Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
RATING: *****
SERIES: Caster Chronicles #1
GENRE: YA Paranormal
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.
MY THOUGHTS:
The first time I saw this book was after I stumbled across the movie trailer on YouTube. After doing a little research, I found many bloggers have read and loved this series so I thought I would give it a go. After (relentlessly) picking up the movie cover (I loved the original cover and wanted a matching series), I placed the book on my shelf. Where it stayed a while. However, sticking to my word of always reading the book before I see the film, I finally picked it up.
The first half of the book started out a little slow and I was starting to regret this being the only book I took away on my short holiday. Despite this, there were some great aspects of the story which made me read on - and I'm glad I did! What a great book!
Firstly, I love the fact that it is spoken through a male protagonist. This is very unique to most YA books and gives a different feel to the story. I loved the protagonist, Ethan, who also happens to be the perfect boyfriend! Even with death literally knocking at his door, he still persists to love Lena - so sweet! As for Lena - talk about girl power! She is such a strong character! I also love the aspect of magic - it adds a spin to the situation!
As for the plot, the idea of being torn between light and dark is a very interesting one that kept me engaged. The historical aspects of the battle reenactments are also very enthralling! A great ending to a great book! Still waiting for the next one in the series (wink, wink Santa)!
Magic, romance, tragedy, mystery and high school drama - what else can you ask for?
MOVIE REVIEW:
I have only recently seen the film that accompanies this book after reading it ways back in the spring. After seeing the trailer and reading the book, I thought the film would be a great success - the new Twilight. Yet, it was one of those that seemed top flop on it's head. I was getting bad reports about it and it has no where near as much hype as I expected. When I finally got round to seeing the film, I expected it to be a disappointment. Again, I was wrong. I loved it! Although not very true to the book at times, I enjoyed it very much. I think the emotional scenes were done very well and seemed to capture all the feels. The actors where great and they looked (especially Lena) like I expected too! Hoping they will don the next film but a little skeptical.
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