Soul of the Bride

Charmed #9

by Elizabeth Lenhard, Constance M. Burge (Series Creator)

In a land of lost, wandering souls,
Journey with care on the River Styx.
A prince of darkness plays his roles—
Protect the Charmed Ones from his tricks.

Prue's editor at 415 magazine offers her a challenge: if she takes a really fantastic photo, he'll run it on the cover. This could be Prue's big break—if she can come up with a killer concept. Then Prue gets the idea to shoot a group of models in the Halliwell's Victorian mansion. She'll even use an antique camera to capture the style of an old-time photo.

But when Prue snaps the shutter, all the models collapse into a deathly slumber! To rescue the innocents, the Charmed Ones descend into Hades, fighting underworld perils and uncovering an unholy plot. To rescue the missing models, they must match wits with the greatest of the ancient Greek gods—and one of the sisters might not be allowed to return to her mortal life.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Witches, Paranormal, Fiction, Magic, Tv

180 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 22, 2001

Reviews

[Meghan · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book took me way too long to actually finish I did like it! I thought it was fun for a side story in the Charmed universe. I really liked the fact that is was based so much in Greek mythology and found it refreshing that it wasn't just a typical run of the mill demon. I have always loved the original three Charmed sisters so it was wonderful being back in the world with Prue! The novel did drag, which is saying something because it's not even 200 pages but at the end of the day I did enjoy it, even if it was slow!

Longer review coming soon!

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every time I pick one of these books up from my library, I chuckle. The books are completely threadbare and taped and re-taped in an attempt to hold them together. I didn't even know these books were out here until I hit a challenge where I needed to read them.

They are pretty silly, they are just like watching the show. This one was so short it felt like I'd barely started and it was over. but it's still fluff and cute. I'm enjoying them.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this addition to the charmed series. The Greek gods playing a part was very interesting and something I liked a lot. The solution at the end seemed to easy, which is probably my only complaint. I would recommend this book to fans of the show.

[Shannon]

Greek mythology + Charmed = love

[Terese]

No one reads these for brilliance of narrative or writing. They’re just good fun.

Except this one wasn’t. The Greek mythology just doesn’t fit into this universe. And it was too shallow to boot. The book is short, so not a lot of depth is possible, but even so this fell short. Or maybe I just shouldn’t have read it so soon after Percy Jackson.

I love that it is as lazy as the show is though. They go on and on about the power of three, but then when they’re without it they’ll be like ”hm, what if we just say this spell three times instead?” And it works. Lol. The power of three surely is awesome and special.

Also consistent with the show is that the characters main focus in life is dating. Phoebe and Prue being the worst culprits here. Could you imagine going on a date while your sister is trapped in the underworld? Although if my sister was Phoebe, maybe yeah, I would.

The strange thing about this book - they never called on Leo? It seemed like he should’ve been there to help. But then The Elders and whitelighter mythology doesn’t really gel well with the Greek mythology so maybe that is why. It just seems like he would have been a better candidate for info, rather than Piper.

Oh well, I got through it, but it is definitely one of the worst in the series.

[Ceejay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The TV show Charmed is gone, but if you miss the series there are a bunch of Charmed books that you can read. This was a fun read. All three sisters are equally involved in this story. In fact, all three sisters become romantically involved. But why? That's one of the twists in this story. It seems that most book series and TV series that are involved with SciFi or fantasy end up working the Roman or Greek gods in one of their stories. This time it's a modern version of the Greek gods,including the big guy himself, Zeus. As I said,it's a quick, fun read.

[Anna Moiseieva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Been watching the show a lot lately so remembered I had some of these books. Very 90s/2000s nostalgia. The characters seem so much younger on the page than they do on-screen. Is the writing fantastic.....like obviously not, no. But that's not why you pick these up. Adding greek mythology to the whole magic thing was certainly a choice. Also like c'mon Phoebe, hot Greek guy conveniently brings this super old mysterious camera to your sister's photoshoot...to be nice? no! also some of the greek mythology details are just...not correct

[Helene Black · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was the only Charmed book I hadn’t read and it was a flop. Consistency errors and deviations from the show happened too many times. Season 3 started this whole ordeal with time travelling and in this novel it’s suddenly plausible? Also, Prue knows how to physically fight? Like Phoebe? The use of Greek mythology was basic, at best; it made no sense that Piper would know so much about it, considering she never did in the show.

[Dominique Daoust · Rating 2 out of 5]

I recently found a whole box of these in my parent’s basement so I read this out of pure nostalgia. I specifically remember enjoying this one, but this time it didn’t measure up to my expectations.

Although I did like the Greek mythology premise, the writing was cringy and it was lame that the two new love interests wound up being the demons, it was too obvious! But I give it points for the nostalgia factor.

[Raphaela Strohmayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

So i wanted to read something easy where I dont need much mind, and I was quite happy with my choice. Anyway this book turned out to be quite slow after some time. The book sadly was not based on an episode of the TV show. In this episode prue works for a magazine and she is looking for the perfect title shot: She sets up a greek shooting with her sisters and when she takes the photo it turns out that the models all vanish. There is only little time to reverse this and save everyone.

