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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
ARC provided by BookishFirst and PenguinTeen in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and quotations are based off an uncorrected proof.
“Perhaps New Orleans was not what it seemed at first glance. Fittingly, neither was she.”
This book review took forever and a day because reading this book took that long to read. This book is a slow-burn if I ever saw one. Generally, I don’t love that, but Renee Ahdieh really has this way of making it worth it in the end. In any case lets begin,
The Premise: I definitely fell into the category of people who expected this book to be more adventurous. This book is actually better described as a suspenseful mystery. Celine is newly arrived to New Orleans to escape her past and finds herself drawn in by the Court of Lions and all their dangers.
I had so much trouble getting into this book at first because nothing about it really drew me in. The atmospheric setting is a rolling snowball so at the beginning it didn’t feel like there was much there. It was a lot of focus on suspense and intriguing the reader with all they don’t know. However, I didn’t feel like I had a reason to care at first.
Of course, the caring all builds over time, but I didn’t really think I was going to be able to finish the book until I got myself halfway through. Celine was an excellent character who I liked well enough, but I feel as though she was too constrained. There’s this part of her that she held back for the longest time that I just wanted to see her release. I wasn’t really satisfied with her until she did.
I was very confused with Bastian’s character for much of the time. I liked him well enough off the bat, but I wasn’t sure why he seemed to have so much power. I was very confused on whether or not he was human. And as the story moved and I understood more about him, I was confused as to why everyone liked him so much. I mean- I know why I liked him, but I just liked him because he said bad words and hates racism.
In the end, I felt like the plot happened all at once at the end of the book. It was 70% build-up and 30% plot. I don’t mean that the 70% was wasted in anyway, the book is good. However, I felt like it wasn’t a pace that worked for me.
This doesn’t mean that I didn’t love the book. The descriptions of New Orleans were absolutely enchanting and I did love it when Celine and Bastien interacted. They were fun. I loved the description of the times and I did enjoy the sections written by the unknown villian.
Also, the ending was fantastic. Even with a book I was on the fence about almost the whole time, I loved the ending. It’s the kind of cliff-hanger that convinces me to read the next one. I can’t wait.
TL;DR: The first half is slow, but the pay off is great. Trust in Renée Ahdieh and don’t rush yourself. You know, smell the roses.
“Perhaps New Orleans was not what it seemed at first glance. Fittingly, neither was she.”
This book review took forever and a day because reading this book took that long to read. This book is a slow-burn if I ever saw one. Generally, I don’t love that, but Renee Ahdieh really has this way of making it worth it in the end. In any case lets begin,
The Premise: I definitely fell into the category of people who expected this book to be more adventurous. This book is actually better described as a suspenseful mystery. Celine is newly arrived to New Orleans to escape her past and finds herself drawn in by the Court of Lions and all their dangers.
I had so much trouble getting into this book at first because nothing about it really drew me in. The atmospheric setting is a rolling snowball so at the beginning it didn’t feel like there was much there. It was a lot of focus on suspense and intriguing the reader with all they don’t know. However, I didn’t feel like I had a reason to care at first.
Of course, the caring all builds over time, but I didn’t really think I was going to be able to finish the book until I got myself halfway through. Celine was an excellent character who I liked well enough, but I feel as though she was too constrained. There’s this part of her that she held back for the longest time that I just wanted to see her release. I wasn’t really satisfied with her until she did.
I was very confused with Bastian’s character for much of the time. I liked him well enough off the bat, but I wasn’t sure why he seemed to have so much power. I was very confused on whether or not he was human. And as the story moved and I understood more about him, I was confused as to why everyone liked him so much. I mean- I know why I liked him, but I just liked him because he said bad words and hates racism.
In the end, I felt like the plot happened all at once at the end of the book. It was 70% build-up and 30% plot. I don’t mean that the 70% was wasted in anyway, the book is good. However, I felt like it wasn’t a pace that worked for me.
This doesn’t mean that I didn’t love the book. The descriptions of New Orleans were absolutely enchanting and I did love it when Celine and Bastien interacted. They were fun. I loved the description of the times and I did enjoy the sections written by the unknown villian.
Also, the ending was fantastic. Even with a book I was on the fence about almost the whole time, I loved the ending. It’s the kind of cliff-hanger that convinces me to read the next one. I can’t wait.
TL;DR: The first half is slow, but the pay off is great. Trust in Renée Ahdieh and don’t rush yourself. You know, smell the roses.
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
3.75/5 - Atmospheric, gothic, and perfectly timed.
I really enjoyed The Beautiful—it was incredibly atmospheric and captured the essence of gothic literature so well. I’ve seen some reviews where people were disappointed because they expected a vampire novel, and I totally get that. If it was marketed that way, I’d be upset too. To me, this never really gave “vampire novel,” but it did give tried-and-true gothic.
I’m currently taking an English literature class focused on gothic lit, and this book fits right in. The writing was vivid and scenic, with beautifully painted imagery throughout. The audiobook elevated the whole experience, the accents, the tone, the narration, it truly brought everything to life. I honestly felt like Nosferatu could’ve walked right out of the shadows.
There were a few plot points that didn’t quite make sense or weren’t fully explained. Some narrative choices felt a bit random, and while they might be setups for the next book, they didn’t land clearly in this one. I’ve also seen mixed comments about the pacing, but I personally enjoyed it, it kept me engaged the whole way through.
