Authors: Alex Flinn

Bewitching (40 page)

“I was hoping you’d say that. Travis will be working a lot. It would be cool to have a friend there, to sightsee.”

A friend. I grin. I’ve made a friend, a real one, first in a hundred years.

“I’ll be there,” I say.

Yes, I have nothing but time.

For the moment, that strikes me as a good thing.

ALEX FLINN loves fairy tales and is the author of the #1
New York Times
bestselling
BEASTLY
, a spin on
Beauty and the Beast
that was named a
VOYA
Editor’s Choice and an ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.
Beastly
is now a major motion picture starring Vanessa Hudgens! She also wrote
A KISS IN TIME
, a modern retelling of
Sleeping Beauty
, and
CLOAKED
, a humorous fairy tale mash-up, as well as
BREATHING UNDERWATER, BREAKING POINT, NOTHING TO LOSE, FADE TO BLACK
, and
DIVA
. Alex lives in Miami with her family. Visit her online at www.alexflinn.com.

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Historical Notes

Kendra and Emma aren’t real, but some of the stuff in this book is. Specifically:

The Great Plague of 1665 killed about 100,000 people in London and spread to other areas of England. Most notable of these was the village of Eyam in Derbyshire, England. The villagers quarantined themselves, and seventy-five percent of their population died. Many of the descendants of those who survived have been found to have a genetic mutation called Delta 32, which may have protected against the plague and other diseases, possibly including AIDS. You can learn more about Eyam at www.eyamplaguevillage.co.uk.

I have taken some (many) liberties with the story of Louis, Dauphin of France. Louis was a real person who lived from 1729 to 1765. He was the son of Louis XV and the father of Louis XVI, who was the king married to Marie Antoinette. Louis married Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain. No peas or princess quest was actually involved. However, the two were said to have been very well matched and in love. Sadly, Maria Teresa died a little more than a year after their marriage. Louis, faced with providing an heir, remarried shortly thereafter to Maria Josepha of Saxony. However, when he died almost twenty years later, his heart was buried with Maria Teresa.

On April 15, 1912, the “unsinkable” ship,
Titanic
, sunk on her maiden voyage. One thousand five hundred seventeen people were lost while 706 survived. The ship did not have enough lifeboats, and those they had were released half full. Had the lifeboats been full, another four hundred people could have survived. Only two lifeboats picked up survivors from the water, and only one actually went back to do so. This was Lifeboat 14, led by Fifth Officer Harold Lowe. Among those who died were the Sage family, who were traveling to America, having purchased a pecan farm in Jacksonville, Florida. Mother, father, and nine children all died. It is said that one of the daughters, Stella, was on a lifeboat but got off because her family could not go. Learn more about the people of
Titanic
at www.encyclopedia-titanica.org.

To read some of the “real” stories upon which the stories in this book are based, visit www.surlalunefairytales.com.

Credits

Cover design by Sasha Illingworth

HarperTeen is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Bewitching

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www.epicreads.com

Flinn, Alex.

Bewitching / Alex Flynn. — 1st ed.

p. cm.

Summary: Tells the story of Kendra, a witch, and the first three hundred years of her life, including takes on a classic fairy tale, the 1666 plague in Britain, the
Titanic
disaster, and the story of a modern-day, plain stepsister.

ISBN 978-0-06-202414-5 (trade bdg.) — ISBN 978-0-06-202415-2 (lib. bdg.)

ISBN 978-0-06-213194-2 (international ed.)

EPub Edition © JANUARY 2012 ISBN 9780062104069

[1. Witches—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.F6305Bg 2012

2011024244

[Fic]—dc23

12 13 14 15 16 LP/RRDH 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1