven of witches she belongs to and the incredible power she holds within her, Cassie is leading a far from ordinary life. When tragedy strikes the Circle, Cassie realizes being extraordinary can be a curse.
The Circle is being hunted by an unknown enemy—and anyone could be the next victim. As they struggle to protect themselves, alliances are formed and relationships are tested. No one knows who to trust or who to fear. Will Cassie be able to save the Circle . . . and herself? Or will her choices break it apart forever?
292 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
178 people are currently reading
8279 people want to read
About the author
L.J. Smith
337 books112k followersSmith was born in Villa Park, Orange County, California. In interviews, she has said she realized she wanted to be a writer sometime between kindergarten and first grade, “when a teacher praised a horrible poem I’d written”, and began writing in earnest in elementary school. Smith received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Experimental Psychology from the University of California at Santa Barbara in 1987, followed by teaching credentials in Elementary education and Special education from San Francisco State University.
She taught kindergarten and special education for several years before becoming a full-time writer. Her first book, The Night of the Solstice, was published by MacMillan in 1987, followed by, Heart of Valor in 1990, and the 4-volume Vampire Diaries series in 1991-2. Three trilogies followed: The Secret Circle (1992), The Forbidden Game (1994), and Dark Visions (1995). The first installment of her popular Night World series was published in 1996, followed by eight more over the next two years. In 1998, Smith began a decade-long hiatus from writing, returning in 2008 with a new Web site and a series of new short stories. The Vampire Diaries series was reissued in 2007, followed by re-printings of The Secret Circle trilogy and Night World series in 2008/2009. The Night of the Solstice and Heart of Valor was also reissued in 2008. Three new Vampire Diaries installments were published in 2009 and 2010.
Smith lived in the San Francisco Bay area “with one dog, three cats, and about ten thousand books.”
She passed away on March 8th, 2025, after a lengthy illness.
She taught kindergarten and special education for several years before becoming a full-time writer. Her first book, The Night of the Solstice, was published by MacMillan in 1987, followed by, Heart of Valor in 1990, and the 4-volume Vampire Diaries series in 1991-2. Three trilogies followed: The Secret Circle (1992), The Forbidden Game (1994), and Dark Visions (1995). The first installment of her popular Night World series was published in 1996, followed by eight more over the next two years. In 1998, Smith began a decade-long hiatus from writing, returning in 2008 with a new Web site and a series of new short stories. The Vampire Diaries series was reissued in 2007, followed by re-printings of The Secret Circle trilogy and Night World series in 2008/2009. The Night of the Solstice and Heart of Valor was also reissued in 2008. Three new Vampire Diaries installments were published in 2009 and 2010.
Smith lived in the San Francisco Bay area “with one dog, three cats, and about ten thousand books.”
She passed away on March 8th, 2025, after a lengthy illness.
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February 12, 2012If this won't be written by L.J.Smith herself: screw you. I won't read it.
--------------
Ok, I see...
No L.J.Smith? Then, how can I say? Ah! I got this: Isa+The Divide=Not compatible.
(No Lisa No party)
--------------
Ok, I see...
No L.J.Smith? Then, how can I say? Ah! I got this: Isa+The Divide=Not compatible.
(No Lisa No party)
March 30, 2012
I won't read any of the ghostwritten books for The Secret Circle series or The Hunters series. By giving a 1 star to these books, I'm showing my dislike for Alloy Entertainment & HarperCollins for firing L.J. Smith. They are not allowing her to write her books the way she wanted, because they only care about what sells and don't have any respect for story telling at all.
For those who don't know what I'm talking about, here's the letter L.J. Smith wrote herself to her fans regarding the issue.
"Hi —
Thank you so very much for your kind words about Midnight. I’m so glad
you’re enjoying it, and if you already know that Damon says those three
little words to Elena, then I expect you know what she does for him
afterwards. I can’t say how much I appreciate your understanding of the
book, but at the same time my heart is so heavy that I just can’t keep
pretending about what’s in the future for Delena fans.
You see, I’ve been fired from The Vampire Diaries—mainly because instead of giving my publishers the strict Stelana they demanded, I went ahead and wrote what my heart told me to do. They wanted Elena to “realize that she was fond of or physically attracted to Damon, but that her one true love was Stefan.” But I didn’t see the series that way. And so Midnight is the last Vampire Diaries book you’ll see by L. J. Smith.
You’re probably wondering how this can happen, since I write the series and have done so since 1990. But the truth is simple. When I got a call asking me to write a vampire trilogy for Harper, it wasn’t Harper who was calling me. It was a book packager, now called Alloy Entertainment, calling on Harper’s behalf. Their job was to take authors’ work, put blurbs and covers on it, and sell it to a publisher. When I wrote the first Vampire Diaries trilogy it was called “work for hire.” By the time I found out what that meant it was too late.