[Matt Leicht · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was honestly quite disappointing. I love Greek mythology and I love charmed. So obviously I was excited for this book! But it was an ill informed interpretation of the mythology and the charmed ones were written VERY strangely. It was hard for me to imagine the actresses actually saying or doing some of this stuff.

[Shany_fvr59 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un tome que j'ai vraiment apprécié la plume il fluide ça se litait tellement facilement et rapidement ce que j'ai aimé aussi c'est que là sa tournée pas autour du pot tout s'enchaîner l'histoire avec ce démon était prenante hate de lire les autres tomes car j'adore cette saga

[Melissa T · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a quick read. I can only imagine all the CGI and special effects that would have gone into this were it an episode of the show.

[Jessica Ahlros · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, fun and the nostalgic kick I needed. Just like reading an episode from the show...

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect mix of classic Charmed and Greek Mythology!
Fluff of the best kind 😍

[read chelsea read · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was written much better than a lot of the others. I didn’t get bored and I didn’t think it was too cheesy. I had a good time.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly enjoyed the story! It kept my interest, but especially once they ended up in Hades. The tie-in of Greek mythology made it more entertaining.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat average and somewhat contrived, but I knew what I was getting into!

[Sophia Aouichaoui · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked learning of Piper's Greek Anthology knowledge in this particular Charmed series.

As I keep on reading the series, I am rooting for the love lives of the Halliwell sisters!!!

[Butterfly2507 · Rating 2 out of 5]

war ganz okay aber nichts richtig geiles...

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bon livre avec les dieux grecs c'était très intéressant ! Heureusement tout finit bien comme d'habitude !

[Lauren Of Luxury · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so cute. An exciting mixture of Charmed Ones and the Greek Underworld! Would so recommend. The best book I have read yet in this series!

[Cala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charmed Ones meet greek Mythology starring cerebrus, Zeus, Hades and Charon.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the more enjoyable and reasonable stories from the Charmed novel series so far. Interesting use of Greek mythology, and a decent storyline for each sister.

[Johnna Minor · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this book as much as the other ones. I felt like the characters were way off for me. Like their mannerisms didn't match the other books and show. I did like the plot of the book though with the demon and Hades.

[Courtney Gruenholz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Takes place early in Season 3 because it mentions that Phoebe can now levitate.

Prue is told by the editor of 415 magazine that she does really good work and if she can come up with a fantastic idea and a photo to go with it then it will make the cover!

Phoebe is back in college and meets a talented artist named Nikos who compliments her painting so that is her biggest event at the moment.

Piper is left feeling like the boring sister as all she has are paying bills for P3 and missing Leo with his constant Whitelighter business.

While going through books for ideas, Prue meets a handsome journalist named Mitchell Pearl who writes for National Geographic. He scans Prue's pile of books for one he wants and points her to one focusing on Victorian architecture and the photo style of the time doing tableaus as mythical figures.

Halliwell Manor is a stunning Victorian with a beautiful sunroom so Prue has her idea and snags a date with Mitchell too. Telling her sisters her idea, Phoebe suggests that Prue can use Nikos as a model for her photo shoot so they can get to know each other better instead of just coffee dates.

Prue isn't sure but Phoebe sweetens the pot saying she will hire other attractive people from campus so Prue won't have to spend money on professionals. With that, Prue asks Piper to help her out since she can not only cook food but is very knowledgeable about Greek and Roman mythology.

Once everything is arranged, Prue also gets Mitchell coming by to help her on the shoot. The day comes and one female model doesn't show up so Piper has to take her place to her annoyance but Phoebe is also posing with Nikos so not too awkward. Speaking of Nikos, he brings with him an antique camera he found among his father's belongings and Prue is ecstatic to try it out for an authentic feel.

Mitchell goes out to get some Evian water for a picky model and Prue takes the first shot with the camera. Piper and Phoebe are the only models still standing as Nikos and the others collapse to the floor and the sisters find that all of them are in a deep sleep, being witches they were not affected.

A look at the Book of Shadows states that some cultures believe that a camera can steal one's soul and that they are in fact portals if enchanted to do so. They cast a spell to hinder their powers so that the next time Prue snaps a picture, they will be taken to where the models' souls have gone.

Chasing Mitchell away with the promise of a date and a fake wardrobe malfunction, Prue takes the picture and the sisters find themselves in a swamp leading to a river. The river has a boat waiting and a hooded figure to take them across.

All of this dawns on Piper and she knows exactly where the boat will take them...across the river of souls. The photoshoot literally brought them into Greek mythology and sent the souls to Hades.

Knowing they have innocents to save, the sisters go on and ponder just how this was done but it isn't hard to guess that Nikos had something to do with this because the camera could not have been a coincidence, despite Phoebe disliking the idea that Nikos is anything but normal.

Just who Nikos really is may knocks your socks off but it isn't the first or last reveal we get in this book. Also, the title of the book is Soul Of The Bride so guess just how we have to bargain the lives of innocent souls and guess which sister fits the bill?

