REVIEW: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

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.

Part of the reason why i liked this book was because it was set in the south. I know, lame excuse right? But I tend to have a weak spot for setting. Anywhere cool and I will read the book in a hot minute! I loved the Southern Atmosphere that Beautiful Creatures had, with pinch of Gothic thrown in!

I did like the premise of the story, although the forbidden, destined love preoccupation has become extremely popular in the last few years. However, it managed to keep my interest, and I was able to read it without thinking that I had read it before. I did feel that it dragged on a bit, and found my self distracted towards the end of the 563 pages.


I completely agree with what was said at Literary treats, so I'll quote it:

"I love that Garcia and Stohl tell the story from the guy’s perspective, and that there is no love triangle. I especially love that, while the focus of the story is the romance, there is an entire world beyond the love story, and the characters’ actions have significance far beyond their relationship. From the first chapter, I felt myself drawn into this world, and I wanted to find out more. The book did strike me as long, but the story is fascinating. It’s also really scary — I can definitely imagine it playing out well on screen, and I can just picture myself covering my eyes in the theatre..."

 I would recommend this for you if you: are a teenage girl (14+) or if you liked books similar to Jinx by Meg Cabot. 


Second Opinions & Extras

Murphy's Library
An Interview with Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl (scroll down a bit)
Oh! Paper Pages