Synopsis:
Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power, and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.
Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.
In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.
Review:
Beautiful Creatures by Kami GarciaMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I decided to get myself a copy of this series due to the hype and the release of the movie (which I have not watched yet).
Lena Duchannes is a very powerful witch, and character that I wanted to strangle! I am very sorry, but I found her extremely annoying and whiny! Her "woe is me" attitude grated on my nerves! I think that she has a lot of growing up to do. I hope she does, in the remaining books in the series. Granted, she's only 15 (going on 16), but still...!
Ethan Wate, on the other hand, was an extremely interesting character. I liked him very much. He is a human thrust into a supernatural world. I loved his almost laid back attitude about finding out that there are witches living in the vicinity. He has a wonderful sense of humour, and I love the camaraderie between him and his best friend, Link. I did feel sorry about his relationship (or lack of one) with his father.
This story is told from Ethan's point of view, and is a riveting read. I struggled to put it down, and can understand why it is so popular. However, there were points in the story where I was wishing that it would hurry up. The pace was a bit erratic in my opinion. One moment it would flow wonderfully; the next, it would screech to a slow crawl, only to pick up speed again.
I actually downloaded this as an audio book to begin with, but I found that I didn't like to listen to it in short bursts, especially when going to and from work on public transport. I wanted to keep listening to it, but alas I had to work! I did enjoy the narrator's voice, and he kept me hooked! So, I also purchased this in print for my Kindle. I could then read along with the narrator if I wanted to. This reminded me of the books I used to get as a young girl, which came with an audio tape (showing my age here! :P).
It would be interesting to now watch the movie, to see what they kept, what they changed or missed out. I did want to watch the movie when it first came out, but due to unforeseen circumstances I was unable to. All in all, this was a fascinating story, full of a rich history of the South in America, re-enactment battles, love, witches, destiny and danger! If it wasn't for my dislike of Lena's character, and the erratic flow, I would have given this a solid 5*'s.
Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl seem to make a great writing team. I am now looking forward to reading the next book in the series! I just hope the erratic flow is smoothed out.
I recommend this book if you love YA or Paranormal Romances, or are fans of The Twilight Saga. - Lynn Worton
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