Go on...just guess...

Besides that, the plot moves at a steady speed and the payoff is satisfactory. We get some mythological creatures going against the Charmed Ones and some very nice sisterly bonding with a chance to have Piper be the saving grace...she's always been my favorite.

Sad to see only ten books cover the first three seasons with Prue and have like twenty over five seasons with Paige but real-life circumstances being what they were...

I hope to find the other three books with Prue in the near future as most of them were pretty good but for now, Soul Of The Bride should have been the last so that we could have had Prue go out with a band instead of a whimper.

[Christy Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a land of lost, wandering souls,
Journey with care on the River Styx
A prince of darkness playing his roles
protect the Charmed ones from
his tricks.


I love Greek mythology and Charmed, combining that should have been great, but I just couldn't get into this book at all.


Phoebe is trapped in Hades, Piper goes to heaven and Prue is left on earth, but that isn't how it started and thankfully didn't end.

Prue gets her big break when she gets a chance at the cover of 415 magazine. She is competing against others, but she is also stumped until she goes to the library to look at photography books. That is also where she first meets Mitchell who seems to be a charming guy.


Phoebe has also met a guy that she likes, Nikos. They go out for coffee dates and she begs Prue to let her have him as one of the models of the photo shoot along with her and six others she promises to find from college. Phoebe comes through and the photo shoot is on even Mitchell and Piper are helping too.


Everything was going perfect until the camera that Phoebe's guy brought took a picture. After that everything went to Hades, literately.

After the models fall into a slumber the Charmed Ones race to find a way to get them back. Little did they know that it was all a trap to get Phoebe into Hades. Nikos is the son of Hades who has said his son must be married before his 25th birthday. Once he has Phoebe he sends Prue and Piper back.


The beasts of Greek Mythology come into play to keep them from succeeding in getting Phoebe back. Piper takes their problem up to Nikos Uncle, Zeus himself. As long as Phoebe doesn't eat or drink anything she can return home.

Thankfully after another trip to Hades the sisters reunite and with another spell fixed Nikos and Mitchell who turned out to be evil as well. Mitchell went from National Geographic magazine to writing the obits in the paper.


I hope the next book will be better. I think it was Nikos and Mitchell that turned this book into a bore. I also don't remember reading this Charmed book back in high school.

[Noa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mix Greek Mythology and Charmed to together and what do you get? Soul of the Bride, of course. I remember Greek Mythology was used multiple times on the TV Show, but I don't ever think that it was the main focus for and entire episode or the gods such as Zeus and Hades ever appearing. Soul of the Bride showed off the potential of mixing it all up. It's a damn fine formula which brings out an exciting book. If you are a fan or the show you will love it, and if you aren't, don't worry, this book still has something for you.

Prue Halliwell works at Magazine 415 as an editor and her boss soon takes notice for her excellent work and gives the opportunity of getting on the cover if she takes a photo that is magnificent, magical, and blows his mind away. This is Prue shot at the big time, that is if she can come up with something by the deadline. However, at the shoot things go wrong, demoniacally wrong, with cameras sending the models spirits to Hades, fending off against monsters from Greek Mythology, taking a trip to Hades, evil demon boyfriends, spells that take you to Olympus, tempting food, and a demonic wedding. Everything basically goes wrong. So the question is, can Prue and Piper save Phoebe, and Prue still take magical photo?

A very fun and entertaining read with great writing.

[Alyssa Oppelt · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read the back of this, I thought that with a Greek myth tie-in, it might be really good. I started reading it and something about it just kind of turned me off on the whole thing.. I didn't really care for the way it was written (SO didn't realize this book series was written by different authors. what?!) and at times I didn't even really see the Charmed sisters' personalities come through at all. I don't remember which parts, but I do remember thinking at times how they would act so unlike their characters on the show. It's hard to explain and pinpoint one thing, but it really had me just pushing to finish the book just so I could start with another, better, book. The Hades part if it was pretty cool, I'll give it that. The creatures were neat. One major issue though was how it OOZED the Charmed 'cheesiness' that the show sometimes gives off. The corny jokes and puns? They're everywhere in this book. The bad guy with the annoying laugh and flamboyant personality? He's in here, too. Ugh, I cringed in his parts. I wanted to just set this book on fire anytime I had to read a part with him in it. Everything about him was corny.

I don't know.. the plot was a wonderful idea. It just didn't do it for me.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being totally inaccurate to the show including referring to Phoebes levitation as flying and contradicting future books containing Gorgons and episodes where they get the powers of Greek Gods, it’s Charmed and I will always love anything that has to do with it, so it has to be truly atrocious for me not to love it. So while not the best Charmed novel, it’s not the worst and is a fun nostalgic quick read. Rereading these old Charmed books are my guilty pleasure though, so I’m biased. Plus the closing line of ‘“And I’ll just make a general declaration to anyone who might be listening,” Prue says. She pointed at the floor. “And this means you! Don’t mess with the Charmed Ones!”’ is just perfectly cheesy and I love every second of it.