Daughters of the Moon, Volume 1

Daughters of the Moon #1-3

by Lynne Ewing

Four friends. Four mysterious powers. They seem like ordinary girls living in Los Angeles. But they each have a secret. Vanessa can become invisible. Catty can travel through time. Serena reads minds, and Jimena has premonitions. As they become friends, their incredible powers bind them together as The Daughters of the Moon. This book includes volumes One to Three of the series.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Fiction, Supernatural, Romance, Urban Fantasy

849 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 2, 2010

About the author

Lynne Ewing is an American author and a screen writer.

She always had to move around a lot when she was growing up because her father was in the Marine Corps. She has two sisters. Lynne graduated from high school in Lima, Peru after attending seven other schools. While she was in Peru, she learned to speak Spanish. She attended the University of California at Santa Barbara. When she was 30 years old, she began writing for newspapers, documentaries, magazines, and did screen writing. She also counsels troubled teens. Her first books were Drive-By and Party Girl. Drive-By took six years to write, and Party Girl has been made into a movie called Living the Life. She has written the completed Daughters of the Moon and Sons of the Dark series. She lives in Los Angeles and Washington D.C.. Ms. Ewing has two children, Jonathan, a molecular biologist, and Amber, an international lawyer. She has also traveled to Japan, China, Russia, Europe, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand. She has begun a new series called Sisters of Isis.

Reviews

[Bryer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was awful. I got rid of it as soon as I could. I felt it was tainting my bookshelf! I grabbed it because of the mythos attached to it, thinking it would embrace natural femininity. I was so so wrong. I can't believe anyone would allow their teenagers to read this! Most of the emphasis was on their bodies. Not like I am completely against that (every girl has to feel sexy every once in a while) but these were teens here. It seems like the characters were developed in a way that said "I have no respect for myself." When they were dressing for "battle" it involved about 15 lbs of glitter, tons of makeup, getting their hair juuuuust right and slipping into some sleazy costume. To me, when I think of a powerful woman, I don't think about her damn aesthetics. I don't picture a powerful woman slathering on the makeup and hair gel and glittery body paint and four inch high heels (very impractical for fighting in if you ask me).

The book seemed to feed into the female stigma and stereotype (Uh the club dancing scene anyone?) rather than intelligently back-handing it and really emphasizing the real reasons women are strong. I was so ashamed of this book when I read it. It just added to the media circus on how women should look and portray themselves. If that was the point, to embrace femininity, and use it as a weapon she did an awful job. Boobs are not a weapon girls and if you think that way I am very sorry for you.

Some scenes in the book were alright and concentrated on the mythos and the plot but a lot of it was filler and crappy filler at that. No self-respecting woman would "battle" like they did in the book.

But that is just my opinion and if you liked it then I can be glad that you enjoyed a book.

[Grace Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

It looks rather large because its 3 books in one. So no wonder its so HUGE!!!

Its really good. Thats why I rated it 5 stars. If it wasn't really good, I don't think I would of rated it 5 stars unless I wanted to torture people by making them read this book since they think it is good and then they would find out it was bad and want to keep reading to see if there is a good part. And soon enough the book would be done and they would write their reveiw as the oppisite of mine. Luckily, I am an honest person and would never do such a thing.

Most of this reveiw looks like a story explaining how I could of tricked you into reading a terrible book but then explaining this book ISN'T terrible. How strange...

Well, insead of writing blah blah blah like I just did, I am going to get on with my reveiw.


This book is about 4 girls who each have a moon necklace thingy and meet each other and become friends. Wait, I left out the most important part, they each have a magical power. They talk to this freaky hippy like lady and she tells them the are the 'daughters of the moon' and the have to fight danger. SO the three books that are contained in this one book are aboout fighting danger and trying to have a normal life.

My reveiw is written.

And no, I am NOT trying to trick you into reading a terrible book. Would I have rated this 5 stars just to trick you? I think not.

Ok I am dropping the subject now and am leaving.

OK OK, I am leaving now.

Are you rushing me? Do I look like a person to be rushed? Ok, well you can't see but its a figure of speech.

No, I am not weird.

I am leaving...NOW!

