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Stanton is in love with Serena. But it is a relationship that can never be. Stanton is committed to the Atrox, an ancient evil that has been around since the beginning of time. And Serena is a Daughter of the Moon, a force of good whose mission is to stop Stanton and his kind.

269 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2001

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About the author

Lynne Ewing

45 books849 followers
Lynne Ewing is an American author and a screen writer.

She always had to move around a lot when she was growing up because her father was in the Marine Corps. She has two sisters. Lynne graduated from high school in Lima, Peru after attending seven other schools. While she was in Peru, she learned to speak Spanish. She attended the University of California at Santa Barbara. When she was 30 years old, she began writing for newspapers, documentaries, magazines, and did screen writing. She also counsels troubled teens. Her first books were Drive-By and Party Girl. Drive-By took six years to write, and Party Girl has been made into a movie called Living the Life. She has written the completed Daughters of the Moon and Sons of the Dark series. She lives in Los Angeles and Washington D.C.. Ms. Ewing has two children, Jonathan, a molecular biologist, and Amber, an international lawyer. She has also traveled to Japan, China, Russia, Europe, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand. She has begun a new series called Sisters of Isis.

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5 stars
2,353 (39%)
4 stars
1,708 (28%)
3 stars
1,458 (24%)
2 stars
303 (5%)
1 star
80 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
Profile Image for Marganita.
21 reviews
March 4, 2009
it is the best book out of all the Daughter of the Moon Saga...
i think it was really sweet how he sacrificed himself for his love ,,, true love:)
Profile Image for Kimi.
125 reviews
January 31, 2009
can you say, "I love him", haha, definitely a keeper.
Profile Image for Andrew Swanson.
140 reviews3 followers
November 4, 2014
This is the one in the series that always bores me the most. We get all this vague talk about Stanton being so evil and how he's committed all sorts of atrocities, but in modern day our 800-year-old Prince of Evil cuts in line at clubs, steals sodas from people who just bought them, and drives his car really fast. *yawwwn...* Even Edward Cullen actually killed people. Come on, Stanton.

Also, this book had a gross overuse of the word 'destroy' to mean 'kill.' Every page was like, "He'll destroy you!" "I'm going to destroy you!" "He can't destroy me! I'll destroy him!" "He can't be destroyed!" "OMG DESTROY." If I see the word 'destroy' one more time today I'm going to throw the next book at the wall.
Profile Image for Els.
68 reviews4 followers
June 7, 2015
I remember reading this (at the age of 13 or so) and wanting to be Stanton's girlfriend so freaking bad. I had the biggest literary crush on this bad boy and thought Serena was the luckiest b****.

I think this was the first book in the series where I actually thought, "Wow, Ewing, you're a damn good author" because you actually make me love the Romeo/Juliet thing between Stanton and Serena. Mostly I loved the conflict within Stanton. I wish there had been more on the part of Serena aside from the usual, "But he's a bad guy, this bizarre attraction is wrong."
Profile Image for Kayla.
24 reviews
Read
December 10, 2008
if you like love storys then you will like this it makes you mad with somethings that happen in it but it is so cute it's every girls whish
Profile Image for Jennie Damron.
587 reviews70 followers
August 16, 2018
3.5 Stars. Ok I loved Stanton. He is the epitome of every bad boy with a heart I have dreamed about. I enjoyed his character development over the course of the book. Again the story was very fast paced but Jimena's character in this book in particular, got on my nerves. I found myself saying, would just shut up" a lot during her talking. Other than that I liked this book a lot.
Profile Image for Canned Bread.
213 reviews6 followers
March 3, 2022
I feel like it takes a lot of effort for a book to make me give a 1 star, but here we are

I hope this isn't a trend with the next books, cause, Ewing was kinda bouncing all over the place in terms of logic, and when emotional drama happens.