What it means is that the book packager, Alloy Entertainment, owns the
books, not me. Even though they are copyrighted to me, I still can’t write them without Alloy’s permission. And they really hated any Delena
content—as well as the many scenes I had given to Bonnie, which they wanted to cut. They demanded only Stelena. And now they’ve gotten an anonymous ghostwriter to do the books, the way a ghostwriter does Stefan’s Diaries.
The first book out after Midnight will probably sound something like my
writing, since I wrote Phantom for them. But instead of edits, what I got back after I wrote it was a letter addressed to the ghostwriter by name, telling her to completely rewrite the book.
I have been fighting, coaxing, and pleading with the people at both Alloy and Harper, as I already had the next two books after Phantom mapped out. But there is nothing to be done. They simply didn’t like the way the series was going, and unlike most writers who work with book packagers, I was not submissive, meek, and eager to please them. Instead, I had my own vision of the books. But you can kiss any more truly meaningful Delena moments goodbye, because I’m afraid it just isn’t the view of Harper or Alloy.
Meanwhile, I am devastated. Of course I have other series done directly
with a publisher: The Forbidden Game, Dark Visions, and the Night World
books. But I put so much of myself into the Vampire Diaries books that
right now I’m devastated. I never imagined anything like this could happen. But still, I can’t say that I regret having written Shadow Souls or Midnight the way I did. I wrote what I did because that was the vision I saw of the characters.
I’m just sorry that from now on Delena readers will have no hope of anything other than a Stelena endgame, and that written by someone who will do exactly what she is told.
Lisa
L. J. Smith"
For those who don't know what I'm talking about, here's the letter L.J. Smith wrote herself to her fans regarding the issue.
"Hi —
Thank you so very much for your kind words about Midnight. I’m so glad
you’re enjoying it, and if you already know that Damon says those three
little words to Elena, then I expect you know what she does for him
afterwards. I can’t say how much I appreciate your understanding of the
book, but at the same time my heart is so heavy that I just can’t keep
pretending about what’s in the future for Delena fans.
You see, I’ve been fired from The Vampire Diaries—mainly because instead of giving my publishers the strict Stelana they demanded, I went ahead and wrote what my heart told me to do. They wanted Elena to “realize that she was fond of or physically attracted to Damon, but that her one true love was Stefan.” But I didn’t see the series that way. And so Midnight is the last Vampire Diaries book you’ll see by L. J. Smith.
You’re probably wondering how this can happen, since I write the series and have done so since 1990. But the truth is simple. When I got a call asking me to write a vampire trilogy for Harper, it wasn’t Harper who was calling me. It was a book packager, now called Alloy Entertainment, calling on Harper’s behalf. Their job was to take authors’ work, put blurbs and covers on it, and sell it to a publisher. When I wrote the first Vampire Diaries trilogy it was called “work for hire.” By the time I found out what that meant it was too late.
What it means is that the book packager, Alloy Entertainment, owns the
books, not me. Even though they are copyrighted to me, I still can’t write them without Alloy’s permission. And they really hated any Delena
content—as well as the many scenes I had given to Bonnie, which they wanted to cut. They demanded only Stelena. And now they’ve gotten an anonymous ghostwriter to do the books, the way a ghostwriter does Stefan’s Diaries.
The first book out after Midnight will probably sound something like my
writing, since I wrote Phantom for them. But instead of edits, what I got back after I wrote it was a letter addressed to the ghostwriter by name, telling her to completely rewrite the book.
I have been fighting, coaxing, and pleading with the people at both Alloy and Harper, as I already had the next two books after Phantom mapped out. But there is nothing to be done. They simply didn’t like the way the series was going, and unlike most writers who work with book packagers, I was not submissive, meek, and eager to please them. Instead, I had my own vision of the books. But you can kiss any more truly meaningful Delena moments goodbye, because I’m afraid it just isn’t the view of Harper or Alloy.
Meanwhile, I am devastated. Of course I have other series done directly
with a publisher: The Forbidden Game, Dark Visions, and the Night World
books. But I put so much of myself into the Vampire Diaries books that
right now I’m devastated. I never imagined anything like this could happen. But still, I can’t say that I regret having written Shadow Souls or Midnight the way I did. I wrote what I did because that was the vision I saw of the characters.
I’m just sorry that from now on Delena readers will have no hope of anything other than a Stelena endgame, and that written by someone who will do exactly what she is told.
Lisa
L. J. Smith"
February 24, 2012
This book will not be written by L.J. Smith. It is not a continuation of her original trilogy and L.J. has no say in what will happen to her beloved characters. This will be written by a ghostwriter. L.J. Smith has been removed from this series (as well as The Vampire Diaries). Please show your support for L.J. Smith and do not purchase this book!
Read
February 27, 2016I was estatic for a minute there... I thought for just a moment that L. J. Smith actually wrote this. Then I thought- wait, the cover looks so different. Oh crap, it's not actually by her, just another ghost writer. I would love to have another Secret Circle book, but I want it to be a book by the original author.
