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A review by tcgarback
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Personal Score: A
Critical Score: B
This is sort of an obligatory A because of how nostalgic this book is for me. Almost painfully nostalgic, because the series so viscerally brings me back to the 8th-10th grade period of my life, and I’m easily swallowed up by reminiscing. (I think) I read book one in 8th grade, maybe re-read it in 9th, read the second book in 9th, the third in 10th, and I had always meant to get around to the fourth book. It's taken so long that I now have to re-read the first three books to remind myself of the details. But I'm also re-reading them for the value of enjoying them in their own right, not just as stepping stones to the fourth book.
Much of my nostalgia comes from the movie. I first saw its trailer in theatres, which is also when I first heard the song "Seven Devils." That moment launched my many years-running infatuation for Florence + the Machine. When the movie eventually came out, I adored it. They sort of chopped the book to bits, but honestly, a lot of the changes are understandable and maybe for the better. It's such a shame the movie didn't bring in enough profit for them to greenlight an adaptation of Beautiful Darkness.
So back to the source material. It's long, and I like that. It was an opportunity to slow down and soak up a story over a week. I love how it starts with the school year and goes through the holidays. I love the characters a ton. I love the mystery and lore. I love the small town setting, especially since it's critical of white culture in the south rather than blindly in love with it—and handles its meager two ostensibly BIPOC characters acceptably. I strongly feel for Ethan's longing to escape. It all makes me feel like such a teen again.
The pacing is really wonky, though. Maybe not in the way it sounds. Basically, they stuffed way too much time in here as a result of setting Lena's birthday so far from the start of the book. Sometimes one or two weeks will pass between chapters, which we know because they’re date-marked, and we’re supposed to believe that nothing of any importance happened and that things like the state of their relationship or town gossip or information about Lena's Claiming has not progressed much, when in reality even a couple days would have made a world of difference.
Plus, you can generally see the two authors stepping on each other's toes. Plot holes, forgotten plot details, stylistic non sequiturs and otherwise wonky lines and inconsistencies, and a general sense that they're not taking the plot logic too seriously. It makes sense that the first draft was a fun dare they weren’t planning on publishing, because the story lacks foresight, and I can tell this went through editorial hell by how convoluted some things get in attempts at connecting all the dots and tying up loose ends. Honestly, Beautiful Creatures needed *more* edits before going to print.
But the writing isn't all wrong. Tonally, it's appealingly mature for YA. That, plus the rich setting and eclectic cast, makes the narrative spellbinding overall and its faults forgiveable.
So the book works more than it doesn't. It's alluringly slow-building and detailed, with drawn out scenes and subtle humor (alongside plenty of the nerdier humor that plagues YA).
The ending is contrived and confusing and takes a while to click, but it's ultimately exciting and surprising. The movie ending might be neater, but the book's version has it's own chaotic vibe going for it.
This book is messier than I'd prefer to remember, but I still love it. The movie isn't available to me for free right now, so I guess I won't be rewatching it soon, but I am happily continuing the book series. For now, I'm under a fair enough spell.
Personal Score: A
Critical Score: B
This is sort of an obligatory A because of how nostalgic this book is for me. Almost painfully nostalgic, because the series so viscerally brings me back to the 8th-10th grade period of my life, and I’m easily swallowed up by reminiscing. (I think) I read book one in 8th grade, maybe re-read it in 9th, read the second book in 9th, the third in 10th, and I had always meant to get around to the fourth book. It's taken so long that I now have to re-read the first three books to remind myself of the details. But I'm also re-reading them for the value of enjoying them in their own right, not just as stepping stones to the fourth book.
Much of my nostalgia comes from the movie. I first saw its trailer in theatres, which is also when I first heard the song "Seven Devils." That moment launched my many years-running infatuation for Florence + the Machine. When the movie eventually came out, I adored it. They sort of chopped the book to bits, but honestly, a lot of the changes are understandable and maybe for the better. It's such a shame the movie didn't bring in enough profit for them to greenlight an adaptation of Beautiful Darkness.
So back to the source material. It's long, and I like that. It was an opportunity to slow down and soak up a story over a week. I love how it starts with the school year and goes through the holidays. I love the characters a ton. I love the mystery and lore. I love the small town setting, especially since it's critical of white culture in the south rather than blindly in love with it—and handles its meager two ostensibly BIPOC characters acceptably. I strongly feel for Ethan's longing to escape. It all makes me feel like such a teen again.
The pacing is really wonky, though. Maybe not in the way it sounds. Basically, they stuffed way too much time in here as a result of setting Lena's birthday so far from the start of the book. Sometimes one or two weeks will pass between chapters, which we know because they’re date-marked, and we’re supposed to believe that nothing of any importance happened and that things like the state of their relationship or town gossip or information about Lena's Claiming has not progressed much, when in reality even a couple days would have made a world of difference.
Plus, you can generally see the two authors stepping on each other's toes. Plot holes, forgotten plot details, stylistic non sequiturs and otherwise wonky lines and inconsistencies, and a general sense that they're not taking the plot logic too seriously. It makes sense that the first draft was a fun dare they weren’t planning on publishing, because the story lacks foresight, and I can tell this went through editorial hell by how convoluted some things get in attempts at connecting all the dots and tying up loose ends. Honestly, Beautiful Creatures needed *more* edits before going to print.
But the writing isn't all wrong. Tonally, it's appealingly mature for YA. That, plus the rich setting and eclectic cast, makes the narrative spellbinding overall and its faults forgiveable.
So the book works more than it doesn't. It's alluringly slow-building and detailed, with drawn out scenes and subtle humor (alongside plenty of the nerdier humor that plagues YA).
The ending is contrived and confusing and takes a while to click, but it's ultimately exciting and surprising. The movie ending might be neater, but the book's version has it's own chaotic vibe going for it.
This book is messier than I'd prefer to remember, but I still love it. The movie isn't available to me for free right now, so I guess I won't be rewatching it soon, but I am happily continuing the book series. For now, I'm under a fair enough spell.