[Amanda Guthro · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this series when I was a young teenager. The stories were always captivating. The writing, on the other hand, wasn't exactly the best out there in YA today, but I have a feeling that perhaps it was because the target age was aiming for kids even younger than myself when I was a teen (9-14 y/o). There was excessive purple prose, it was unpoetically written, and there were constant descriptions of the clothes every single character was wearing. Ewing has commented before on the descriptions and said that the clothes were a way of showing girl power, particularly when they were "goddessing" themselves for a battle. Reading them now in comparison to reading them a decade ago is a completely different experience, but there's just something about these books that are so much fun. The characters and their motives were all believable, the dialogue was realistic, and I absolutely loved the incorporation of the ancient goddesses in the novels. Plus, Stanton is kind of my fantasy guy. I'd absolutely recommend these books to young teens and even to the older folks if you can get past the plain writing and excessive descriptions.

[Eco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gag me with a spoon! This is such drivel. A combination of Buffy and 90210. Four teens with special powers who don’t always listen to their mentor pathetic. At least it was quick and didn’t take up any brain waves.

[Valerie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really sure how to review this one. I don't want to say it was bad, there were part of this series I enjoyed. Which is why I stuck through all three stories in this book. I was curious to see what would happen, so I plowed on. Normally I love this type of book, but it was a little scattered for me.

In the beginning I thought the girls were a little older, at least 17 or 18 but only because they were in school. Then I found they were only 15, which was a little hard for me to shift gears. There are something they go through that should not be happening, but this I guess it the typical for this genre. But then it switched gears and it felt like the writing style was much younger. Those are my issues with it.

That being said, I think these had some potential, and there is a neat story here, but just a little over done for me. This is one series that I'm not excited about getting to the next book. I'll leave those for someone else!

[Latasha (Pages_and_Floss) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series is a reread for me and its a series that will always have a sepcial place in my heart because these books got me into reading. Esecially into paranormal romance books. PlusnI love the diversity of the friendship of these group of girls. Now that I reread them I can say that I do still love the story plot but it feels so repetitive in each book. Also, I just wished that these girls were a lot older because of some of the content that happens and these girls at the beginning of this series are 15 years old. And last thing of course that happens especially in YA are where are the freaking parents?!?!

[Gabby Chavez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is really good and entertaining because they give you cliff hangers, that makes you want to keep reading. I would recommend to 13+, for those who enjoy something mysterious and magical.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought the first 3 omnibus editions, which collect the first 9 (!) books into 3 volumes. Got them for $3 (total) at the local Planned Parenthood books sale, so the money was well spent. HOWEVER, the first book in the first volume was just not to my taste AT ALL.

The premise of the books seems cool enough - there are these mortal "goddesses" who are descendents of Selene, the moon goddess. They are fighting an ancient evil, and they all have cool superpowers to aid in that fight. I'm on board with all of that. But...

I think I’m 100% tired of protagonists who are stubborn and will completely ignore everything, including common sense to RESCUE THEIR FRIEND. Basically, every YA fantasy protagonist since Harry Potter, and probably from before that. I mean, I get it - you need a protagonist who will do something; and in teenage hood I know it seems like everyone is giving you bad advice all the time. But I also know now as an adult that guess what - most of that advice was actually coming from a place of a) love and b) experience. The main character, Vanessa, just continuously ignores common sense and basic survival and then gets saved by others over and over. Bah.

So anyway, protagonists who act like idiots - maybe I’ve hit my limit. And maybe it’s not the YA books, which are targeted at the 12-20 age group - maybe it’s me. Maybe it’s time to take a break from YA.

Also… This takes place in Los Angeles at a high school, La Brea High. And there’s 3 white girls, and one Latina. And wouldn’t you know it, the Latina was in a gang and spent time in a “girls camp”; at age 7 she has premonitions of her friend getting shot dead at a particular location - and GUESS WHAT? Her friend does get shot in a gangland drive by shooting. This portrayal of the one Latina person in a book otherwise populated entirely of whites as a former gang-banger kid of the streets is insulting and racist. I'll assume the author (who presents as white in her Goodreads profile) now knows better; but it's still there in print in this book.

So, idiot protagonist and racist portrayal of the one brown person in the book. Meh. I'll donate these books back to Planned Parenthood so they can generate more cash for the organization and do some good.

