Another
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| Beyonds
The Words, Past |
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| Daughters
of the Moon Series A teenage girl with magical powers is not a new idea. Certainly, current films and the television airwaves are glutted with such stories, not to mention the female characters within the Harry Potter tales. The real trick to making these stories rise above the commonplace, is to make the characters live and breathe, and to convince the reader to care about them. It is in this way that author Lynne Ewing has succeeded enormously with her “Daughters of the Moon” series.
When I first approached this review, I started by obtaining the latest Daughters of the Moon book, “The Choice,” a 2003 release and book number nine in the series (several more have been released since then). I began reading and realized immediately that a great deal of history with these characters had already occurred in the first eight books, and that I might be lost. So, I purchased book number one, “Goddess of the Night.” The basic back-story of the Daughters of the Moon series (DOM) is quite simple, and it is succinctly set forth at the outset in each volume: “In ancient times, it was said that the goddess Selene drove the moon across the sky.” Eventually, Selene gave birth to many daughters who would become the Daughters of the Moon, young girls with individual and special talents, who exist for the purpose of defending the present world from evil forces, represented here by a mostly faceless ruler of evil and darkness known as The Atrox. Each DOM book concerns the group of magical girls as a whole, but focuses on just one. In “Goddess of the Night,” we meet Vanessa, fifteen-years-old, a high school student, and just coming to terms with her relationships to her parents, friends, her fellow magical girls, and, most importantly, boys. “She thought of Michael Saratoga. His wild black hair hung in thick curls on his shoulder…He made her feel all fire and ache down to her bones” (from “Goddess of the Night,” page 4). Coming of age and newfound sexuality is a primary concern of Vanessa, and forms as a focus in all the books, which feature and follow other Daughters individually. Vanessa has the power to turn invisible, and she is just beginning to understand and control it. Serena, featured in book number two, “Into the Cold Fire,” can read minds. Jimena, from book nine, a reformed street kid and gang member, has premonitions about the future. I read all three books, and here is what makes them special: these are real, normal girls, with the same problems and concerns of all typical teenage girls. They worry about social standing, their parents, success in school, boys, oh, and especially clothes. Author Ewing never forgets to let the reader know exactly what the characters are wearing at any particular time. Another dominant theme, quite familiar to all teenage girls, is the choices that face women who are running from early pubescence toward adulthood. Here, the Daughters all face such a primary decision as they approach the age of seventeen: they can choose to renounce their magical heritage, and go back to living normal, mortal lives. If this choice is made, then all memory about being Daughters of the Moon will vanish, never to return. If, on the other hand, the choice is made to continue as a DOM, then the future is completely unknown. No predictions or guarantees, only that after their seventeenth birthday they will continue to serve the forces of good in a less than human way, probably forsaking all that had been familiar, such as friends and family. These books are character based, rather than plot based; the story is important, but the readers’ relationship and connection to the characters is more important. The Daughters of the Moon series is the finest example of writing for Young Adults that I have experienced in many years. They have my highest recommendation. Daughters
of the Moon
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