March 21, 2012
I hate that they did this. Just give her series to someone else and use her name! I was so excited when I thought that there would be another Secret Circle book because I LOVED this series. I won't read it now because it's not written by L.J. Smith someone is taking her characters and they can do anything and everything with them and I'm afraid that it will end wrong. Because it ended perfectly now but they can't continue that because that's not exciting so they will change stuff and the ending will probably suck (when they're finally done taking money from teens by writing a ton of bad sequels) and you can never get your ending back. Once you've read these books you can never unread them, you can never forget what happened and it will ruin the series. I just hate this I won't read it and I will never ever buy it.
February 25, 2013
Before:
As long as it's from the author herself.
After:
As many of you are aware, 'The Divide' is the fourth book in the Secret Circle series written not by L.J Smith but a ghost writer, Aubrey Clark. When I first heard of this news I was very disappointed and upset that the series could continue without the author who created the series from the very beginning. It did not make sense and it sounded like the worst idea at the time. Despite this, I gave it a shot wondering if Clark could really pull it off... To my surprise she did. She did not change the characters but left them as L.J Smith had written them to be like. Honestly the final book L.J Smith wrote for the Secret Circle series was good but it wasn't great... It did not leave me wanting more. There definitely was an opening which Clark continued the series and made it more compelling to read. L.J Smith never got around to mentioning the witch hunters or any real threat other then Black John, Cassie's father. For that reason I am glad that Clark decided to continue where Smith left off.
If I didn't see Aubrey Clark name written on the cover of the book and didn't know there was going to be a ghost writer writing the series than I probably would not have known that L.J Smith didn't write it. This is because Aubrey Clark did a great job in continuing a great series... Of course this series will always be L.J Smith's, no one can ever take that away from her. I am also not for ghost writers taking away another authors work, but I am definitely satisfied and glad this series continued. Can't wait to read the fifth book, 'The Hunt'!
As long as it's from the author herself.
After:
As many of you are aware, 'The Divide' is the fourth book in the Secret Circle series written not by L.J Smith but a ghost writer, Aubrey Clark. When I first heard of this news I was very disappointed and upset that the series could continue without the author who created the series from the very beginning. It did not make sense and it sounded like the worst idea at the time. Despite this, I gave it a shot wondering if Clark could really pull it off... To my surprise she did. She did not change the characters but left them as L.J Smith had written them to be like. Honestly the final book L.J Smith wrote for the Secret Circle series was good but it wasn't great... It did not leave me wanting more. There definitely was an opening which Clark continued the series and made it more compelling to read. L.J Smith never got around to mentioning the witch hunters or any real threat other then Black John, Cassie's father. For that reason I am glad that Clark decided to continue where Smith left off.
If I didn't see Aubrey Clark name written on the cover of the book and didn't know there was going to be a ghost writer writing the series than I probably would not have known that L.J Smith didn't write it. This is because Aubrey Clark did a great job in continuing a great series... Of course this series will always be L.J Smith's, no one can ever take that away from her. I am also not for ghost writers taking away another authors work, but I am definitely satisfied and glad this series continued. Can't wait to read the fifth book, 'The Hunt'!
March 27, 2019
Anyone who LOVED the original trilogy by L.J. Smith (and I mean loved it as in read all of the books a million times) will HATE THIS BOOK!!!
Just as a note: This book was NOT written by L.J. Smith. I really think that Goodreads should FIX this. It was written by another author using L.J.'s characters. This book is really what the television series was based off of, which is why the series was no where near as good as the original books.
Why am I being so harsh? First of all the book starts out with Cassie and Adam contemplating blowing off a circle meeting for a make-out session. Second, Cassie acts like the OLD Cassie: Afraid of Faye. The author also made Cassie almost jealous and uneasy around Diana, which is very inaccurate and totally does not mesh with the ending of the original trilogy. The entire book had a lot of strange things like that going on.
The biggest issue I had was the addition of a half-sibling for Cassie claiming that she was the one Black John had intended to join the circle, not Cassie. Ummm what?! Black John told Cassie himself that she was the one he wanted in the circle. That's why he killed Chris and Doug's little sister. If he had not wanted Cassie in the circle, he would have killed her as well. It was just all a little too far-fetched and WAY off course. The entire book came off angsty and as if Cassie did not feel like she belonged in the circle. Cassie got over THAT misconception in book 1! L.J. would never have made so many mistakes, much less put out such a poorly written piece.
Just as a note: This book was NOT written by L.J. Smith. I really think that Goodreads should FIX this. It was written by another author using L.J.'s characters. This book is really what the television series was based off of, which is why the series was no where near as good as the original books.
Why am I being so harsh? First of all the book starts out with Cassie and Adam contemplating blowing off a circle meeting for a make-out session. Second, Cassie acts like the OLD Cassie: Afraid of Faye. The author also made Cassie almost jealous and uneasy around Diana, which is very inaccurate and totally does not mesh with the ending of the original trilogy. The entire book had a lot of strange things like that going on.