Cause like

This book somehow became weaker than "Secret Scroll" and that's saying a lot

I have all the books in the series to read, and I hope it'll be at least enjoyable in the end
Profile Image for Jenny Clark.
3,203 reviews117 followers
September 4, 2018
This one was a bit better than the others, as it broke the mold some. Being about Stanton, we don't get as much about the girls, which was fine. Morgan has disappeared, and it took me till this book to realize it.
Stanton is an Immortal, but he does not seem that mature, and he also seams to be easily tricked, like when Vanessa was invisible and he did not realize it till she started to form... I saw it like 2 pages before that... Overall, it is a pretty good series that has its flaws, but none are enough to make me abandon it (yet)!
45 reviews
January 24, 2009
Quick reading. I like this one more though, cause it had a nice bad love story twist.
Profile Image for Deisy DeLuna.
6 reviews
April 21, 2009
That no one is really mean but they have to hide who they are in order to protect what they love. I really like this book it is my second favorite in this series.
Profile Image for Belle.
548 reviews36 followers
November 3, 2024
Oof, this is a hard one for me to rate. I will say, for Stanton being one of my least favorite characters of this series, I liked this a lot more than I thought I would, given that the book is completely centered around him. I liked getting to know his backstory and his overall journey over the course of this book with him fighting against his instincts to be evil despite how much he clearly cares for Serena. I liked getting to see the point of view of a Follower and their world and the dark magic elements. And then I loved Stanton’s meeting with the Dark Goddess and him being freed from the Atrox!

…but sadly, that didn’t last long, and by the end, in order to save Serena, he has to be a Follower again. So that was kind of a bummer. If that weren’t bad enough, it ends with Stanton being his creepy, possessive self, and the final lines: “He could wait. Her gift only lasted until she was 17. Then she would be his.” which the implications behind that line…just makes me feel icky. I mean, it’s no secret that I’m not the biggest fan of Stanton for this reason, because he just portrays the stereotypical dominating male love interest that existed in every supernatural YA novel in the early 2000s and it’s never been my cup of tea. There were a few more moments like this where Stanton’s love for Serena leans more possessive, and even a scene where Stanton is trying to satiate his “urges” by seducing a 14-year old girl and take her to the dark side, which made me REAL’ uncomfy.

Ooh, but let’s get into that...

I get it, they’re talking about taking people over to the dark side and turn them from good to evil, but it’s hard not to also see the more sinister subtext there: preying upon and seducing young girls, taking away their innocence, reveling in their fear, enjoying the chase of it all, and then moving onto the next person. Like, is this…a metaphor for sex trafficking?? It’s all a pretty big YIKES for me. It’s just one of those things that once you see it, you can’t really unsee it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Katie Rios.
387 reviews4 followers
May 30, 2017
OK, another 3.5 - 4 stars. I decided to wait until this book to discuss the covers, because JESUS, THAT'S supposed to be Stanton? What a disservice to our sexy Follower, but whatever. The covers are awful for real, then again, they were released in the late 90s, early 2000s so there is that excuse for them. Still, poor Stanton.

Now, this one is probably my favorite book so far. I adored Stanton. I loved listening to his inner dialogue. I loved listening to him really battle with himself. What he did for Serena in the end, DUDE. I fell in love with him for real then LOL. The book is appropriately named, that's for sure.

One thing I wanted to mention that I've noticed in these books is JESUS, the repetition. I swear to you I have read the Daughters of the Moon story at least 5 times, probably more because it's mentioned more than once. And that wouldn't be so bad. What's bad is it's literally a copy and paste. "When Pandora's box was opened, the last to leave was hope..." and then they finish. The same 4-5 sentences. It's just...ugh. And how many times do we have to hear about Catty having the "strangest power?" It's mentioned a billion times in each book. Just WAY repetitive.


SPOILERS AHEAD.








Cassandra. Damn it, I hated this bitch. I HATED that Stanton just seemed to keep running into that hoe. She fucked up SOOOOO much shit, and I hope she gets hers eventually. I hated watching Stanton get what he wanted and then have it taken away. I hated reading what happened to Catty. I hated Serena blaming him for so much. But I loved that he sacrificed so much for her no matter what. He wanted to protect her, and I loved that. The ending wasn't what I wanted, but I understood it. I can't wait to see how it turns out for them.
Profile Image for Kristal J..
74 reviews3 followers
October 16, 2023
The Sacrifice," the fifth book in the "Daughters of the Moon" series by Lynne Ewing, continues to follow the lives of the teenage girls with extraordinary powers known as the Daughters of the Moon. In this installment, we witness the ongoing battle against the Atrox, an ancient evil force, from Stanton's perspective.

One of the strengths of this book is the opportunity to explore the story from the "enemy's" perspective. This provided me with another window into this world where the Daughters of the Moon and the Atrox and its followers exist.

However, on the critique side, I found it hard to relate or understand Stanton. While his viewpoint added depth to the story, I wish there was more context to better understand the way Stanton thinks when it comes to his love for Serena.

On a positive note, Cassandra's character growth in this book was PERFECT. Her evolution throughout the story added depth and complexity to her character, making her one of the highlights of "The Sacrifice." I wish there was an installment book with her story before we dive into the main series.

