Summary: The Book of Magic begins in a library when aunt Jet hears the deathwatch beetle and knows she has only seven days to live.

Mark Feuerstein as Michael, Sally Owens' husband and the late father of Kylie and Antonia Owens. He is a victim of his wife's family curse, which results in his untimely death when their daughters are young. But, upon reaching Salem, Maria and her daughter, Faith, cope with more betrayals and mistakes (and of course, witchery), including the curse that will haunt her family for generations to come. While Antonia has their aunt's boldness, Kylie inherited their mother Sally's sensitivity, having often cried as a baby and child. However, after spending time with Gillian, she decides to become more independent. She can also be stubborn once her mind is made up, much like the rest of her family. The Practical Magic series is spent following the Owens sisters as they finally come to terms with the magic in their blood and the complexities that their lineage adds to their love lives. These novels have been commended for their charming characters, sweet stories, and the author’s magical writing style. I can’t help it, I adore this film, in fact last night I watched it with Ruby of Bookishly Ruby and we had a blast. I was so glad she watched it with me! I did like the suburbs in the book, totally different vibe but really, I love this gorgeous old house from the movies. I thought it was fantastic and I love that the Aunts are a bit more prominent to the plot in the movie.

Chronological Order of Practical Magic Books

Sally breaks your heart with her grief after her husband dies, and it made me realize that this is just one of the many reasons I love this film. Diana Bishop is a witch who accidentally recovers an ancient book that has been missing for hundreds of years. In doing so, she triggers her long-forgotten magic and opens the door for vampires, witches, and demons to search out Diana and the book. Some things, when they change, never do return to the way they once were. Butterflies for instance, and women who’ve been in love with the wrong man too often.” What I Didn’t Love So Much: Not long after, Kylie begins to notice that she can see colors of emotion coming off of people, especially the dark purple of the lilacs around the house and Jimmy haunting the house. She points his ghost out to Sally and Gillian, which scares the two sisters. After her father was hit and killed by a drunk driver, her mother Sally fell into a self-isolating depression. Kylie and Antonia were then taken care of by the aunts for a year, allowing them to connect with their witch heritage. After a group of boys were bullying Antonia, Sally was motivated to raise her daughters away from the town the Owens women lived in.

Nicole Kidman as Gillian Owens, Sally's free-spirited sister who embraces her heritage, leaves their small town and becomes the victim of an abusive relationship. In 2010, Warner Bros. and ABC Family attempted to develop a prequel television series. [16] See also [ edit ] Sally’s love interest is also very nice, and if you ask Ruby, she’ll tell you all about his amazingness. It’s truly worth asking her and hearing lol. Gillian and Sally are sisters who have been raised by their two aunts. They both want to leave their small Massachusetts town. But, when Gillian gets into trouble, she runs to Sally for help.

Spell-casting: the act of changing or controlling events or people through the use of magical means. When Maria is abandoned by him after he impregnates her, she follows him to Salem, Massachusetts, where he is a judge in the witch trials. En route, she falls for the kind Jewish sailor. At the age of thirteen, Kylie was six feet tall, slim and fair-skinned with gray-green eyes. On the day of her birthday, her aunt Gillian took her to cut her hair short and dye it blonde. Later it grew out with her brown roots showing until the dye blended in and left her hair a honey color. Like her great-grandfather Vincent, she looks almost exactly like their ancestor Maria Owens, to the point of being identical twins. Goodreads Synopsis: The bestselling author of Second Nature, Illumination Night and Turtle Moon now offers her most fascinating and tantalizingly accomplished novel yet — a winning tale that amply confirms Alice Hoffman’s reputation not only as a genius of the vivid scene and unforgettable character but as one of America’s most captivating storytellers. Sally’s daughters are younger and sweeter, and a bit more of an innocent addition to the story and Sally and Gillian themselves are closer and more connected. The stress and strain from the book isn’t as consuming in the movie though they still have their problems.