The biggest issue I had was the addition of a half-sibling for Cassie claiming that she was the one Black John had intended to join the circle, not Cassie. Ummm what?! Black John told Cassie himself that she was the one he wanted in the circle. That's why he killed Chris and Doug's little sister. If he had not wanted Cassie in the circle, he would have killed her as well. It was just all a little too far-fetched and WAY off course. The entire book came off angsty and as if Cassie did not feel like she belonged in the circle. Cassie got over THAT misconception in book 1! L.J. would never have made so many mistakes, much less put out such a poorly written piece.
January 26, 2012
I have five words to say:
Off with the ghost writer's head.
No, wait, that was six words.
Off with the ghost writer's head.
No, wait, that was six words.
Want to read
January 29, 2012If it isn't written by L.J. Smith, I'm not interested and if I do actually review it, it will be from the library and will be burnt after reading just so I can give it a bad review. The first three books were brilliant and if this is written by anyone other than L.J. Smith herself, it will NEVER be a part of the series. NEVER. That's all I will say.
July 30, 2022
Neue Herausforderungen in New Salem
In dem Buch Der Abgrund (Der magische Zirkel 4) von Lisa J. Smith, geht es um Cassie und ihre Freunde im Zirkel. Eigentlich verläuft alles ganz normal, Cassies Mutter geht es wieder gut und Diana und Cassie verstehen sich wieder etwas besser. Die Gemeinde von New Salem veranstaltet ein Frühlingsfest und bei den Vorbereitungen kommt plötzlich ein Mädchen namens Scarlett an und spricht Diana und Cassie an. Diana kann Scarlett irgendwie nicht ganz leiden, aber Cassie ist sofort von ihr angetan. Kurz danach findet Cassie heraus, das Scarlett ihre Schwester ist und gleichzeitig gibt es noch komische Vorfälle, die die Hexen in New Salem betreffen.
Meine Meinung:
Ich fand die Geschichte spannend geschrieben und flüssig zu lesen. Auch Band 4 der Reihe war wieder sehr spannend und hatte keine unnötigen längen oder Szenen in der Geschichte. Ich finde es schön, wie die Charaktere untereinander zurecht kommen und sich irgendwie vertrauen, aber wie in diesem Band leider nicht. Das Ende war wieder sehr spannend und deshalb freue ich mich schon auf Band 5 der Reihe.
Fazit:
Ein spannender 4 Band mit Vertrauen, Verrat und viel mehr Erkenntnis zu der Protagonistin Cassie.
In dem Buch Der Abgrund (Der magische Zirkel 4) von Lisa J. Smith, geht es um Cassie und ihre Freunde im Zirkel. Eigentlich verläuft alles ganz normal, Cassies Mutter geht es wieder gut und Diana und Cassie verstehen sich wieder etwas besser. Die Gemeinde von New Salem veranstaltet ein Frühlingsfest und bei den Vorbereitungen kommt plötzlich ein Mädchen namens Scarlett an und spricht Diana und Cassie an. Diana kann Scarlett irgendwie nicht ganz leiden, aber Cassie ist sofort von ihr angetan. Kurz danach findet Cassie heraus, das Scarlett ihre Schwester ist und gleichzeitig gibt es noch komische Vorfälle, die die Hexen in New Salem betreffen.
Meine Meinung:
Ich fand die Geschichte spannend geschrieben und flüssig zu lesen. Auch Band 4 der Reihe war wieder sehr spannend und hatte keine unnötigen längen oder Szenen in der Geschichte. Ich finde es schön, wie die Charaktere untereinander zurecht kommen und sich irgendwie vertrauen, aber wie in diesem Band leider nicht. Das Ende war wieder sehr spannend und deshalb freue ich mich schon auf Band 5 der Reihe.
Fazit:
Ein spannender 4 Band mit Vertrauen, Verrat und viel mehr Erkenntnis zu der Protagonistin Cassie.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 23, 2012
If its not written by L J Smith, its not a Secret Circle book. Basically its publisher approved fan fiction. While fan fiction may be fun and interesting (I have read much of it myself and consider it to be a love letter to the author for making such spectacular characters whom the readers refuse to say goodbye to), it is only appropriate when the ghost writer/fan fiction author is not making money off of someone else's intellectual property. And the ghost writers sure enough are being paid, otherwise why would eight different 'Created L. J. Smith' books of her original series be popping up all over the place like acne on a teenager? It wouldn't be allowed for someone other than J K Rowling to write a continuation of Harry Potter or a spin-off. Please stop ripping off the original author. We all loved her original novels in the 90s and still love them to this day. If you do the math (Awesome author + loyal fan-base= kaching for the publishers). It makes sense if you have a working brain. This ghost writing crap does not.
March 26, 2018
Meh. I knew going into it that this book was not actually written by L.J. Smith but I literally didn't care. The story is still good and the writing is good.
