Beautiful Creatures

Beautiful Creatures

Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

563 Pages

"She stopped and turned to look at him, almost ruefully. Like she couldn't help what she was any more than a shark could help being a shark, but if she could..."

Nothing ever happens in the small town of Gatlin. That is, until the niece of the town's infamous recluse moves in. Ethan knows he should stay away, but it's like there's an electric pull that he can't resist. There are many things he doesn't know about Lena, but she slowly lets him in to her crazy life. Soon these small bits of information add up to a whole new reality for Ethan, a whole new town that has changed completely from how he knew it the rest of his life. 

As Lena's sixteenth birthday approaches, both carry the burden of knowledge of the future, and neither can stop what is destined to be.

I've actually visited a town in North Carolina (where Gatlin is) called Gatlinburg. I feel like this is where Gatlin is based on, so I was able to picture the town more clearly in my head, the way it was described in this novel. I absolutely love the references of To Kill a Mockingbird throughout the book. The whole novel gave so many connections to outside sources. The climax came at the perfect time, and there was a really great buildup in the story, and great curveballs that kept me guessing. I am so excited to read the next one!

Pages this Semester: 2486

"Stories can conquer fear, you know. They can make the heart bigger." 

-Ben Okri