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You are here: Home / Books / Book Review: Isle of the Lost

Book Review: Isle of the Lost

August 4, 2015 by Becky 12 Comments

Isle-of-the-Lost

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

 

If you keep up with what’s playing on the Disney channel, you probably know that a highly anticipated movie, Descendants, was just released.  It’s the story about the villains’ children.  I haven’t gotten around to watching it yet, but when I do I will definitely share my thoughts on the blog.  In the meantime though they also released a book that is a prequel to the movie, which I just finished reading this past week.

I want to be honest going into this saying that I was a little bit skeptical of the concept.  It sounded cool, but the villains children realizing that being good might be better than being evil could go horribly wrong.  It could turn out super cheesy, over the top, or childish.  Thankfully, I didn’t find the book to be any of those things.  I actually really, really enjoyed it.

Our four main characters are Mal, the daughter of Maleficent constantly trying to live up to her mother’s legacy, Jay, the son of Jafar who steals anything he can, Carlos, the son of Cruella deVil who is a bit of a nerd and treated as a servant by his mother, and Evie, the daughter of the Evil Queen who is obsessed with having her appearance live up to her mother’s standards.  They could be one dimensional, but they come off as delightfully interesting and somewhat complex, as they explore the way they’ve been raised vs. their own human instincts.

In the beginning of the story we get to know our characters a bit and see what daily life is like on the Isle of the Lost, where the villains have been banished.  In particular, Mal is focused on getting revenge on Evie for not being invited to her 6th birthday party.  The second half of the book then involves the four main characters going on a quest to try and retrieve a magical object.

We also got a peek into the life of those in Audaron, where all of the good characters and their descendants live.  Mainly we meet Ben, the son of Beast and Belle, who is expected to take over as King soon.  These chapters were interesting but didn’t really add too much to the story as a whole – I’m guessing this ties in more in the movie The Descendants.

descendants Isle of the Lost

One of the things that I appreciated the most about this book was that it was hilarious, and in a way that genuinely made me laugh.  Maybe the humor isn’t for everyone, but I thought it was great.  Things like Gaston naming all of his sons Gaston, and the titles of the classes that they take at villain school.  There were some funny references to the Disney movies and I for one appreciated it.

I will say that I liked the first half of the book more, where we were just seeing the villains and their descendants and getting to know them.  It was really interesting and clever the way that this world was created on the Isle of the Lost.  The quest that the characters went on later on ended up feeling much more like a typical adventure/fantasy story that didn’t have as much creativity to it.

Overall I found it to be a fun, quick, clever read, and if you’re a Disney fan and especially a fan of the villains you should check it out!

Do you have any interest in reading this book?  Have you seen the movie yet?

Check out what other bloggers are reading this month here!

Chapter Chats

Filed Under: Books, Reviews Tagged With: book, Descendants, Isle of the Lost, Review, villains

Comments

  1. Alicia Marlene says

    August 4, 2015 at 11:22 am

    I read this book as well! I loved it, but that is becaucse it is definitely my kind of book. I loved your review and agree the humor isn’t for everyone, but when it is, oh your laugh your butt off.
    xoxo
    Alicia
    http://www.lifeofafatgirl.ca

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 4, 2015 at 12:35 pm

      Yes, I think there are certain people that really enjoy this sort of “twisted fairy tale” story, and I’m one of them!

      Reply
  2. Angela Tolsma says

    August 4, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    I have not heard of this book or of the Descendants! Sounds so interesting and something I would love! Fairy-tales are awesome and I am always so interested in unique versions of them.

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 4, 2015 at 12:35 pm

      I definitely recommend checking it out! It’s really fun and it’s a middle grade novel so it’s a quick read.

      Reply
  3. Nichole aka CuppaGeek says

    August 4, 2015 at 1:06 pm

    I am always rooting for the bad guys to win, especially in Disney movies. I can’t wait to read/watch this with my kids. I think they will really like it!

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 5, 2015 at 11:35 am

      The kids where I work love it! They’ve been singing the songs a lot.

      Reply
  4. Donna Ettinger says

    August 4, 2015 at 6:45 pm

    I just watched the movie yesterday, Now I want to read that book. The movie was cute and loved the references to the original movies

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 5, 2015 at 11:36 am

      Definitely read the book – I can’t wait to see the movie!

      Reply
  5. Cynthia @craftoflaughter says

    August 4, 2015 at 7:08 pm

    I haven’t heard of this book but will certainly look it up!

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 5, 2015 at 11:36 am

      It’s worth looking into!

      Reply
  6. Crazy Cat Birl says

    August 4, 2015 at 7:14 pm

    I have read other “twists” on the classic fairytales but not this one; I will check it out!

    Reply
    • [email protected] says

      August 5, 2015 at 11:36 am

      Definitely do, it’s really fun!

      Reply

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About Me

Hi, I'm Becky!

I'm a huge Disney fan in my early 30's and always trying to find a way to put a little bit of Disney into everyday life. I live in Pennsylvania but travel to the theme parks several times a year - I'm an annual passholder at Disney World! In addition to Disney I love traveling, running, and theater.

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