Every now and then I finish reading a book and when I go to write the review all I can think to start the review with is, "Wow!" The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton is definitely one of those books that blew me away to the point of speechlessness.
I loved everything this book was about and how the author weaved such an important message into a fascinating story with a compelling plot and such interesting characters.
I'm trying to start making my reviews more concise with less rambling. So in the interest of doing that, I'm going to include the key points-
*Characters: Dhonielle Clayton created some multi-faceted, deep characters in this story. They were real and fascinating. I loved Camellia, the main character above all. She was outwardly, and more important, inwardly beautiful. She saw people as they truly were and wanted only to help the people of Orleans love themselves for who they were more so than how they looked. And to accept themselves no matter how they appeared on the outside. She truly found beauty in everyone. She had a hard job/calling and handled it with aplomb. There were many times when if it had been me, I'd have fallen apart or had a mental breakdown from the pressure and treatment that she got. Her inner strength never ceased to amaze me.
There was a truly EVIL villain in this story. One I know hate above all other villains. But I won't name this person because I don't want to spoil it as this villain isn't apparent from the beginning(though it's revealed pretty early). A great addition to the cast of characters was Camellia's bodyguard, Rémy. He was the perfect balance in a story filled with characters obsessed with outer beauty. I also loved Camellia's sisters and their relationship with each other - it brought such depth to a world that could seem so vapid and shallow.
*World-building/Writing: the world-building/writing in this story is some of the most amazing I've ever encountered. Bar none. It was exquisite! The imagery was as thick and rich as cheesecake. For a book that seems to be about outer beauty, it's truly about something much deeper and was full of substance when you look deeper at what the author was trying to say. We live in a society that places so much emphasis and importance on how one looks. This book really turned that on its head and made me, the reader, examine that whole way of thinking. Why is the way we look so important? Should it be? Should the way a person looks, something they, for the most part(in our world at least) have no control over, be more important than who they are inside, something they do have control over and affects other people much more? Should how they look be more important than how someone treats other people?
Overall, I think this is not only a very enjoyable book but one of a very important subject. I think it would be a great book for young girls and really women of all ages. It's deeper themes touched me deeply and had me in tears at times. I love that it made me think about what beauty really is. But I love even more that the author did it in such an entertaining way.
I loved everything this book was about and how the author weaved such an important message into a fascinating story with a compelling plot and such interesting characters.
I'm trying to start making my reviews more concise with less rambling. So in the interest of doing that, I'm going to include the key points-
*Characters: Dhonielle Clayton created some multi-faceted, deep characters in this story. They were real and fascinating. I loved Camellia, the main character above all. She was outwardly, and more important, inwardly beautiful. She saw people as they truly were and wanted only to help the people of Orleans love themselves for who they were more so than how they looked. And to accept themselves no matter how they appeared on the outside. She truly found beauty in everyone. She had a hard job/calling and handled it with aplomb. There were many times when if it had been me, I'd have fallen apart or had a mental breakdown from the pressure and treatment that she got. Her inner strength never ceased to amaze me.
There was a truly EVIL villain in this story. One I know hate above all other villains. But I won't name this person because I don't want to spoil it as this villain isn't apparent from the beginning(though it's revealed pretty early). A great addition to the cast of characters was Camellia's bodyguard, Rémy. He was the perfect balance in a story filled with characters obsessed with outer beauty. I also loved Camellia's sisters and their relationship with each other - it brought such depth to a world that could seem so vapid and shallow.
*World-building/Writing: the world-building/writing in this story is some of the most amazing I've ever encountered. Bar none. It was exquisite! The imagery was as thick and rich as cheesecake. For a book that seems to be about outer beauty, it's truly about something much deeper and was full of substance when you look deeper at what the author was trying to say. We live in a society that places so much emphasis and importance on how one looks. This book really turned that on its head and made me, the reader, examine that whole way of thinking. Why is the way we look so important? Should it be? Should the way a person looks, something they, for the most part(in our world at least) have no control over, be more important than who they are inside, something they do have control over and affects other people much more? Should how they look be more important than how someone treats other people?
Overall, I think this is not only a very enjoyable book but one of a very important subject. I think it would be a great book for young girls and really women of all ages. It's deeper themes touched me deeply and had me in tears at times. I love that it made me think about what beauty really is. But I love even more that the author did it in such an entertaining way.