[Carissa Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a nostalgia read for me. I read this series back in middle school and absolutely loved it. 20 years later I was trying to explain the series to someone, but I could not remember the name. My stepsister stumbled across it again and sent it to me. I couldn’t resist rereading it for oldtimes sake. For a young adult book series, these books give a lot of adventure with a little bit of mystery, rounded out with sci-fi. Even if I’ve technically outgrown this level of reading, they are still very enjoyable to read.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so these books are intressting when aproching mythology, but it really feels like the author clicked "copy" and then "paste" when describing common events. The same words in the same order retelling events gets tiresome.
And i didn't really liked the pattern te books follow: All is well when one strange thing happens, things start to mess up, then the main girl gets ready for battle and the main fight comes about with some twist, and in the end she meets with the guy they're intrested in.
It happend in all three stories, even though the main character changed with each book.

Not everything is bad, though. I liked the powers the girls have, and the way they combine. Also, their personalities vary from each other and create and exiting mix.

[Ariana Rivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before reading this book, I had not heard of Lynne Ewing or any of her other works. Ewing is a screenplay writer who also counsels troubled teens. She is most known for writing young adult fiction and for creating the Daughters of the Moon series of 13 books, this book being volume one of the series and containing the first three books (Goddess of the Night, Into the Cold Fire, and Night Shade). What interested me about this book, in particular, is its connection to Greek mythology more specifically to the goddess of the moon Selene, however looking back at the story after finishing the it entirely I feel that although this aspect of the storyline played somewhat of a role in the novel, it was not the center of the plot as I had initially thought it would be. For what it is worth this book did captivate my attention and kept me reading but it is not one of my favorites and overall I have mixed feelings about how the story itself was executed.

"Daughters of the Moon" began by giving us a retelling of the myth of the goddess of the moon Selene who fell in love with a mortal man named Endymion and stayed with him for three nights causing a dark moon. The people feared this dark moon saying it brought death and feed evil forces so, in response to this Zeus punished Selene by cursing Endymion to eternal sleep. Regardless, Selene's love for him was too strong so she hid him in a cave, visiting him three nights each lunar month. He has given her many daughters to guard the nights who are as powerful and beautiful as Selene herself. After this retelling, we are introduced to Vanessa Cleveland one of the four main characters of the book. Vanessa has the power to become invisible at will and her best friend Catty who is revealed also pretty early on in the story can time travel. Catty was found by her adoptive mother on the streets one day when she was very young and has no recollection of her past beyond that moment. They lead pretty ordinary lives aside from having these powers until they meet Serena, who can read minds, and Jimena, who has premonitions. Jimena and Serena tell them about the Atrox, an ancient, evil, cult-like group of followers set out to destroy daughters of the moon like themselves and soon Catty and Vannessa learn that they have a purpose much bigger than themselves. In this young adult fiction novel, four girls go head to head with the ultimate force of evil and realize that what sets them apart from other bands them together and that the only way they can ever truly stop the evil that is the Atrox is to rely solely on each other.

A prevalent theme of this novel is that sisterhood is one of the most powerful bonds out there. Very soon on into the story Vanessa, Catty, Serena, and Jimenez realize that in a world where evil lurks around every corner the only people they can rely on and trust are each other. As Daughter of the Moon, their powers are stronger when they are together and the only way they really stand a chance again the Atrox is by using that unity they have to their advantage. I feel that although the main characters are somewhat believable they are mostly very cliche. Though the three books of the novel itself were meant to show some background for Vanessa, Serena, and Jimenez and depict their development as characters I felt that Ewing's storytelling for each of the characters fell flat. Ewing really only portrayed their personalities at a surface level. There were no real improvements in the characters other than the generic lesson each one learned that became quite obvious towards the end of the story. Their characteristics, in my opinion, seemed a bit too stereotypical; Vanessa is the perfect girl with a seemingly perfect life that in her eyes is anything but, Serena being the outsider and the girl that appears to be "different" from other girls who desperately wants to be accepted, and Jimenez the tough girl that turned her life around only to be haunted by her past. Normally using these tropes when describing characters is not problematic in of itself, but when the author makes no effort to make them stand out at all from the cliche's the characters themselves seem redundant, so much so that I found myself waiting for something to really impact the characters I could see how they stand out from other book characters with similar attributes. In addition, I would have liked to learn more about Catty who was the only one out of the four not to have a book dedicated to her story and her story alone. Putting these characters and their developmental flaws behind Jimenez is my favorite character in the book because I feel that although her story was plenty cliche she had the most struggles leading up to where she was in the story which made her character the most interesting. Her grapple with dealing with gang violence and her journey to living a better life struck a chord with me. I can relate to trying to beat a systematic stigmatism and choosing to live a different life than those who live around me. Jimenez's journey is admirable and one that is pretty relevant to the world around me. In addition, I can also relate to choosing to be friends with people who will uplift me in life not try to drag me down to their level.