HOWEVER, the characters feel completely different. This story is central to each member of the Circle, and the whole tone felt off to me.
Diana, who was so sweet and just, is now rude to Outsiders and acts jealous towards Cassie.
Cassie, who stumbled along and was always guilty for her mistakes, who put loyalty to Diana and the Circle over everything, is completely childish and angry in this book. Cassie feels jealousy over Adam's devotion to the Circle over her, and she whines over Nick not wanting to speak to her anymore.
The rest of the Circle is practically nonexistent except for Nick looking "cold and handsome" and Faye acting promiscuous and bratty.
Even though the 3rd book (the last one actually written by L.J.) did not end with any type of satisfaction for me, I don't know if I will keep reading.
Like I said, not a bad book. A good story with a good plot twist, excitement and cast of characters. But it doesn't feel the same.
HOWEVER, the characters feel completely different. This story is central to each member of the Circle, and the whole tone felt off to me.
Diana, who was so sweet and just, is now rude to Outsiders and acts jealous towards Cassie.
Cassie, who stumbled along and was always guilty for her mistakes, who put loyalty to Diana and the Circle over everything, is completely childish and angry in this book. Cassie feels jealousy over Adam's devotion to the Circle over her, and she whines over Nick not wanting to speak to her anymore.
The rest of the Circle is practically nonexistent except for Nick looking "cold and handsome" and Faye acting promiscuous and bratty.
Even though the 3rd book (the last one actually written by L.J.) did not end with any type of satisfaction for me, I don't know if I will keep reading.
Like I said, not a bad book. A good story with a good plot twist, excitement and cast of characters. But it doesn't feel the same.
March 19, 2012
I wasn't sure if I would read this, because the situation LJ Smith is in with Alloy Entertainment is seriously uncool and I don't want to support this series going to a ghostwriter. But, I've waited twenty years for another Secret Circle book, so there's no way I can avoid my curiosity.
I'm on chapter 6, and this book sucks. SUCKS. It is very obviously written by someone who doesn't give a damn about the original series. The characters are WRONG, the writing is boring and off, and the timeline is completely wrong (and I'm only on chapter 6!)
DON'T bother reading it. DON'T give Alloy your money.
These books were my childhood. Fuck you Alloy, for messing with that.
I'm on chapter 6, and this book sucks. SUCKS. It is very obviously written by someone who doesn't give a damn about the original series. The characters are WRONG, the writing is boring and off, and the timeline is completely wrong (and I'm only on chapter 6!)
DON'T bother reading it. DON'T give Alloy your money.
These books were my childhood. Fuck you Alloy, for messing with that.
February 24, 2012
NOT AGAIN!! Argh! *shakes fists at Alloy Entertainment*
This is utterly disgusting. -_-
Bring back L.J Smith and stop using her name for profit when she clearly didn't write this.
In case anyone else thinks she actually wrote this book. A direct quote from L.J Smith's official website.
"Dear Summer—
There is a new SECRET CIRCLE book coming out in March called THE DIVIDE, but it is not by me. I cannot say more than that I signed a contract over twenty years ago. I can’t say any more than that. I’m sorry.
Cheers,
Lisa"
http://www.ljanesmith.net/www/author/...
This is utterly disgusting. -_-
Bring back L.J Smith and stop using her name for profit when she clearly didn't write this.
In case anyone else thinks she actually wrote this book. A direct quote from L.J Smith's official website.
"Dear Summer—
There is a new SECRET CIRCLE book coming out in March called THE DIVIDE, but it is not by me. I cannot say more than that I signed a contract over twenty years ago. I can’t say any more than that. I’m sorry.
Cheers,
Lisa"
http://www.ljanesmith.net/www/author/...
January 30, 2012
I WILL NOT READ THIS GARBAGE!!!
February 25, 2012
THIS IS A DISGRACE TO L.J.SMITH
HOW DARE THEY!!!!
1. THERE DIDNT NEED TO BE ANOTHER BOOK IT ENDED PERFECTLY
2. HOW COULD THEY SACK L.J.SMITH SHE IS AMAZING
3. THEN AFTER THE SACK HER CAN THEY STILL SAY SHE WROTE THE BOOK WHEN SHE DIDNT!!!!!!!!!!
okay rant over.
but I will NOT buy this book
HOW DARE THEY!!!!
1. THERE DIDNT NEED TO BE ANOTHER BOOK IT ENDED PERFECTLY
2. HOW COULD THEY SACK L.J.SMITH SHE IS AMAZING
3. THEN AFTER THE SACK HER CAN THEY STILL SAY SHE WROTE THE BOOK WHEN SHE DIDNT!!!!!!!!!!
okay rant over.
but I will NOT buy this book
April 7, 2018
You can clearly tell that this book wasn’t written by L.J. Smith and there were so many plot holes but I still loved and enjoyed every single page of it.❤️
April 19, 2012
ou know, I didn't expect to like this book. I really loved the first Secret Circle books that I was a bit hesitant to read this one. I was taken away of how well the ghost writer, kept to the story line of The Secret Circle. I was expecting it to go off the grid and add all kinds of nonsense. Instead, I found myself happily in the shoes of Cassie and the circle, ready to do some magic!
