Synopsis:
On the morning of her sixteenth birthday, Renée Winters was still an ordinary girl. She spent her summers at the beach, had the perfect best friend, and had just started dating the cutest guy at school. No one she'd ever known had died. But all that changes when she finds her parents dead in the Redwood Forest, in what appears to be a strange double murder.
After the funeral Renée’s wealthy grandfather sends her to Gottfried Academy, a remote and mysterious boarding school in Maine, where she finds herself studying subjects like Philosophy, Latin, and the “Crude Sciences.”
It’s there that she meets Dante Berlin, a handsome and elusive boy to whom she feels inexplicably drawn. As they grow closer, unexplainable things begin to happen, but Renée can’t stop herself from falling in love. It’s only when she discovers a dark tragedy in Gottfried’s past that she begins to wonder if the Academy is everything it seems.
Little does she know, Dante is the one hiding a dangerous secret, one that has him fearing for her life.
Dead Beautiful is both a compelling romance and thought-provoking read, bringing shocking new meaning to life, death, love, and the nature of the soul.
After the funeral Renée’s wealthy grandfather sends her to Gottfried Academy, a remote and mysterious boarding school in Maine, where she finds herself studying subjects like Philosophy, Latin, and the “Crude Sciences.”
It’s there that she meets Dante Berlin, a handsome and elusive boy to whom she feels inexplicably drawn. As they grow closer, unexplainable things begin to happen, but Renée can’t stop herself from falling in love. It’s only when she discovers a dark tragedy in Gottfried’s past that she begins to wonder if the Academy is everything it seems.
Little does she know, Dante is the one hiding a dangerous secret, one that has him fearing for her life.
Dead Beautiful is both a compelling romance and thought-provoking read, bringing shocking new meaning to life, death, love, and the nature of the soul.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This book got me excited. I find that once someone is immersed in the world surround literature it is hard to find books that are completely unknown territory. I feel that I always start a book knowing something going into it. I tried to stay in the dark with Dead Beautiful and was very pleasantly surprised.
~Spoiler Free Review~
Writing: Fun. Easy. Quick. Yvonne Woon does a really great job at getting a story across with as few of words as possible, something I think some other long winded authors should take note of. I really appreciated this along with the speed. This first book, Dead Beautiful, was nothing artistically beautiful or severely complex so the flow from page to page was crucial. This book could have been painfully drug out but Woon executed the story perfectly. I will be picking up the next one immediately.
World: Again, nothing complex. It's a modern day story so there isn't much world building to accomplish however there is an aspect that is a twist on the world around us as we know it, and this is what Woon does a great job laying out. I'm excited to see how this will build in the next two books.
Characters: Dead Beautiful is very character heavy but I enjoy every character, or at lease can respect the importance of each. I think Renée is spunky and impulsive and she's growing on me. I think all of the relationships with her family and friends are believable and well portrayed. I'm warming up to Dante. The whole forbidden love thing sometimes rubs me the wrong way but here, so far, its alright.
Plot: Interesting. I feel like it is the same story told time and time again but with a cool twist. I really liked one review that said "Twilight meets Hogwarts." This is kind of dead on minus the weak-minded Bella and the destined-for-death Harry. I actually thought this was really creative.
Overall, this was a fun read. I would recommend it to anyone who loves the whole paranormal + boarding school storyline, which I personally have a weak spot in my heart for. This is heavier in the adventure than the romance, so that is something I would keep in mind if you are looking for feelings similar to the Bella/Edward love scale. Honestly, I am really looking forward to the rest of this series!
World: Again, nothing complex. It's a modern day story so there isn't much world building to accomplish however there is an aspect that is a twist on the world around us as we know it, and this is what Woon does a great job laying out. I'm excited to see how this will build in the next two books.
Characters: Dead Beautiful is very character heavy but I enjoy every character, or at lease can respect the importance of each. I think Renée is spunky and impulsive and she's growing on me. I think all of the relationships with her family and friends are believable and well portrayed. I'm warming up to Dante. The whole forbidden love thing sometimes rubs me the wrong way but here, so far, its alright.
Plot: Interesting. I feel like it is the same story told time and time again but with a cool twist. I really liked one review that said "Twilight meets Hogwarts." This is kind of dead on minus the weak-minded Bella and the destined-for-death Harry. I actually thought this was really creative.
Overall, this was a fun read. I would recommend it to anyone who loves the whole paranormal + boarding school storyline, which I personally have a weak spot in my heart for. This is heavier in the adventure than the romance, so that is something I would keep in mind if you are looking for feelings similar to the Bella/Edward love scale. Honestly, I am really looking forward to the rest of this series!
---
“Sometimes, you have to look back in order to understand the things that lie ahead.”
---
---
I really liked it
★★★★
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you enjoyed this then you may also enjoy:
If you enjoyed this then you may also enjoy:
No comments:
Post a Comment