My favorite part of the book is when Catty and Vanessa meet Jimenez and Serene because it gives them a sense of hope that they aren't the only ones in their situation. They are surrounded by people who just like them are thrust into a battle they didn't even know they were fighting. This moment also is what gets the plot of the story going and begins their strong connection with each other. My least favorite moment is when Catty gets abducted by the Atrox. This moment causes Vannessa to put her life on the line for Catty and as a result, the moments leading up to her attempted rescue are very tense. It is this moment that shows the girls the true power of the Atrox and that at any given moment their lives can be threatened. After this, the girls begin to stick together and have each other's backs now that they know for sure that in order to survive they must trust in each other.

Overall I had mixed emotions towards this book because of its faulty character development mixed with its cliche storylines. As a whole, I think the idea that the story was based around showed promise but just wasn't executed properly. I would have liked for the Ewing to put more emphasis on the central role of Greek mythology in the books rather than embellishing the main character's traits. The book itself is a fairly quick read and because of that, a lot more could have been done with it. However, what the main character's lacked individually they made up for in their interactions as a whole. It was the scenes where the four girls were most dependent on each other that were the most memorable. They desperately needed each other as a result formed a very close bond, picking each other up when they needed it the most and intervening when necessary. Due to this element of friendship and sisterhood that is significant throughout the story, I feel that the goods of the book outweigh the bad. The story though flawed showed some depth and therefore I have to give credit where it is due. I recommend this book to any fans of young adult fiction, not so much to those looking for a storyline that mainly focuses on Greek mythology. With its young and sort of relatable characters, I'm sure that any fans of authors such as John Green or possibly even J.K Rowling will most definitely enjoy this book. This book had its fair share of positives and negatives but in general, the positives of this book outweigh the negatives which is why I rate this novel 3 stars out of 5.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book because this book is like a mysteriuos and scary. There was a girl vanessa who came to los angles invisable. Also had a really hard time fitting in her new school. Vanessa is always being followed but doesn't know who is following her but thinks it is her boyfriend that died a year ago.

[Angelina · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was awful. The only reason I stuck through all three books was in hope it would get better. shrn I started reading I was thinking the characters were at least 18, but they are only 15. Most of the book is focused on sneaking out of school and dressing up in sleazy outfits and makeup.

[Bethany · Rating 5 out of 5]

First three books in this series. I read these in early high school and they continue to draw me back in. They are fun, fast paced, and relatable. The joys of being a teenager, puberty, hormones, friendships, rivalries, parents, and of course: magic. It's a fun ride.

[Heatherblakely · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading books published around 2000 is always a trip. My feelings about this are probably similar to those of someone who picks up the Sisterhood books for the first time: I like the friendship and power and strength and flaws in here, but there are certain things that I wouldn't accept from a series that was published today. Having a Latina character is wonderful and probably a big deal at the time, just like Sisterhood was, but I doubt the author got (m)any sensitivity readers for this (not sure if the way Spanish is woven in is accurate, why does the Latina have to be the one in the gang/where is the line drawn between what's realistic for the setting and what's a stereotype, etc). There are four girls who are considered goddesses/daughters of the moon, and three of them got a story in this and the fourth one did not, nor was she described very often, so I'm interested in seeing if she ended up with her own book after these three books were published.

Quick summary: four teenage girls in LA find out they're goddesses (aka daughters of the moon) and they each have a power/supernatural ability and have to fight the forces of evil. They're all straight but some of their friendships felt very queer to me.

Also:
1. Borders was mentioned and I almost cried because I miss Borders, especially the giant one that was at Sunset and Vine
2. I didn't know the Bev Center's parkinglot is aboveground to prevent methane seepage and that the mall curled around a working oil rig. I love learning about LA.

[Wenwei · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.3 stars. I feel like I would have enjoyed this series as a teenager or preteen because it reminds me of Charmed–a 1990s television series I was obsessed with. The four daughters of the moon are tasked with foiling a great evil, blah, blah, blah.

Things I like:

There are constant allusions to mythology; each book is narrated by a specific girl and explores her individual battle with evil and the lesson she learned afterwards; and the books are action packed and fast paced.

