I love Renee Ahdieh's writing, but I lowered my expectations for The Beautiful because historical + vampires isn't something I typically gravitate toward. However, I found myself absolutely captivated by The Beautiful! The last few chapters were stunning and dramatic and made all the build-up feel so worthwhile.
Much of The Beautiful takes place at night, in the dark, and in the shadows. There's a sense of foreboding throughout the book, as well as a layered mystery. I really liked the main character Celine and her defiant spirit. I appreciated the diverse characters and Celine's observations about race and women's role in society. She really grows as a person through her friendship with Pippa and Odette, both of whom were also well-developed characters. The found family aspect of La Cour des Lions was really lovely, and every member was so intriguing. I'm hoping to learn more about each of them. Of course, I liked Bastien but I didn't feel like I knew much about him. He and Celine had a lot of chemistry; their encounters were electric! I would have loved more moments between them but admit that their relationship was believable and well-paced.
I loved that there were more layers to the story than I initially thought, and I need the sequel immediately!
Much of The Beautiful takes place at night, in the dark, and in the shadows. There's a sense of foreboding throughout the book, as well as a layered mystery. I really liked the main character Celine and her defiant spirit. I appreciated the diverse characters and Celine's observations about race and women's role in society. She really grows as a person through her friendship with Pippa and Odette, both of whom were also well-developed characters. The found family aspect of La Cour des Lions was really lovely, and every member was so intriguing. I'm hoping to learn more about each of them. Of course, I liked Bastien but I didn't feel like I knew much about him. He and Celine had a lot of chemistry; their encounters were electric! I would have loved more moments between them but admit that their relationship was believable and well-paced.
I loved that there were more layers to the story than I initially thought, and I need the sequel immediately!