Witches of East End
First edition cover
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| Author | Melissa de la Cruz |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Beauchamp Family |
| Genre | Contemporary Fantasy |
| Publisher | Hyperion Books |
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Publication date
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June 21, 2011 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & e-book) |
| Pages | 288 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | |
| Followed by | Serpent's Kiss |
Witches of East End is a 2011 novel by author Melissa de la Cruz and the first entry in her Beauchamp Family series. It was published on June 21, 2011, by Hyperion Books and follows a family of Long Island witches struggling against dark forces conspiring against them. Witches of East End is de la Cruz's first adult novel; she said she wrote it with her Blue Bloods audience in mind because "many of them will soon be adults" and the book takes place in the same universe as the Blue Bloods series. The novel currently has two sequels: Serpent's Kiss (2012) and Winds of Salem (2013).
A television series adaptation, Witches of East End, debuted October 6, 2013, on Lifetime.
Joanna Beauchamp has lived off the coast of Long Island for many centuries. She and her daughters Freya and Ingrid are immortal witches, cursed to spend the rest of their days without the use of their substantial powers due to the family's involvement in the Salem Witch Trials. Joanna has the power to heal and bring the dead back to life. Ingrid can tell the future and weave magical knotwork, while Freya can craft potions and charms. They've spent years hiding their true nature from others, something that provides no small amount of frustration due to how much they want to help others. It's only after Freya becomes engaged to the mysterious Bran (Branford) Gardiner (character was renamed Dash in the TV series), and somehow becomes unwillingly infatuated with his brother Killian, that the Beauchamps seem to start breaking their curse, and slowly begin to cast magic once again. However one small spell turns into several as the Beauchamps begin to fall into the routine of using magic. It's through this everyday usage that they discover that a mysterious presence is at work within the town, making the women barren and unleashing a strange silvery substance into the waters and ruining the local wildlife.
As Bran is continually away on trips to promote a charitable organisation that his family runs, Freya is often left alone with Killian. This closeness eventually culminates in her once again sleeping with Killian after he assists her with a busy weekend at the pub she works at. While Freya deals with the guilt from her affair and the feelings that her affair with Killian brings up, Ingrid is conflicted by her own romantic feelings towards local police officer Matt Noble. Despite exhibiting an interest in her, Matt has begun dating a coworker, which irritates Ingrid greatly. The townspeople's ailments and the mysterious silver substance in the water eventually prompts Johanna to seek her estranged husband Norman (character was renamed Viktor in the TV series) in New York, leaving her daughters alone to deal with a growing unrest in the town as a whole. The family is eventually charged with various crimes involving an attack on a local couple as well as the disappearance of a young woman that was interning at the mayor's office.
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