Review: The Juliet Spell by Douglas Rees

Published in 2011 by Harlequin Teen

This book was fun and great for any Shakespeare fan. The story took place from the eyes of Miranda, a girl desperate to win the part of Juliet in her high school play. When she realizes she isn't going to get it, she does a spell from a book she bought and wishes to be Juliet. Instead of being Juliet, she gets someone from Romeo & Juliet thrust into her kitchen out of no where. And that person is Edmund Shakespeare, William's younger brother.

Warning: I had many conflicting emotions toward this book. I think my main issue with this book was how it was written. Edmund's dialogue was in old English with all 'Ye's, and it does add character, but it is extremely annoying for the reader. I feel like character wise, with all of the characters, we saw barely any development. Miranda is still blind-eyed at the end of the book, Edmund just adapted for survival. Drew and Bobby were good, but I didn't really see a need for them to even be involved in the book as much as they were. There were random science bits, that I'm not ashamed at all to admit confused me. The end of the book left me completely unsatisfied as well. It was obvious that the character was too. *sigh*

Focusing on the bright side, it was really fun to read a book written from this point of view. The reader has the ability to hear about everything in the theater world, from directing, sets, stage cues, and even cast parties. Edmund was very charming and easy to read about (if you ignore his dialogue, which I managed to.) I loved the historic notes and the mysterious Doctor Dee.

I recommend it to Shakespeare fans, theater fans, and to someone looking for a romance novel.

3/5 Stars