In summary, "The Sacrifice" offers another installment in the ongoing saga of the Daughters of the Moon, blending supernatural elements. While it maintains the series' engaging aspects, it may suffer from some repetition in the overall plot. I would rate this book 3.2/5, suggesting that while it has its strengths and engaging aspects, it may not have fully met my expectations.
Profile Image for Lauren.
448 reviews1 follower
September 16, 2024
3.5/5

This is pretty much as far as I went in the series when I was a teen, so we're finishing to ✨heal my inner child✨

Stanton's POV is interesting and definitely helped me understand a little more about who he is as a character. Is it particularly deep? No. But I did learn that he truly cares for Serena, and that's really all I needed to know.
As for the plot? Ehhhh, it's an early 00s teen novel. If I have to hear about Planet Bang ONE MORE TIME -
Like... Why would you wanna go to the club after running into an evil spirit? Why is that the first thing y'all think about lmao. Prefrontal cortexes underdeveloped, the lot of yous-
Or hips gyrating ~sensuously~, imma be a bald headed bitch. But it's for teens, so whatever I guess.

Serena and the girls getting mad at Stanton for that run-in with Lambert was stupid. Truly made no sense. And Stanton returning to the Atrox better be fucking worth that weak ass plot twist.

Anyway, it was fine and I will finish this series if it is the last thing I do.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Sarah Dunmire.
460 reviews4 followers
June 22, 2021
I always liked Stanton. This one is all from his perspective. Kind of strange not knowing what any of the goddesses are thinking or doing except through his perspective. He briefly becomes mortal through the girls’ and the goddess of the dark moon’s help, but then becomes Atrox again knowing that was the only way he could defeat Lambert and save Serena. The ending was super abrupt though. Cassandra is also annoyingly persistent.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for HorrorBook HellHound.
230 reviews14 followers
April 30, 2024
I really enjoyed this book, but can I just be honest for a minute?? Seeing things from Stanton's perspective made the Daughters come across as insanely selfish! I get that they are pretty much pre-teens in age, but wow...just WOW! If you read it you will understand where I'm coming from. But other than that issue I really liked the plot of this book and the kind of tragic vibes it gives.
Profile Image for Sara.
96 reviews
September 23, 2018
Middle grade writing. The obsession of love and boyfriends is grating now. No stars for nostalgia. I want to finish this series just so I can finally get to the last book.
Profile Image for Gina.
534 reviews
October 12, 2019
This book does great character development of who Stanton is.
Profile Image for Catherine.
358 reviews2 followers
May 22, 2024
This one was a bit of a repetitive rollercoaster. Did introduce some new elements though.
155 reviews33 followers
October 12, 2016
I tolerated this book. There were many problems with it, but I have read worse books. That said, there were many things I could not stand.

1) Stanton's stalking Serena. I am sorry, but the watching-Serena-while-she-sleeps reminded me WAY too much of Twilight,
which is not a good thing. It doesn't portray Stanton in a good light, especially with all those double standards regarding obsession that go around. CASSANDRA's obsessiveness over Stanton is meant to be seen as annoying and creepy, yet Stanton's INVADING SERENA's ROOM and WATCHING HER WHILE SHE SLEEPS is meant to be seen as romantic. What's worse is Serena KNOWS that he does this, and she does nothing about it whatsoever.
2) Stanton's avid desire to not tell Serena crucial information b/c oh-Serena's-too-vulnerable-to-handle it...

also rubbed me the wrong way and was creepily Twilight-esque too. As a feminist, the stalking and the minimizing of Serena's capability, despite the fact that she's called a GODDESS- in the LITERAL sense- really sticks in my craw.
Ms. Ewing, the young women who comprise your target demographic deserve better than this as a representation of heterosexual romance.
3) Stanton...you IDIOT! I swear, the second half of the plot is basically Stanton doing one idiotic thing after another.
1) Stanton explicitly states that Followers are untrustworthy and that Cassandra, his stalker, is doubly untrustworthy, yet he is ridiculously willing to trust her, and the result is that he creates a justified rift between him and Serena.
I mean, he rags on and on about her not letting him explain, but to me, witnessing your supposedly good boyfriend make someone "face the Atrox", i.e. turn them evil, is good grounds for not trusting said boyfriend.
2) Then he discovers his guardian knight back in the Middle Ages DELIBERATELY handed him over to the Atrox, i.e., the supreme force of evil, and Stanton realizes that this makes his guardian knight untrustworthy beyond words. Despite this, he...well, he goes along with said knight's plan to turn Serena evil way too quickly despite that.
The result of this is that, due to some stupidity of Serena and her friends, he loses his powers, and due to that lack of powers, one of Serena's friends gets killed. Due to stupidly trusting Cassandra AGAIN, the guardian knight becomes even more powerful by becoming a spirit of evil, and Serena's in danger, and the only way to save her is to willingly become evil.
4) Now that I think about it, Stanton is one sexist jerk. He stalks Serena, he doesn't trust in her capability, and a few soothing words from a guardian knight he doesn't trust, he's willing to believe that all his problems will be solved if Serena just turns evil for him. This means he clearly has no respect for her career as an evil-fighting magical girl, and it only gets worse once he becomes head of the whole evil organization after killing his guardian knight. Once he
Profile Image for Koorihime-sama.
100 reviews
July 2, 2011
CHECKED OUT THE BOOK FROM MY PUBLIC LIBRARY.

