The Isle Of The Lost by Melissa de La Cruz is a prequel to the upcoming Disney Channel movie, The Descendants and it follows the children of Maleficent, Cruella de Vil, Jafar and The Evil Queen from Snow White. This novel really does an excellent job of setting up what transpired after happily ever after and capturing our favorite despicable villains on the page. Not only is this novel extremely engrossing, it has a plethora of snarky humor that will make readers laugh and smile on nearly every page. Any Disney fanatic, young or old, will easily find themselves falling in love with The Isle Of The Lost and will be clamoring for book two and the movie! 
 It's not easy being the child of one of the most evil villains in history! Mal has always felt pressure from everyone to be as evil as her crazy mama, Maleficient and everyone has overwhelming expectations for her. Carlos is never good enough for Cruella and is stuck being his mother's maid to give her the old lifestyle she had before the island. Jay needs to follow in his father's footsteps and that means finding a big score (an expensive item to steal). Evie is tired of hearing from the Evil Queen that she needs to focus on her beauty more. All of them need the Dragon's Eye for different reasons, but mostly importantly it could be the way off the island they're trapped on. 
 Melissa de La Cruz may be writing about the children of Disney villains, but their struggles that they're dealing with are extremely familiar. It's extremely easy to empathize with all of the 4 main characters and to root for them all to win their parent's approval. I especially loved Mal and Carlos who are just so incredible in their own ways and it broke my heart to see them rejected by their respective parents. De La Cruz brings life to these characters and will make readers root for them almost immediately after they're introduced. 
 This book is heaven for fans of good ole Disney and it's not just because it features some of our favorite villains. Isle Of The Lost is full of references to countless Disney films and characters and it was nostalgic to recall these beloved movies that I hadn't seen in years. Not only do we meet the villains I mentioned earlier, you also get to meet lesser-known but still incredibly evil antagonists. To make things even better, you also get to meet Belle, Beast and their son in this book; my inner child was shrieking in delight when these three were introduced. If you like Disney just a teensy bit (HOW can you not love it?), you'll find yourself filled with childlike glee. 
 The Isle Of The Lost ends on a cliffhanger and I NEED to find out what happens next. I have no doubt that The Descendants film is going to be incredible and I need book two in my life ASAP. I had so much fun reading this novel and it was everything I wished for. The Isle Of The Lost is absolutely wonderful and will appeal to fans of Once Upon A Time and Into The Woods alike.This review was originally posted on Bookish Antics