A review by jhbandcats
The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The three main characters, Nina, Valerie, and Hector, are fully-fleshed and complex. While the other characters fade into the background, these are vibrant. We learn of their desires and motivations, their frustrations and anguish. 

Nina starts as a naive, happy-go-lucky country girl learning the ways of the well-to-do in the big city but she grows and matures into a sympathetic young woman. Hector, too, grows and matures; even though he’s nine years older than Nina, sometimes she seems the wiser. Their lives are made hell by the narcissistic and hateful Valerie, who demands the world revolve around her. 

The love story is believable and painful, and my interest never flagged as I looked forward to the resolution of Nina and Hector’s distress. I would have said that Valerie’s character seemed overblown had I not learned so much about narcissism since 2016.

I’m really enjoying making my way through Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s wonderful books - each one is new and fresh, vastly different from the others. 
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