Heaven and Earth is the newest book by Nora Roberts. This book is in paperback. Roberts published a new hardback about a month ago. She has published several books this year, six I think, not counting the reissues of some of her older books. I do like that I don't have to wait so long between her books, but it can be hard to keep up with all of them.

Heaven and Earth is the second book in the Three Sisters Island trilogy. Dance Upon the Air was the first book in the series. It came out a few months ago. The third, and final book in the series will be out early next year. I'll give a brief recap of Dance Upon the Air to remind people what that book is about before I get into this book.

Three Sisters Island was formed when three sisters who were witches used their magic to break a piece of land off of the mainland to form the island as a sanctuary. This happened during the time of the Salem witch trials. The sisters are only identified as Air, Earth, and Fire. Air left the island to get married and have children. She denied who she was to make her husband happy. Some other things happen - it isn't said what those things were in the first book - that curses the sisters and their decedents. In the present day, Nell is a woman who faked hr death to escape her abusive husband. She ends up on Three Sisters Island where she gets a job as a cook at Cafe Book, a book store with a small restaurant. Nell makes friends, and becomes involved with the town Sheriff, Zack Ripley. She discovers she is a witch, a decedent of one of the sisters that formed the island. She must confront her husband with the help of Mia and Ripley, the decedents of the other two witches. Mia owns Cafe Book where Nell works. Ripley is Zack's sister, and the deputy on the island. Ripley is one of the main characters in this book.

PLOT

The book began with a prologue that took place on the island in 1699. A woman had left her husband and children to go to a place where she called a storm. She was going to do something, and once she did, she would not be able to return home to her family. She was full of grief and rage and wanted justice. She was one of the sisters, the one known as Earth. Fire arrived and tried to stop Earth. They were both grieving because Air was dead. Earth was going to use her power to avenge Air's death. She would be breaking her vows if she caused harm with her magic and it would return to her three fold.

The rest of the book was set in present day, again on Three Sister Island. Earth and Fire did appear in a few more scenes in dreams. Ripley Todd was taking her morning run. She was thinking about moving because her brother Zack had just gotten married. Ripley thought he and Nell needed their privacy. Ripley decided that she was going to see about renting the cottage that Nell had been living in. The cottage was owned by Mia Devlin, so Ripley would have to talk to her about it. Ripley and Mia didn't get along. They used to be very close friends. The reasons why their friendship had fallen apart would be explained later. Ripley did talk to Mia about the cottage, but it had already been rented to MacAllister Booke. He researched witchcraft and supernatural things and that was why he was on the island. Ripley isn't happy about that. She gets worked up any time magic is mentioned or when people come around the island asking questions about it. Ripley denied that she was a witch and she had stopped practicing the craft years before. Ripley had bad dreams that featured Earth.

MacAllister Booke arrived on the ferry. He had spent twelve years investigating the supernatural. He knew about the legend of Three Sisters Island, and was intrigued by it. He has done research on the legend, and on Mia. He was hoping she would talk to him about her magic. He also knew about Nell and how she escaped her abusive husband. There were rumors floating around that witchcraft was involved when Evan Remington was caught on the island. Mac wanted to talk to Nell too. He can be forgetful at times when he gets wrapped up in his work. He talked to himself at times. When he met the women for the first time, Mia and Nell are friendly, but Ripley was rather rude to Mac because she knew why he was on the island. She didn't want anything to do with his investigation.

Mac and Ripley ran into each other around town even though she was trying to keep her distance. Mac wanted her to stop back by the cottage so he could run some tests. They spent time together and got to know each other. Mac was very interested in Ripley, not just as a research subject for his work. Ripley became interested in Mac, but she was still trying to keep her distance. Ripley accidentally used her magic when Mac gets her upset about something. That really got her worked up. She didn't have good control over her power when she was upset. The fact that she hadn't practiced in years probably didn't help her control problem either. Ripley was forced to deal with her magic.

Meanwhile, while everything was happening on the island, Jonathan Q. Harding was on the trail of a story. He had plans for a story about Evan Remington. He knew how Nell faked her death to get away and how she ended up on the island. He heard the rumors that witchcraft was involved in what happened when Evan was caught. Jonathan also knew that Mac was on the island investigating. He knew about Mac and the work he did. Since Mac was there, Jonathan figured there must be something to the witchcraft stories.

This was another great book by Nora Roberts. I was hooked on it right from the beginning. I couldn't put it down and I didn't want it to end. Now I'm anxiously waiting for the next book, which won't be out for several months. None of the book bored me, but the sections dealing with Jonathan's plans for his article weren't as interesting to me. I was anxious for the book to get back to the island.

