Sunday 10 February 2013

Book Review - Beautiful Darkness

Title: Beautiful Darkness
Author: Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Series: Caster Chronicles (book 2)
Publisher: Penguin
Release Date: 28 Oct 2010
ISBN-13: 978-0141326092

Synopsis
Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.
Sometimes life-ending.
Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.


My Review
After finishing book 1 I was desperate to get started on this one and picked it up almost immediately. Then I had one of those weeks where everything seems to happen and I don't get much time to read. I tried taking the book with me to bed so I could read before going to sleep but I was so tired I just fell asleep, (not because of the book, I was just too tired to keep my eyes open).
I did read a little bit each day and tried to squeeze in as much reading as possible.
Beautiful Darkness follows on from where book 1 left off and things aren't going smoothly. Lena thinks she is going Dark, Ethan feels like he is losing her and his once quiet boring neighbourhood seems to be unraveling with more secrets. 
I will say that I didn't like this book as much as book 1 but I did still enjoy it. Lena is more withdrawn and it almost feels like she is giving up, in book 1 it was mostly her spark and fierce determination that drew me to her and I missed that a bit, but as the story progresses you realise why they did that and it made sense and ultimately made the plot more interesting so just stick with it.
Ethan is still awesome and willing to do anything for Lena, he is willing to put himself in danger again and again for her. This may seem foolish but it's sweet. 
We are also introduced to Liv, Marion's summer assistant at the library. She makes a very interesting character and invites a hint at a love triangle which I couldn't help but root for, at least some of the time.
Link and Ridley feature more in this one too and Serrafine is back of course.
This book still held a lot of charm and magic and I did end up really enjoying it. I will definitely continue with the series, the ending particularly left me wanting more.

My Rating
         



  

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