What I don't like is the writing — it ruined a potentially promising plotline since it is basic and flat. It doesn't engage me with its repetitive short-sentence prose of the various battles or main events that occur in the narrative. I'm not really connecting to any of the situations or characters because they are brilliantly and artistically created; rather, I'm just turning pages because I just have to know how the girls save the day. One of my guilty pleasures is young adult fiction and fantasy, but the author really needs to put more effort into creating a picture with words that we can literally close our eyes and imagine. He or she also should write a cast of well-rounded characters that show development throughout the series. I'll probably keep reading when I am looking for a quick read on a rainy day or I just don't have anything more interesting to read.

[AJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

1st book: ⭐⭐
2nd book: ⭐⭐⭐
3rd book: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I remember not liking the first book even as a pre-teen and only loyalty to a friend got me to read further then; only remembering how much it was worth it got me through it this time.

The first book is like the teen girl equivalent of the first season of OITNB - the main character is an airhead, but if you can get past all the hormones in the air there's some ok plot and character development. But, my god can everyone just take a cold shower so shit can happen, please!?

Second book we start to see character development, and a bit more plot. Our main character is different (a breath of fresh air after Vanessa), and the girls come to terms with their powers.

Third book we finally get to some meat. This is the teen girl Percy Jackson by this point. Tartarus is opening and shit is going down. I was hooked as an 11 year old, and am still hooked as a 26 year old.

So yeah, this is very much a YA series, but if you're willing to meet it where it's at, it's totally worth an easy read. Just prepare for a bit of sludge to get into the good stuff.

[Zia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great to be back after all those years! This was one of my top series I read in high school, and I am happy most of it didn't disaapoint me. The only thing that was disappointing was Jimena's book - which was the one I was most looking forward to. Overly simplistic and for a tough street girl she was sometimes acting and thinking stupid, the same goes for other girls. However the vibes were immaculate as always.

[Rebecca J Sprunger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing adventure!

These books follow 4 Goddesses in their battle against evil.
The story of their lives with romance, school, comming to terms with their destiny and battling evil is compelling and difficult to put down. I cant wait to start book 4!
10/10 recommend.
Teens, young adults, anyone who likes magic and Goddesses i recommend to.

[Chelsea · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars
—
Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

reread this for fun. this didn’t age very well and is very much a product of its time. bc why are the random spanish words italicized? i still had fun tho and ill probably keep reading the series tbh

[Jamie Flick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The three books give a different perspective on each of the girls, giving each other a chance to know what the other has been through. Inspiring and entertaining learning about a different story that people most often forget to time.

[Olivia Klump · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this a few years ago but couldn't get back into it. I loved the writing style and the plot and characters it just wasn't for me anymore. I probably won't pick this up again. I'm really sad to do this to this book.

[Heather Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like how each book looks at a different daughter and goes about her story. I love learning more about the goddess selene as well as what the girls have to go through. It was a fast read for me and the last book was my favorite...

[Saanvi · Rating 1 out of 5]

The writing was horrible and bland, the characters were clichéd and boring, and the storyline was pretty much the same for each book-the main character faces some trouble, something weird happens, and they end up going out with the boy they liked.

[Corina Sanchez · Rating 4 out of 5]

It repeats itself a lot and when I found myself getting tired of the way it's written (like it's for pre-teens) I found myself getting sucked back in by the story. So now I have to read the next volume and find out what happens. Good job Lynne Ewing very sneaky haha

[Janet Estrada · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok I read the
First and second book but I'm dropping the series.
My rating is only for the first 2 books.
I did enjoy them, they are quick stories.
Sadly I just.could read them in my kindle anymore and I wanted them in physical.
But they have not been in print so I've giving up to find them.

[Olivia Ambrose · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really only picked up this book because I vaguely remembered reading it when I was younger and was curious about it. It's ok. It's your run-of-the-mill YA fantasy/magic story with four chosen 'saviors' that must fight evil while maintaining lives outside of that. I certainly didn't remember any of the actual plot and don't plan on finishing the series, but an interesting look back at books I read when I was younger.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took a bit to get into this story. It seems that each story started slow and the last 50 pages were non-stop until the end.

[Kasey Dietrich]

Just a few pages in and it normalizes the Moon Goddess raping the Shepard guy in his sleep to create many daughters. Thanks but no thanks, next.

[Talyn Fiore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this series when I was a little girl!