Review: Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate always dreamed of leaving the stifling Southern town of Gatlin.

But he never dreamt that finding love with Lena Duchannes would drive him away. Lena is a Caster girl whose supernatural powers unveiled a secretive and cursed side of Gatlin, so powerful it forced him to make a terrible sacrifice.

Now Ethan must find a way to return to Lena - and Gatlin - as she vows to do whatever it takes to get him back. Even if it means trusting old enemies or risking their loved ones' lives.

Can Ethan and Lena rewrite their fate and their spellbinding love story in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series?

The gothic love adventure between Lena Duchannes and Ethan Wate has come an end, and a bittersweet moment it was, turning that last page. I've followed this series for years, and from the very beginning, I've been madly in love the story. The typical southern town, the hidden world of the Casters, the forbidden love between Ethan and Lena... All described epically in poetic fashion... What's not to love?

The first three novels had me reeling... I couldn't get through the pages fast enough, although I never wanted it to end... *sigh* but alas... The finale... It pains me to say that I didn't exactly have the same experience..

I hate, hate, hate that I couldn't love the fourth and final book in this series as much as I adored the first three. It's heartbreaking for me as an avid follower... But it just wasn't there for me, and I'll tell you why..

Ethan's dead ~ but he's not really gone, and he's determined to find his way back to Lena. Usually, when you're dead, you're, well... dead. But Ethan knows the world differently, and he knows that there has to be a way out of the mess he's made of his life.. or death.. you get what I'm saying. And that's what the whole novel is. A long, drawn out journey out of the Otherworld.

Everything in this novel felt different from the others. While I can embrace a change of pace, this one was pretty slow, and I honestly had a difficult time getting through it. There wasn't that action, mystery, or anticipation like there was in the first three novels. No big revelations or major conflicts. Ethan took one careful step at a time in his journey, and he didn't really face any crazy obstacles that were damn near impossible to overcome. Everything pretty much just fell into place for the guy. I was kinda... bored... There. I said it.

One cool thing I would like to mention is the dual point of view. The novel is cut into three "books," and in the second portion, we hear the story from Lena's perspective. I would've adored this new addition, and it is a nice element because of the change, except that Lena and Ethan's voices were pretty much identical. I couldn't tell them apart ~ it was like they were the same person in two different situations... *sigh* again...

I'm a pretty big fan of the bad guys ~ not because I'm on their side, but because they mix it up. They add a menacing texture, and they challenge our heroes. The one's we've become familiar with in the Caster Chronicles reveal their devious faces in this novel as well, but I didn't find them half as scary as I did in the first three novels. They might as well have come in waving a white flag, with all the fight they put up against Ethan, Lena, and Link. It was ridiculous how easily they were defeated. I think that's what irked me the most about this novel. It was such a letdown and completely anticlimactic ~ especially Ethan's little tussle in the end in which he finally achieves his mission ~ the goal that he had worked the entire novel to reach. I was kinda hoping for a twist, something unpredictable but... Yeah, it ended in like three paragraphs and Ethan barely had to lift a finger. The bad guys pretty much took themselves out, the whole way through. Such a waste of evil...

I did like the end ~ it was happy, but not all happily ever after, if that makes sense. It left me warm and fuzzy and it was a nice, closed ending that made you smile.

I hate giving anything less than a stellar review when it comes to this series, but I must be honest.  I didn't get that feeling of complexity and careful planning like I did in the first three novels... It was all just too simple, easy, and predictable... *totally bummed*

I'll give it three out of five stars ~ because I love the series, and Ethan and Lena will always be one of my favorite love stories :)


Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading ~ the purpose being to share a little piece of the book you're reading :).

One day I'll get back to my extensive Tuesday Preludes, but probably not until after NaNo ends...

This week's teaser comes from Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl:

When you're alive, you don't dwell on how you're going to spend your time once you're dead. You just figure you're gone, and the rest will pretty much take care of itself.

Or you think you're not really going to die. You're going to be the first person in the history of the world who doesn't have to. Maybe that's some kind of lie our brains tell us to keep us from going crazy while we're alive.

LOVE this series ~ so sad to see it come to an end :(.


Happy Reading Everyone :)


~ Keely ~

OMG ~ Beautiful Creatures Movie Trailer

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.

If you don't know how much I love the wonderfully southern gothic Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, lemme just state it for the record now.. I LOVE THEM!

k, now that I've gotten that off my chest, I'm wicked excited to share the Beautiful Creatures movie trailer with you... it says "teaser trailer," but I'm not sure how much more than can add without giving it all away... I literally had goosebumps, misty eyes, the whole nine yards... Stoked.. :)

You know, I wasn't a fan of who they cast for Ethan Wate, but he's starting to grow on me... 
What do you think??

Happy Reading (and Viewing) Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

Beautiful Creatures

You know, I find it very difficult to keep up with the news about new novels, author tour dates, and film adaptations. It's not that I don't look or don't care, it's just that there's so much of it! I'll focus on a few authors, follow them and their work only to stumble upon news of another of my favorite authors that's over a month old! It's rather discouraging.. But I keep at it ;)

So my point is, I discovered some very exciting information this morning. My favorite series, The Caster Chronicles, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl will be adapted onto the big screen in February of 2013. Last month, Kami Garcia posted a list of the cast, and for the most part, I'm really liking the direction this is going. 

Viola Davis will be Amma ~ I mean really, who else could play the strong-willed, strict, loving, mother figure of Ethan Wate?

Jack O'Connell will play Ethan Wate. Not sure how I feel about this one, but then again, I had a problem at first with Josh Hutcherson playing Peeta, and that turned out to be a glorious decision.

Alice Englert will be none other than the mysterious and powerful Lena Duchannes. Not sure what I think yet.She's typical of what beauty is today. I pictured Emily Browning as Lena ~ uniquely beautiful. 

And my favorite, Link, will by played by Thomas Mann. Looking at him, he gives me a new face to put to Link. Perfect!

And Emmy Rossum will play the sexy, troubled, lolli-pop-riot-causing Ridley. I would never have guessed it, but after seeing her in Shameless, I think she fits the role pretty well.

You can see who else is cast here on Kami Garcia's blog. So much to look forward to!!

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.

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~