Toni Morrison calls The Dovekeepers “.. a major contribution to twenty-first century literature” for the past five years. The story of the survivors of Masada is considered by many to be Hoffman’s masterpiece. The New York Times bestselling novel is slated for 2015 miniseries, produced by Roma Downey and Mark Burnett, starring Cote de Pablo of NCIS fame. The Rules of Magic unfolds a saga beginning in 1620, when Maria Owens loved the wrong man and was charged with witchery as a result. Centuries later, Susanna Owens is doing everything in her power to keep her children safe from the same fate that befell their ancestor. They refuse to make things easy for her, and Susanna can tell that Franny, Jet, and Vincent are the farthest thing from ordinary. But that doesn’t mean she is ready to give up on them. Written with a light hand and perfect rhythm… Practical Magic has the pace of a fairy tale and the impact of accomplished fiction.” Dark comedy and a light touch carry the story along to a truly Gothic climax, complete with heaving skies and witchery on the lawn’ New York Times

Publication Order of Practical Magic Books

Caprice Benedetti as Maria Owens, the first witch in the Owens family and the one who casts the spell that curses all her descendants.

Weeks before her thirteenth birthday, her aunt Gillian appeared one night with the body of her boyfriend Jimmy in her car. Kylie did not know about Jimmy or her mother and aunt burying him in the garden. Kylie and Gillian grew close, with Kylie seeing her as another mother figure who understood her and someone to look up to. The morning of her thirteenth birthday, Gillian gave her a silver bracelet with a turquoise stone attached, which Kylie loved, much to Sally's anger. In a small Massachusetts town, the Owens family have been regarded with suspicion for over three centuries due to their ancestor Maria Owens, who survived an attempted execution for witchcraft. Heartbroken when the father of her unborn child never returned to her, Maria cast a spell to prevent herself from ever falling in love again. The spell developed into a curse upon Maria's descendants, dooming any man an Owens woman loves. Lucinda Jenney as Sara, one of the town women, who initially fears the Owens family but later responds to Sally's call for help. Full of Hoffman’s bewitching and lucid prose and vivid characters, The Book of Magic is ultimately about the very human magic of family and love and actions that echo through generations… it casts a spell’ Matt Haig Aura perception: Kylie is able to see the auras of other living beings, such as humans and the lilacs that grew out of Jimmy's body and surrounding their house.

My thoughts: While I enjoyed this one, it didn’t grab me personally as much as Practical Magic (which I read first) did. I think it’s because it feels more plot-driven, and I prefer character-driven books. Practical Magic was filmed in part on an artificial set in California. Because the film's producers decided the house was a big part of the depiction of the Owens culture, a house to accurately represent that vision was built on San Juan Island in the state of Washington. [5] While much of the set from California was brought to that location and placed inside the house, it took nearly a year to perfect the image of the house and the interior. [6] The house, actually only a shell with nothing inside, was built only for this filming and was torn down after filming was completed. The small town scenes were filmed in downtown Coupeville, Washington, a Victorian-era seaside port town located on the south side of Penn Cove on Whidbey Island. [7] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave Practical Magic a negative review, calling it "a witch comedy so slapdash, plodding, and muddled it seems to have had a hex put on it." [14] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times said that the film "doesn't seem sure what tone to adopt, veering uncertainly from horror to laughs to romance." [15] Accolades [ edit ] Year If you love the witch aspect of Harry Potter, Vampires, fantasy books, or time travel books then you will love The All Souls trilogy. This adult fantasy novel explores the history of witches, demons, and vampires. Misleading blurb aside, another element of Practical Magic I loved was the writing itself. Hoffman’s writing is just atmospheric and mesmerizing– vivid and lyrical – but without being overdone or overly wordy. The writing doesn’t move at a fast pace, but the sentences just glide from one to the next, smooth as silk. As I was reading this story, I kept wondering if she has ever written any poetry because if so, I’d certainly love to read it. I’m sure it’s absolutely beautiful. Below are a few sample lines from Practical Magic: