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A review by rysmommyreads
Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore
3.0
Flawless Girls is a story about an elite finishing school adorned with gemstones and imbued with a touch of fantasy.
Isla and Renata Soler are sent to an elite finishing school by their wealthy grandmother in order to help make a name for them in society. This is supposed to give them a step up in society since they are from new money and therefore looked down upon by the old money members.
Isla leaves the school within hours, but Renata stays. When Renata returns home, she is different and quickly disappears again. Isla decides that in order to find her, she must understand the new Renata. In order to do that, Isla must return to the school and try to unearth what happened at the school that transformed Renata from the vivacious girl to gilded lady.
I really enjoyed the premise of the book; the cover art and description really drew me in. The narrative moved slowly in the beginning, and I was really hoping that it was building up to something, but was disappointed. Toward the halfway point, and until the end, things just got disjointed and confusing. It felt like the story was hopping all over the place, and established characters were changing in unexplainable ways. While I believe that this was the author's poetic portrayal of the inner conflicts experienced by the girls at the school as they struggled to maintain dual identities, it was off-putting for me.
I will still give it three stars because it was lavish and descriptive. The parts describing the house, the girls, the gems, and their classes were interesting. There was a general air of mystery surrounding the finishing school and its occupants (students and teachers alike). Isla gradually comes to acknowledge and embrace her unique identity, realizing that she doesn't quite fit in with the other girls. This journey of self-discovery resonates with many young women, irrespective of whether they face the same physical challenges as Isla.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Isla and Renata Soler are sent to an elite finishing school by their wealthy grandmother in order to help make a name for them in society. This is supposed to give them a step up in society since they are from new money and therefore looked down upon by the old money members.
Isla leaves the school within hours, but Renata stays. When Renata returns home, she is different and quickly disappears again. Isla decides that in order to find her, she must understand the new Renata. In order to do that, Isla must return to the school and try to unearth what happened at the school that transformed Renata from the vivacious girl to gilded lady.
I really enjoyed the premise of the book; the cover art and description really drew me in. The narrative moved slowly in the beginning, and I was really hoping that it was building up to something, but was disappointed. Toward the halfway point, and until the end, things just got disjointed and confusing. It felt like the story was hopping all over the place, and established characters were changing in unexplainable ways. While I believe that this was the author's poetic portrayal of the inner conflicts experienced by the girls at the school as they struggled to maintain dual identities, it was off-putting for me.
I will still give it three stars because it was lavish and descriptive. The parts describing the house, the girls, the gems, and their classes were interesting. There was a general air of mystery surrounding the finishing school and its occupants (students and teachers alike). Isla gradually comes to acknowledge and embrace her unique identity, realizing that she doesn't quite fit in with the other girls. This journey of self-discovery resonates with many young women, irrespective of whether they face the same physical challenges as Isla.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.