Tris & Izzie (review)

In this contemporary story based on the legendary Tristan and Isolde, Izzie is perfectly happy with her A-list boyfriend, Mark, but she feels sorry for her best friend, Branna (short for Brangane, of course), who has no boyfriend of her own. Since Izzie's mother is a witch, she figures that she might have a love potion on hand, and she steals one from her mother's cabinet and tries to get Branna and a new boy, Tristan, to drink it together. Alas, her plan goes awry, and she is forced to drink the potion after Tristan does to keep it from Mark. She immediately begins to yearn for Tristan, who, it turns out, has some magic of his own. Soon the two are allied in a fight with the magical serpent who killed Izzie's father and who has been menacing the little town of magic users to which she and her mother fled upon the death of her father. The writing here is amateurish enough to be distracting at times, with strange gaps in narrative flow and unexpected changes in register that don't quite produce the comic effect they intend. The plotting, pace, and characters, however, are all compelling enough to keep the suspense alive and pages turning. Though the allusion to Tristan and Isolde's love story is useful for establishing the initial situation, the book soon turns away from the legend; the magical quest to avenge Izzie's father and free the town from the evil serpent and the all-around happy ending take their cues from YA fantasy and chick lit, and fans of those genres (rather than those looking for an updated tale of doomed adulterous love) may find this a diverting read.