What I loved most about this book is how well the story line didn't derive from what is originally was but still grew. Back in New Salem, the circle has all the original characters (ALL 12) and pick up right from where the last book left off. They're back in school facing yet again, a new darkness, Witch Hunters. I like that this aspect is added to the story just like the tv series, but doesn't sway it too much. It's like as if the story never finished.
The love interest with Cassie and Adam is what I expected it to be. Cassie is facing some serious insecurities along with major decisions she has to make for the circle. I like that Cassie spark is still there. She is strong yet selfless in her actions. I'm anxious to see how Adam and Cassie will face what is coming against them.
The Divide is a great touch added to the series. It flows extremely well with added elements of love, lust, and action. Smart and Unpredictable, The Divide is amazing!
What I loved most about this book is how well the story line didn't derive from what is originally was but still grew. Back in New Salem, the circle has all the original characters (ALL 12) and pick up right from where the last book left off. They're back in school facing yet again, a new darkness, Witch Hunters. I like that this aspect is added to the story just like the tv series, but doesn't sway it too much. It's like as if the story never finished.
The love interest with Cassie and Adam is what I expected it to be. Cassie is facing some serious insecurities along with major decisions she has to make for the circle. I like that Cassie spark is still there. She is strong yet selfless in her actions. I'm anxious to see how Adam and Cassie will face what is coming against them.
The Divide is a great touch added to the series. It flows extremely well with added elements of love, lust, and action. Smart and Unpredictable, The Divide is amazing!
July 25, 2012
I am never brutal. I try to focus on the positives and normally I never say anything if I have nothing positive to say at all. But my, my, my. This is the first time I have felt so strongly. There was very little plot. The flow was all wrong, it didn't transistion well and it felt awkward. The dialogue was weak, the characters seemed weaker. She seemed to be going one way with Nick and then never developed that any further. The word of the day here was predictable. Anyone could have seen the big twist coming at the end. It was so basic and so "paint by numbers". I think it would appeal to maybe middle grades but even that is a stretch. I miss L.J. Smith. And I am not just jumping on the band wagon here. I think the V.D. series has been at least decent even since they have changed writers ( even though not as good), but I am done with Secret Circle.
July 14, 2014
I hereby refuse to read any of the ghost-written books for The Secret Circle series or The Hunters series. By giving a 1 star to these books, I am showing my dislike for Alloy Entertainment & HarperCollins for firing L.J. Smith as I believe The Secret Circle series and The Hunters series are the intellectural property of L.J. Smith and refuse to read publisher-approved fan-fiction.
July 6, 2015
Another spellbinding pageturner, with yet again, annoyances. Cassie AGAIN refuses to listen to anyone and where does that get her? Sigh. I keep hoping this bitch will learn.
February 28, 2012
I'm sorry but i will not read this book by someone else than L.J Smith herself.
It doesn't feel right to read a book that's not written by the original author. Get what i mean?
It doesn't feel right to read a book that's not written by the original author. Get what i mean?
Want to read
October 8, 2014This is a disgrace. Alloy has violated my childhood.
July 20, 2023
I pretty much knew the ending by page 50, but still I really wanted to know if I was right.. so yeah it was okay
October 19, 2022
I know, I know. I'm one of the few people who could actually get into the The Vampire Diaries books after watching the series. To make it worse: I prefer book Matt Donovan over series Matt Donovan and I wish the series had been more fantasy, because I would have loved to see the Dark Dimension. Since I loved those books so much I also wanted to give The Secret Circle a try. In this case I never saw the tv-show and I really really enjoyed the first trilogy. I was therefore looking forward to the second one!
This book basically picks up where the previous trilogy ended. Although the evil spirit has been fought and destroyed, the coven still has a lot to learn and ever since the coven discovered that Cassie and Adam are soulmates some friendships and relationships have changed. I love how this book is playing with all this tension, constantly keeping the teenagers on edge. They have to stick together and support each other and yet some relationships need some work.
Even though this book starts a completely new storyline it's quite clear that it's in every way connected to the previous one and building upon the things we learned about Cassie and her friends. I also like how we get to see a little more of the relationship between Cassie and her mom in this installment. I won't say that it's all going well and easy, but they're clearly working on trusting each other, sharing their emotions and asking and answering questions.
And just like with the first trilogy it takes a little while before the story really gets exciting, but the finale does eventually make up for a lot. And even though a lot of these teenagers do a lot of stupid stuff in this book I could at least really understand why they did so. I especially really love how Faye is slowly showing more and more of her lighter colors. She might most often act like the devil on Cassie's shoulder, but in this book we saw that deep down she also only human.
