Mundie Moms

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Book Review: A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies

Published by: Harper Teen
Released on: September 27th, 2011
Source: Bought Book
4 stars: I Really Enjoyed It
Purchase from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound
Series: Book 1 in the A Beautiful Dark series

On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites;like fire and ice;Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.

In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can't help falling for, and Devin, who she can't stay away from, the consequences of Skye's choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine. -quoted from Goodreads

Jocelyn Davies has done a fantastic job at creating a story with an appealing lore, a beautiful setting and some fascinating characters. Normally for me it's the characters that hook me with the story, but this time around it was Jocelyn's writing that lured me in. Her writing alone was engaging, and well paced and it's flow kept me hooked the entire time I spent reading her debut. That's not to say I didn't enjoy other aspects of the book, because I did, but the writing is what kept me engaged with the story. I surprisingly enjoyed the Angel lore. I feel like there's been a lot of this lore lately, but Jocelyn's angels were unique and I loved the mythology behind their existences and what their role was in this book. I absolutely loved the cold, mountainous setting. Some of Jocelyn's descriptions made it easy for me to visualize the slopes, the cold nights under the blazing stars, and the cafe where some of the story is set.

The characters for me were enticing, and I felt like I connected with more than others. Unfortunately for me Skye wasn't a character I felt a connection with, which stinks since she's the main character. I had a hard time relating to her, and the funny thing is there's not one thing I can honestly pin point that makes me feel this way. She just didn't stand out like I wanted her to. I adored her best friend Cassie, and the two guys, Asher and Devin and their ties to Skye. What I liked about Asher and Devin is their history, their differences, they're continuous bantering with each other, the reason why they're both working together and the way that all ties into the story. Though Devin was someone I did not fully trust through out the story, Asher stole the show for me. I adored him. He's snarky, he's not afraid to go after what he wants and the chemistry between him and Skye was well written and developed.

At times it felt like a love triangle was starting to develop between Asher and Devin, but it was apparent to me who she liked more, though I understood her draw to both guys. I'm glad the relationship between the three of them went into a different direction than I first excepted, especially given what happens at the end of the story. That cliff hanger about killed me! I can't wait for the second book. For me, A Beautiful Dark was an enjoyable, incredibly intriguing read and one I really enjoyed. As I mentioned above, Jocelyn's writing, her history behind the story's lore and her plot line are what hooked me with her debut. I'm looking forward to reading her next book.

Twitter Tuesday - Veronica Rossi


Did you catch Veronica Rossi's book trailer for Under the Never Sky on MTV's Hollywood Crush  yesterday? Well, if not head over there and take a look at it. I think both Katie and I agree that this book will be on our Top Books of 2012 list.

Check out Katie's 5-star review of it here.  She said that " ...it's definitely being added to my shelf of all time favorites". And you know when Mundie Moms agree, well, there has to be something there. Don't wait to read about Aria, Perry and Roar. Oh, Roar.

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