APART OF THE GOODREADS 2011 READING CHALLENGE.

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5


Stanton has been a Follower of the Atrox since he was a child. However, this force of evil has fallen in love love with Serena, a force of good. This relationship is forbidden, and when this secret is discovered, he starts to push her away. Will he choose a life of love? Or the life he is living now, without love and Serena?

I decided to do a better review of the Daughters of the Moon series by Lynne Ewing since my first ones weren’t done very well. This book is really a fast read, but since I really didn’t like this one, it took longer than the other two books.

Unlike the other books, this one doesn’t begin with a mythology story. Instead, it begins with Stanton’s past. The other thing that is different about this book from the others is that this is the only book that features a male or someone from the Atrox.

The tone and dialogue reminds me a lot of my teenage years and my high school, so the author did a really good job at writing the book in teenage words and their world. The descriptions were also very well done, and both of these things made the book go a little bit faster than most other young adult books. So, I really like this book from this stand point. Another thing I liked about this book is the mythology that is incorporated in it. Also, the character growth and their personalities are believable (for a supernatural book). Also, I like how you can see the character growth of Stanton, and it was very nice to read about his past. As the books/series goes on, you get more information about the Daughters of the Moon and the Atrox, which is good because it won’t overload you with information with just one book.

Also, out of all the books so far, this one is my favorite. Why? Because it focuses on my favorite male character in the series, and also, it does something different from the other books in this series. I also like this book and series because of the amount of descriptions and growth.

The only thing I really didn’t like was the twist to the ending. I totally didn’t expect the ending to be like that. :( Oh, well… I would have liked it better if the author kept that one aspect of what she changed in Stanton since it would have been more interesting. Also, I wish there was a separate book for all the guys in this series. :)

Anyways, this book and series are very well done, so go ahead and read this book and the other books.
Profile Image for Lilly Bergman.
9 reviews
December 7, 2012
I was looking forward to this book, seeing as it was the only book in the mind of a follower. I however am very disappointed. Stanton was one the the only things I really liked about the first book, other then the fact it starts the series. He was one of first 'bad guys' I've liked, I love his back story. So I dove into this book head first when I got it, but the last few pages it was like pulling teeth to get though. Now I know that he did it for love, and in the end it worked out in his favor. But I also watched the Tv show Charmed, I've realized there's a few things that happen that follow along 'Charmed' lines. This book was like reading every thing that happen to Cole (Which in the TV show spanned a number of seasons) in one small book that I was painstakingly able to finish reading. He's was taken at a very young age (Not yet evil) He's evil, human, he's evil again but ever so more powerful. Now I know you really can't call him Evil because in his heart, he's still that child that was abducted.

I think the thing that really irks me is the cover though, I mean the guy is like a Michel/Stanton hybrid. That Tattoo is Michel's(See book one.) And I for one this is just me, never imagined Stanton looking like that.

Anyway, I do say that if your going to read the series you have to read this one! It's is kinda needed for you to keep going!
Profile Image for Britney (BookDrunkSloth).
330 reviews6 followers
October 15, 2015
It's always a little exciting to be in the Point of View of the bad guys. The Sacrifice lets us look through the eyes of Stanton. His love for Serena is great, and he tries to stay away from her for her own safety.

I still think the whole love situation between a 16 year old girl and a guy who has lived for hundreds of years is weird. Just because he looks like a teenager, doesn't mean its any less disgusting. And when Stanton tries to convert a girl who doesn't look much older than 14, its really gross. If I ignore those things though, I like the story better.

Things do progress almost too quickly in these books.

What's funny is I don't know what it is that still makes me like this book. I have so many problems with it but I still liked it. Maybe it's the bad boy who is trying to do his best thing that has me. I don't know.
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