I’ve heard the series might go downhill after this, but I’m still curious enough to continue, especially if I stick with the audiobooks. They’re absolutely to die for.
I really enjoyed The Beautiful—it was incredibly atmospheric and captured the essence of gothic literature so well. I’ve seen some reviews where people were disappointed because they expected a vampire novel, and I totally get that. If it was marketed that way, I’d be upset too. To me, this never really gave “vampire novel,” but it did give tried-and-true gothic.
I’m currently taking an English literature class focused on gothic lit, and this book fits right in. The writing was vivid and scenic, with beautifully painted imagery throughout. The audiobook elevated the whole experience, the accents, the tone, the narration, it truly brought everything to life. I honestly felt like Nosferatu could’ve walked right out of the shadows.
There were a few plot points that didn’t quite make sense or weren’t fully explained. Some narrative choices felt a bit random, and while they might be setups for the next book, they didn’t land clearly in this one. I’ve also seen mixed comments about the pacing, but I personally enjoyed it, it kept me engaged the whole way through.
I’ve heard the series might go downhill after this, but I’m still curious enough to continue, especially if I stick with the audiobooks. They’re absolutely to die for.
This book follows Celine who has fled to New Orleans from Paris who quickly finds herself caught up in the cities underworld. But when murders start happening in the city Celine finds herself caught in a feud between the darkest creatures of the night.
I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun, quick read that I easily sunk into and then flew through. I liked Celine as a main character though she could be very prideful and was prone to making stupid decisions. I really liked the setting of this book and the little bit of worldbuilding we got though I am hopeful for more in the sequel. The romance was a little insta-lovey for me personally though I did like their banter and I am intrigued as to where it's going to go next. I really liked the writing and thought it did a great job of evoking the atmosphere this book was trying to convey. I liked the plot though the pacing felt a little off in a few places though I really liked the ending and I am excited to pick up the sequel and see where this story goes next. Overall, I thought this was a very enjoyable YA fantasy and I will be continuing in this series!
I really enjoyed this book. It was a fun, quick read that I easily sunk into and then flew through. I liked Celine as a main character though she could be very prideful and was prone to making stupid decisions. I really liked the setting of this book and the little bit of worldbuilding we got though I am hopeful for more in the sequel. The romance was a little insta-lovey for me personally though I did like their banter and I am intrigued as to where it's going to go next. I really liked the writing and thought it did a great job of evoking the atmosphere this book was trying to convey. I liked the plot though the pacing felt a little off in a few places though I really liked the ending and I am excited to pick up the sequel and see where this story goes next. Overall, I thought this was a very enjoyable YA fantasy and I will be continuing in this series!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
dark
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Okay okay okay je viens de finir le livre rien ne va plus c’est limite un 4.5 mais le début qu’il est lonnnnnnngggg du jamais vu mais la plume de l’auteure sauve clairement tout et l’histoire est genial et les personnages sont vraiment trop bien travaillé
I had extremely high hopes for this book. As a former twi-hard and with Dracula being one of my all time favorite books, I wanted this to be the beginning of a vampire resurgence. So so badly. I started the book and fell instantly in love and my high hopes seemed confirmed. I loved hearing New Orleans described that way and hearing all of the familiar street names and locations. I loved this language and writing style, and when listening to the audiobook, the narrator seems to transport you back in time. AND THEN... the narrator tried to narrate from a males point of view and her attempt was awful. It pained me. I had to speed it up during those parts being it was so painfully slow.
This book tried. Hard. Celine was supposed to be our “strong female lead”, yet every chapter, we were just hearing about her “breasts”, “bosom”, “chest” or whatever else was heaving. It got tiresome. I’m all for a character that uses their sexuality and isn’t afraid of it, but there’s a correct way to do it and this wasn’t it. I felt like she was reduced to whatever her chest was doing at the moment. The author also somehow managed to make a slow burn romance that was also insta-love??? At least that’s how it felt.
I loved the old school Dracula vibes at first, but then it didn’t capture my interest. I was so bored at the end that I almost DNFed it, but I was already so close to the end. It felt so slow and nothing made me care about the characters or the story. I wanted to like it so much. I am so disappointed.
2/5 stars. If you like vampires, you should definitely try it. But it definitely wasn’t for me...
This book tried. Hard. Celine was supposed to be our “strong female lead”, yet every chapter, we were just hearing about her “breasts”, “bosom”, “chest” or whatever else was heaving. It got tiresome. I’m all for a character that uses their sexuality and isn’t afraid of it, but there’s a correct way to do it and this wasn’t it. I felt like she was reduced to whatever her chest was doing at the moment. The author also somehow managed to make a slow burn romance that was also insta-love??? At least that’s how it felt.
I loved the old school Dracula vibes at first, but then it didn’t capture my interest. I was so bored at the end that I almost DNFed it, but I was already so close to the end. It felt so slow and nothing made me care about the characters or the story. I wanted to like it so much. I am so disappointed.
2/5 stars. If you like vampires, you should definitely try it. But it definitely wasn’t for me...
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I did enjoy this. It's beautifully written, loved the setting and the MC. Actually, most of the characters were really interesting and I was desperate to learn more about them. The plot intrigued me but something fell flat for me towards the end. But would definitely recommend if you're into vampires, historical settings (1870s New Orleans) and luscious prose.