I can't wait to read the next book!
This book basically picks up where the previous trilogy ended. Although the evil spirit has been fought and destroyed, the coven still has a lot to learn and ever since the coven discovered that Cassie and Adam are soulmates some friendships and relationships have changed. I love how this book is playing with all this tension, constantly keeping the teenagers on edge. They have to stick together and support each other and yet some relationships need some work.
Even though this book starts a completely new storyline it's quite clear that it's in every way connected to the previous one and building upon the things we learned about Cassie and her friends. I also like how we get to see a little more of the relationship between Cassie and her mom in this installment. I won't say that it's all going well and easy, but they're clearly working on trusting each other, sharing their emotions and asking and answering questions.
And just like with the first trilogy it takes a little while before the story really gets exciting, but the finale does eventually make up for a lot. And even though a lot of these teenagers do a lot of stupid stuff in this book I could at least really understand why they did so. I especially really love how Faye is slowly showing more and more of her lighter colors. She might most often act like the devil on Cassie's shoulder, but in this book we saw that deep down she also only human.
I can't wait to read the next book!
March 21, 2012
As mush as i want to know what'll happen next to the circle especially Nick(swoon), i can't purchase this book because it wasn't written by LJ herself and no longer legit. it's no different from a fan fiction. so why should i spend my money on this one when i can write my own CS fanfic?.
Lets all support Lisa j smith.
Lets all support Lisa j smith.
Want to read
February 29, 2012I know this is bad to say, but I actually might read it... I love L.J. Smith and I hate what Alloy are doing to her, but I might give the book an actual chance before giving it a bad review or burning it.
August 29, 2020
Πρώτο βιβλίο της σειράς που πέρασε στα χέρια ghost writer και όπως συνέβη και με τα "Vampire Diaries", το πείραμα ήταν ιδιαίτερα πετυχημένο και αρκετά κοντά στην αισθητική των προκατόχων του, αλλά με μια συνολικά πιο μοντέρνα διάθεση. Και ναι, συμφωνώ με το ότι η τακτική του εκδοτικού είναι "ανήθικη", αλλά τουλάχιστον είχε την ειλικρίνεια να κυκλοφορεί τα βιβλία ως "based on" και όχι με την δήθεν υπογραφή της συγγραφέως -στην οποία, στην τελική, ο ίδιος παράγγειλε τις δύο αυτές σειρές, δεν ήταν δική της ιδέα ευθύς εξ' αρχής.
March 22, 2012
Before I begin my review, it’s important for me to talk about The Secret Circle book series in general for those who might never have read them. The Secret Circle which has also recently been made into a TV series was created by author, L.J. Smith (other works include The Vampire Diaries, Night World, etc.). L.J. Smith first wrote and published three Secret Circle novels back in the early 90′s, The Initiation, The Captive, and The Power, however this latest book: The Divide was written by Aubrey Clark, a ghostwriter. Many arguments have occurred due to L.J. Smith “losing” The Secret Circle rights, but I’d like to look past them for this review. Although I feel extremely bad for L.J. Smith losing her own series, I was still very eager to dive back into this fictional world that I love so much. Okay! now lets get onto – The Divide.
Plot:
The Secret Circle: The Divide picks up very close to where book 3 ended, Black John has recently been defeated and the residents of Crowhaven road are well on their way to living a somewhat normal life well, as normal as magic-wielding teens can get. It appears that everything has reverted back to its original state with some new upsides, the circle (group of teen witches, i.e. the main characters) have come to a mutual agreement with the outsiders (non-witches) which allows them to coincide peacefully in and outside school. Cassie, with her best friend Diana’s blessing has finally been able to successfully and truthfully hookup with the boy she shares a deep connection with – Adam. Everything seems perfect until, as you can guess — ”tragedy” occurs. There’s a new enemy in town whose both dangerous and unpredictable — leading to an emotional loss and a new rise of panic. There’s a few new faces in New Salem and it’s up to Cassie and the Circle to figure out which and if the new residents are to blame for recent threats and attacks against those who dwell on Crowhaven road.
My Thoughts:
I was very skeptical going into this book, not just because it was written by a new writer. Although I longed for more Secret Circle books after the trilogy ended, I was perfectly happy with the ending L.J. Smith gave us. I feared that The Divide could hinder my feelings towards the series as a whole. However I’m happy to say that my positive thoughts for this book definitely out-way the negative. I think the ghostwriter did a pretty good job with The Divide. You can tell that she closely examined L.J. Smith’s originals books in order to get the feel for the type of writing and the actions expected by the characters. Except for one character who sadly; I feel didn’t match the original version very well, the rest were fantastically written. For example, Faye, one of Secret Circle’s most-complex characters stayed very true to her snarky and influential nature.
