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A review by ms_morri1
The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh
2.0
This is more like a 2.5 for me. As a reintroduction to vampires, this is not a bad one, but there were too many hints of Twilight in it that I’ve decided to quit while I’m ahead (which is what I wish I’d done with Twilight.) Having said this, I want to stress that Celine is NOT Bella. There’s no creepy stalking and Celine can hold her own against monsters, thank you very much.
Having said that, there were tropes that pop up in YA and vampire novels that really just make me very frustrated and not want to carry on the series. I liked Celine’s personal journey through this book and even though there were hints of a love triangle, she knew who she wanted to be with. However, this book does fall prey to the plot devices that separate the couple that will clearly end up together, turning the love triangle into the thing I hate most about them. I think this more than anything is what took it from a 4 star to a 3.5 for me.
Also, the mystery while there feels more like an afterthought, and... if you’re going to include a mystery, I feel like I should be able to have a theory of who the killer is, and not just told at the end with no real indication to who the villains are.
I didn’t hate this book, give me Celine over Bella any day. I just felt that the author didn’t push the vampire novel as far as she could have.
Having said that, there were tropes that pop up in YA and vampire novels that really just make me very frustrated and not want to carry on the series. I liked Celine’s personal journey through this book and even though there were hints of a love triangle, she knew who she wanted to be with. However, this book does fall prey to the plot devices that separate the couple that will clearly end up together, turning the love triangle into the thing I hate most about them. I think this more than anything is what took it from a 4 star to a 3.5 for me.
Also, the mystery while there feels more like an afterthought, and... if you’re going to include a mystery, I feel like I should be able to have a theory of who the killer is, and not just told at the end with no real indication to who the villains are.
I didn’t hate this book, give me Celine over Bella any day. I just felt that the author didn’t push the vampire novel as far as she could have.