abookishmagpie 's review for:

The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

3.5

adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

---

 After Silvia Morena-Garcia blew up with the release of Mexican Gothic I was always curious to try something by her and when I heard about this book on her backlist it sounded like something I would enjoy and so I added it to my TBR. It did take a bit to get into it, nearly 100 pages before I was finding myself truly invested and needing to keep going so I could see what plot point was coming up next. Nina is a young girl who has come into the major city of Loisail to staty with her cousin and his wife for the Grand Season in hopes she may find a match and marry. Being the country girl that she is, plus the telekinetic powers she appears to posses, she is starting with a bit of a disadvantage. However, when she meets Hector Auvray, a famous telekinetic performer, she is entranced and eager to both learn from him and see if perhaps love is easier to find among someone who understands her talent. Hector is hiding the fact that his interest in Nina is more rooted in his past romantic fling with her cousin’s wife than it is Nina herself. He courts Nina in an attempt to be closer to his former love, but finds himself seeming to fall for Nina and all her quirks along the way. There is a lot of background that has to be laid before the real meat and potatoes of the story can begin to be told and then unfold, but understanding that backstory makes the connections between characters more intense and have more consequences. I definitely found myself swept up in the romance of it all and even caught myself tearing up at a few moments. And the part when our “villain” finally gets their comeuppance is so rewarding and worth the long wait to see it happen. I’d say that this was a good read for fans of period romances with the drama and mess. There is the magical element to it, but I can’t say it is a deeply developed or super important part of the story. It was still a good introduction to this author and I will check out more from her in the future.