The original series were all about Black John, this ultimate villain that seemed almost impossible to beat, so I had to wonder how they could top him in a sequel or at least reach somewhere near his evil-level. I won’t talk about who or what the “new” villain is because it’s a main story point, but I will say that I was slightly disappointed with the reveal. There ends up being two new obstacles, one that’s not really put into full-motion yet (I’m sure that’s what book 5 The Hunt will include) but the second, in my opinion, was revealed too quick.
I know this is all very vague but one of the two villains is revealed in a big way towards the end of the book. They of course aren’t defeated yet, but I feel like they had little to no progression. It was like “all of the sudden” BAM I’m the new big bad and I’m going to destroy you. I think the book would have been slightly better if their true agenda hadn’t been released so soon.
So yes, a few things bugged me and leaves me with this book getting a 3 out of 5 star rating. However I do recommend reading this book if you love the original series, and if you haven’t read the originals, do so. Trust me. They’re good, quick, and fun reads.
Plot:
The Secret Circle: The Divide picks up very close to where book 3 ended, Black John has recently been defeated and the residents of Crowhaven road are well on their way to living a somewhat normal life well, as normal as magic-wielding teens can get. It appears that everything has reverted back to its original state with some new upsides, the circle (group of teen witches, i.e. the main characters) have come to a mutual agreement with the outsiders (non-witches) which allows them to coincide peacefully in and outside school. Cassie, with her best friend Diana’s blessing has finally been able to successfully and truthfully hookup with the boy she shares a deep connection with – Adam. Everything seems perfect until, as you can guess — ”tragedy” occurs. There’s a new enemy in town whose both dangerous and unpredictable — leading to an emotional loss and a new rise of panic. There’s a few new faces in New Salem and it’s up to Cassie and the Circle to figure out which and if the new residents are to blame for recent threats and attacks against those who dwell on Crowhaven road.
My Thoughts:
I was very skeptical going into this book, not just because it was written by a new writer. Although I longed for more Secret Circle books after the trilogy ended, I was perfectly happy with the ending L.J. Smith gave us. I feared that The Divide could hinder my feelings towards the series as a whole. However I’m happy to say that my positive thoughts for this book definitely out-way the negative. I think the ghostwriter did a pretty good job with The Divide. You can tell that she closely examined L.J. Smith’s originals books in order to get the feel for the type of writing and the actions expected by the characters. Except for one character who sadly; I feel didn’t match the original version very well, the rest were fantastically written. For example, Faye, one of Secret Circle’s most-complex characters stayed very true to her snarky and influential nature.
The original series were all about Black John, this ultimate villain that seemed almost impossible to beat, so I had to wonder how they could top him in a sequel or at least reach somewhere near his evil-level. I won’t talk about who or what the “new” villain is because it’s a main story point, but I will say that I was slightly disappointed with the reveal. There ends up being two new obstacles, one that’s not really put into full-motion yet (I’m sure that’s what book 5 The Hunt will include) but the second, in my opinion, was revealed too quick.
I know this is all very vague but one of the two villains is revealed in a big way towards the end of the book. They of course aren’t defeated yet, but I feel like they had little to no progression. It was like “all of the sudden” BAM I’m the new big bad and I’m going to destroy you. I think the book would have been slightly better if their true agenda hadn’t been released so soon.
So yes, a few things bugged me and leaves me with this book getting a 3 out of 5 star rating. However I do recommend reading this book if you love the original series, and if you haven’t read the originals, do so. Trust me. They’re good, quick, and fun reads.
November 15, 2012
As much as it upsets me that LJ Smith lost the rights to her stories I am going to look past that and review this as what is is, another Secret Circle Story.
The Ghost Writer, Aubrey Clark did emulate Smith's original characters well as well as add to the story in an interesting and convincing manor. And although it's a slap in the face to Smith and her fans Clark did a respectable job.
The plot didn't have me as intrigued as the original stories, in fact I feel like the CW has taken over the book and turned it into a few episodes of the television program. Entertaining but not what made people fall in love with The Secret Circle in the first place.
Basically what I am getting at is if you read the original books and if you can move past this is not LJ Smith it's worth a read.
And no offense to her but I attempted the new Vampire Diaries series and thought it was terrible, and from what she was talking about with her original idea for the Secret Circle it seemed like she was moving into strange alternate places weirdness that didn't make sense anymore.
The Ghost Writer, Aubrey Clark did emulate Smith's original characters well as well as add to the story in an interesting and convincing manor. And although it's a slap in the face to Smith and her fans Clark did a respectable job.
The plot didn't have me as intrigued as the original stories, in fact I feel like the CW has taken over the book and turned it into a few episodes of the television program. Entertaining but not what made people fall in love with The Secret Circle in the first place.
Basically what I am getting at is if you read the original books and if you can move past this is not LJ Smith it's worth a read.
And no offense to her but I attempted the new Vampire Diaries series and thought it was terrible, and from what she was talking about with her original idea for the Secret Circle it seemed like she was moving into strange alternate places weirdness that didn't make sense anymore.
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