Review: Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Posted 12 September, 2010 by Danny in / 14 Comments


Beautiful Darkness

Authors: Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Scheduled to Publish: October 12, 2010
Links: Goodreads, The Book Cellar, Anderson’s Bookshop (my local indies),
Amazon (available as Kindle edition)
free ARC obtained from Travelling ARC Tours

Description:

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena’s family of powerful supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan’s eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there’s no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town’s tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

Review

Before I begin, I want to be clear that this will be a FULLY SPOILER FREE review.

SPOILER FREE!

Ok, now that we’re clear on that let me get down to what I can tell you: this book is amazing. If you read Beautiful Creatures then you will be familiar with the level writing that you can expect in a book from Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl – in a word: superb. These ladies know how to turn a phrase, make a point and slice to the heart of a scene, whether it be to make the reader laugh or cry out loud.

Their characters are so rich and compelling, they beg for stories of their own and pull the reader ever deeper into this magical, mystical world these fantastically talented women have created. Ethan and Lena are back, along with a host of others that you may have fallen in love (or hate) with in Beautiful Creatures. There are also a few new characters who hopefully will be around for the next two books (ones you’ll both love and hate as well!).

What’s so great about this book is that it grows the story at large, showing the reader that there is more to the Caster Universe than was revealed in Beautiful Creatures and unveiling ever more of the creative genius of Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl.

We learn much more about the Caster Library and Librarians (with a healthy dose of Marion, our favorite librarian, Caster or otherwise). And Ethan learns more about himself. While Beautiful Creatures was primarily about Lena’s journey to discover her destiny and come to grips with its meaning for her, Beautiful Darkness is about Ethan taking that same journey for himself. Ultimately, Ethan has to determine what is important to him above all else.

Lovers of Beautiful Creatures and YA/Paranormal Romance in general will absolutely love this second installment in the Caster Chronicles. While it answers some questions, it raises SO many more, leaving the reader breathless and waiting for the next book…due out over a year from now.

Bottom Line

For a book this compelling and well written, I am forced to steal Danny’s 5+ rating…

I give it 5 out of 5 books and then some!
Final Notes

Beautiful Darkness will be released ONE MONTH from today. If you don’t have your copy pre-ordered, I urge you to do so. I know for a fact that you can pre-order through most independent book shops as well as the traditional big chain stores and this is one of those books you’ll want to read right away. I can’t wait to get my copy so that I can read it again! The only downside of ARC tours is that you can’t keep the book.

With that in mind, please consider joining us for an in-depth discussion of Beautiful Darkness, which will take place during the months of November through January (more about this coming soon!!). We will also have an interview for you with Kami and Margi and a few other tricks up our sleeves as we celebrate the release of this fantastic book.

Now go and get lost…in a book!

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14 Responses to “Review: Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl”

  1. YAY for Beautiful Darkness!! I pre-ordered my books months and months ago. And I'm trying not to count the days so that I can stay sane. I *heart* Ethan and Lena sofa king much!!
    Side note: I be listening to Blink 182. Just.Thought.You'd.Like.Taknow.

    Reply »

  2. Hey! I'm Tina, from the Blog Hop and Follow Friday. I'm kinda a bit late on the hopping this week, but I'm glad that I did get around to it, and found your blog.

    I'm definitely a new follower – your blog is wonderful.

    I'm really looking forward to reading Beautiful Darkness, so thank you for the review – I loved it!

    If you have any time, come check out my post.

    ●▬▬▬๑۩Tina @ Book Couture۩๑▬▬▬●

    Reply »

  3. Greta is Erikasbuddy

    WOW!! That really was spoiler free. I read that through my squinty eyes cuz I thought you might give any tid bits away (I'm such a dork). Can't wait to read it !

    Reply »

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