(Cover picture courtesy of Michael Scott’s website.)

The two that are one must become the one that is all. One to save the world, one to destroy it.

San Francisco:
Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel have one day left to live, and one job left to do. They must defend San Francisco. The monsters gathered on Alcatraz Island have been released and are heading toward the city. If they are not stopped, they will destroy everyone and everything in their path.

But even with the help of two of the greatest warriors from history and myth, will the Sorceress and the legendary Alchemyst be able to defend the city? Or is it the beginning of the end of the human race?

Danu Talis:
Sophie and Josh Newman traveled ten thousand years into the past to Danu Talis when they followed Dr. John Dee and Virginia Dare. And it’s on this legendary island that the battle for the world begins and ends.

Scathach, Prometheus, Palamedes, Shakespeare, Saint-Germain, and Joan of Arc are also on the island. And no one is sure what—or who—the twins will be fighting for.

Today the battle for Danu Talis will be won or lost.
But will the twins of legend stand together?
Or will they stand apart—
one to save the world and one to destroy it?

Some people hated the ending of The Enchantress, while others loved it.  As usual, I fall somewhere in between, with my overall verdict amounting to the ever-eloquent “Meh, it was okay.”  Michael Scott tied most of the plot lines together and what Josh and Sophie do at the end makes sense if you think about it.  It was somewhat satisfying, but I have a few bones to pick.

The plot was incredibly fast-paced throughout all 500 pages of the novel, something that is very difficult for an author to maintain.  I certainly respect Michael Scott’s ability to do that.  what I really didn’t like was what he did in order to maintain such a fast pace: he indulged in head-hopping.  “Head-hopping” is basically reviewer-speak for “this dude switched points of view so many times no one had any idea what was going on.”  I’m okay with switching POVs occasionally, but Michael Scott switched three, sometimes four times in one short chapter.  That’s going overboard, don’t you think?

Alas, my favourite villain has gone soft by the end, but considering all of the hints Michael Scott dropped throughout the series, it’s not that surprising.  What is surprising is how much Dee changes in a short span and how much more we learn about Virginia Dare.  I won’t give any spoilers, but we do learn some surprising things about their pasts and true personalities.

The ending had a nice twist that I didn’t see coming, but it did make sense.  Pretty much all of the loose ends were tied up, which is nice, but it also leaves potential for a sequel.  Overall, not a bad ending, but it could have been better.

I give this book 3.5/5 stars.

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