Heaven and Earth does have a separate plot from Dance Upon the Air, but some elements from the first book carry into this book. The legend of Three Sisters Island and what happened to the three sisters plays a part in each book. Witchcraft plays a part in both books, though there isn't as much in Heaven and Earth. Ripley was one of the main characters in this book. She stopped practicing magic years before - her reasons are explained in the book. The fact that Ripley doesn't practice the craft is why there isn't as much witchcraft in this book. Nell was one of the main characters in Dance Upon the Air. Nell was learning about magic in that book, so witchcraft played an important part in that book. Even though there are separate plots to the books, I think they should be read in order. That way the reader will know the background of what has happened and why some of the characters are the way they are.

There was a little bit of suspense in the book, especially towards the end, but it wasn't as suspenseful as other Nora Roberts books. The book was predictable at times, but there were things that happened that I didn't expect. There really wasn't a mystery in this book. It was mainly a romance. The romance dealt with the relationship between Ripley and Mac. There were some sexual situations in this book. I think there were tastefully done, but I know that some people don't like to read about that kind of thing. So if you don't like to read about that, then this isn't the book for you. However, if you like romances with a hint of suspense, then you may like this book. There was some swearing in this book, but it wasn't excessive. The word that rhymes with luck - and a variation or two - showed up a few times. So if that word really offends you, this may not be the book for you.

There was witchcraft in this book. There wasn't a lot, but there was still some. Some spells were performed in the book. The witches in the book - Nell, Mia, and Ripley - were good witches. They did not use their magic to harm, they used it to do good and help people. Witchcraft was part of the island's history. The residents of the island knew about the history, and they knew Mia was a witch. Occasionally, people went to Mia for help with something. Two of the sisters, Earth and Fire were shown in a few scenes. Earth did use her magic to harm, to avenge the death of Air. Earth's actions played a part in the curse that was placed on the sister's decedents. If you don't like to read about witchcraft, you shouldn't read this book.

Most of the characters were well developed. There were a few characters that don't show up much, so they weren't developed very much. I think Ripley was the most developed character in this book since what was learned about her in this book builds on what was in the first book. There was a lot learned about Mac in this book, so he was well developed too. Nell and Zack show up a few times, but not much was really added to their development. Some more was learned about Mia in this book, adding to the foundation that was started in the first book. Some things about her past come out in this book, which should play a part in the next book. A bit about Fire was also found out in this book.

CHARACTERS

Ripley Todd - Younger sister of Zack Todd. She was a deputy on the island. She was a witch, but she denied it. She did not practice the craft anymore. She used to be best friends with Mia, but something happened to end the friendship. Ripley took her job very seriously and thought witchcraft was childish. She exercised everyday to keep in shape. She could be rude and abrasive at times, especially if someone brought up magic. She was very protective of her friends and family.

MacAllister Booke - Man who comes to the island to investigate the legend and witchcraft. He had been studying paranormal things for twelve years. He was a genius that graduated college when he was still a teenager. He was nice, kind man, who didn't push people to get them to cooperate with his investigations. He could be absent minded when he was involved in his work. He talked to himself at times too.

Nell Todd - Ripley's sister-in-law. She worked as a chef at Cafe Book and she had her own catering business. She was a witch that was still learning about the craft. She was friends with both Ripley and Mia, which stuck her in the middle of their disagreements at times.

Zack Todd - Ripley's brother. He was the island Sheriff. Married to Nell for a short time. He knew about Nell being a witch and it didn't bother him. He was very protective of his wife.


Mia Devlin - Owner of Cafe Book. Her family was rich. She lived in a huge house by a cliff on the island. She was raised by Lulu. Mia was a witch. The people in the town know that she was a witch and some of them go to her for help with some things. She taught Nell about the craft. She was willing to cooperate with Mac.

Jonathan Q. Harding - Writer for a magazine. He was planning to write an article about Evan and Nell. He started digging into the legend of the island.

This was a great book. Fans of Nora Roberts should enjoy it. Anyone who has read Dance Upon the Air should like this book because it is a sequel. The third book in the series will be out early next year. There was a brief exert of the third book at the end of this book. Nora Roberts also writes the In Death series as J.D. Robb, so anyone that likes those books may also enjoy this book. If you enjoy reading about witchcraft, you may like this book also.

http://www.noraroberts.com

Three Sisters Island Trilogy
Dance Upon the Air ~ Heaven and Earth ~ Face the Fire



Recommended: Yes