Sensuality rating: 6

Perennial New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts's new Three Sisters Island trilogy is pure magic! No, I mean really magic. An intriguing combination of The Witches of Eastwick and Sleeping With the Enemy, Dance Upon the Air introduces readers to the idyllic town of Three Sisters Island. Reputedly conjured by a trio of sisters seeking to escape the Salem witch-hunts, the island remains a place of quiet refuge for one and all, including pretty Nell Channing who arrives in town afraid of her own shadow, with few possessions and no past. But the warm, sunny days and cool, windswept nights, as well as the loving concern of new friends--especially hunky sheriff Zack Todd--soon lure skittish Nell into a much-welcome fresh life. Nell's new boss, the captivatingly lovely bookstore owner Mia Devlin (look for Mia's story, hopefully, in the not-too-distant future), wonders from what or whom Nell is running. Mia treats Nell as she would a sister, which isn't too far off the mark, helping Nell discover and explore her inner resources while Zack's romantic attentions bring a rosy glow to Nell's cheeks and to her future. But something wicked this way comes… Will Nell be ready to face and conquer her past? Even with the love and support of Mia, Zack, and Zack's fellow police officer, his peppery, down-to-earth sister Ripley, Nell has the fight of her life--the fight for her life--on her hands. Roberts continues to delight fans and create new believers with her talent and imagination. --Alison Trinkle

Product Description
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author-the first book in the reissued Three Sisters Island trilogy is a tale of friendship, fate, and the mysterious ways of the heart.

Download Description
Nell, Ripley, and Mia are three women bound by the magic, legends, and romance of the Massachusetts coast in the first novel in Roberts's bewitching new "Three Sisters Island" trilogy.

Fast forward 300 years to Three Sisters Island. A frightened young woman, Nell Channing, comes to the island fleeing her past. She has been drawn here through compelling dreams. Concealing her identity, with few possessions and no identification, she finds a job as a gourmet cook at a local bookstore and cafe. The cafe's owner and Nell's new boss, Mia Devlin, warmly welcomes her as if she is a long lost friend. She rents Nell a lovely cottage and helps her settle in. For the first time in many years Nell begins to believe she has found a home and a place to make her future. The town sheriff, tall, dark and handsome, (of course), Zack Todd begins to woo her and Nell is drawn to him in spite of her knowledge that she can never become involved.

Then the past finally catches up to Nell. The evil she has been trying to escape comes to the island, endangering her and threatening the lives of those she has come to love. The curse of Three Sisters and the legend behind it are disclosed. Nell discovers that she is one of the three who can break the centuries-old spell and save her home and her life - with the help of two other strong, gifted women whom she has grown to care for as sisters.

One of the other reviews called this novel a combination of "The Witches Of Eastwick" and "Sleeping With The Enemy" and I think that is an apt description. The suspense and sheer terror of being pursued by an enraged, abusive spouse is clearly portrayed here, embellished a bit with the addition of magic and the supernatural. And Nora Roberts depicts the love, camaraderie, humor and complexity of the relationship between the sister witches in wonderful detail. It is easy to love Ms. Roberts' characters as she develops them with great care. The sisters' magic is delightful, as is the romance. The story is appropriately chilling at times and filled with suspense. "Dance Upon The Air" is the first part of a trilogy. I have read all three books and this is my favorite. It is an unputdownable read, perfect for curling up on a cold winter's night.
JANA


A magical beginning to Roberts' newest trilogy   February 3, 2002
 21 out of 21 found this review helpful

Dance Upon the Air was a surprise find for me as a reader. My initial introduction to Nora Roberts' writing was through a mystery-romance series of hers written by her under the pseudonym, J.D. Robb. Her In Death series had just the right balance of mystery, police procedural, humor and romance to make this male not feel all weird reading was really was a romance novel. On the prodding of a friend who is a voracious reader of all things Nora Roberts, I picked up Dance Upon the Air. From the moment I began to read the exciting introduction of the Three Sisters Island being born, I was hooked line and sinker on this book.

