Lifetime is jumping on the books-make-great-TV bandwagon by sending two books to pilot. One from Melissa de la Cruz the other from Iris Krasnow.
Melissa de la Cruz’s Witches of East End follows the Beauchamp family—the formidable matriarch Joanna and her daughters Freya and Ingrid. Freya, a sexy bartender, has a potion to cure every kind of heartache, while Ingrid, the local librarian, solves complicated domestic problems with her ability to tie magical knots. Joanna is the witch to see when modern medicine has no more answers; her powers can wake the dead. Everything seems to be going smoothly until a young girl, Molly Lancaster, goes missing after taking one of Freya’s irresistible cocktails. As more of the town’s residents begin disappearing, everyone seems to have the same suspects in mind: the Beauchamp women.
Iris Krasnow’s The Secret Lives of Wives is a non fiction book that examines what it takes to stay married. In raw, candid, titillating stories, Krasnow’s cast of wise women give voice to the truth about marriage and the importance of maintaining a strong sense of self apart from the relationship. Some spend summers apart. Some make time for wine with the girls. One septuagenarian has a recurring date with an old flame from high school. In every case, the marriage operates on many tracks, giving both spouses license to pursue the question, who am I apart from my marriage? Krasnow’s goal is to give women permission to create their own marriages at any age. Marital bliss is possible, she says, if each partner is blissful apart from the other.
The second book in the Witches of East End series, Serpent’s Kiss, was released in June, giving the TV show’s producers plenty of material to work with should they get a full season order. The show’s pilot will be written and executive-produced by Maggie Friedman, previously ofDawson’s Creek.
The Secret Lives of Wives pilot is being written by Jill Gordon (Five). Gordon will also produce with assistance from Dan Lin (Sherlock Holmes), Veronica Mars vet Jennifer Gwartz as well as Krasnow.
Will you be tuning in to see these shows if they get picked up?