The Three Sisters Island is a small and quaint little island community off the coast of Massachusetts whose origins, legend has it, was due to a powerful spell weaved by three sister witches. Their spell ripped a portion of the Massachusetts coastline from the earth and floated off to just off the coast to form a sort of haven for their descendants. A haven from the puritanical witchhunts which have taken the lives of both real witches and those falsely accused as one. It's through the later generations and their descendants that the story for this trilogy is played out through.

Dance Upon the Air deals with one of the descendants of the Three Sisters. The books tale concentrates on the trials and tribulations of one Nell Channing whose a direct descendant of the Sister whose powers were of the element of Air. A delicate woman whose life has been a living hell due to a very abusive and powerfully connected husband, Nell finally escapes her abusive relationship through guile and trickery, but as the story progresses its not long before the husband she left behind finds out the truth about his wife's apparent "death". Nell makes it to Three Sisters Island and upon setting foot on its soil feels as if she's returned home. Whether by fate or providence, Nell soon meets two other women on the island whose destinies have been preordained to entwine with hers.

Dance Upon the Air sounds abit like the Julia Roberts thriller Sleeping with the Enemy. The similarities are pretty close, but Roberts' tale of magic, fate and self-reliance is the better of the two. Nell's experiences as she learns to live and love again on Three Sisters Island has a sense of hope and self reawakening which the Julia Roberts film lacked. This book shares abit of the thriller of the film, but doesn't rely on it to weave a beautiful tale. Instead, Dance Upon the Air reads more like the journey of a damaged woman whose realization that the place she has now decided to call home and those friends and lovers she's met will be the anchor in finally realizing the life she's always thought she should have lived.

The book ends with Nell's initial life-journey ending in a powerful note as the powers of her ancestor is reborn in her once more. But it also starts her off on a new journey that will help determine on whether her two other "sisters" will succeed or fail in their own journeys. Nora Roberts has found herself a new fan in her more romance-centric novels and I await the arrival of the next two books in this magical trilogy.


A worthy start to a new trilogy   June 7, 2001
 19 out of 20 found this review helpful

While I own every single book written by Nora Roberts, I have to say that I usually enjoy her paperback novels better than the hardcover books (Not that it stops me from buying every one of them!).

This particular novel tells the story of Nell, a woman fleeing from an abusive husband to a fictitous island off the coast of Massachusetts, Three Sisters. There she finds her first real feeling of home, friends that she has a mystical bond with and a handsome sheriff who is her soulmate.

The novel nicely blends the charm of a small town and the mystical events that we expect from Nora Roberts. It also is effective at setting up the two upcoming novels that will complete the trilogy. Packed with likeable characters and well paced, the novel is worthy of her "Born in" series.

I really loved this book. It was a surprising and satisfying read that kept me turing pages long into the night. I recommend it highly.


Very enjoyable   June 7, 2001
 18 out of 22 found this review helpful

I really liked this book. Nora has really created a strong female character, one that I think is much more stronger than her previous heroines with abused pasts (except for Eve Dallas). Nell gets away from her abusive husband by faking her own death and is drawn to Three Sisters Island. We find out she is actually a descendant of the original three witches that created the island, and her coming there completes the circle. On the island, she grows and is able to become close with people and form relationships. She is able to assert herself and get a job with the local "practical" witch, and later on she starts her own business. The romantic relationship with the town sheriff is nice, but her realtionship with her sister witches is even more interesting. One is the practical witch Mia Devlin, who was hurt by love; the other is the sheriff's sister, Ripley Todd, who has turned away from her powers. I really enjoyed this book, and finished it in one day. It's a nice break from Nora's recent mysteries, with the surprise twist of who the killer is. this is a story of growth and renewal and I *cannot* wait for the next two books in the series.