I'm not drawn to this genre of books. I don't even know what to call it--high fantasy, sci fi, both. But this kept me reading because of its colorful description of the world the author created and the very disturbing reality of facial, body, and beauty altering our society is so obsessed with. I found a lot of the story dark even though it was painted with a colorful brush.
I can't imagine a world where we're breeding young women to be beauty specialists or the division of power with royalty and courtesans. But as I read on, this world seemed very real. We naturally divide ourselves into cliques--the haves and the have-nots, the beautiful ones and the awkward ones, the sexy ones and the asexual ones, the kind ones and the evil ones. This book had them all. Additionally, there was a mystery, which is one of my favorite genres.
This book is not a standalone. It clearly leaves on a cliffhanger, which is one of my favorite writing methods. I hope to read the remainder of the series because I'm intrigued by this story and can't wait to read the resolution to some of the ills of their society.

The Belles is a study in contrasts that is compelling and artfully written. Beautiful and lush, it is also full of darkness, intrigue, and violence. Set in world obsessed with physical appearance, the author deconstructs the concept of beauty and the illusion of effortless glamour. In this world, Belles are the only people born beautiful and have the ability to change the appearance of others. Everyone else has naturally grey skin, red eyes, and straw-like hair, but those who are wealthy enough to regularly secure the services of a Belle can be beautiful.

Camellia Beauregard is one of the latest Belles being introduced to society. Powerful and ambitious, she hopes to be named the Favorite and work in the palace beautifying members of the royal family. However, nothing is as simple as it appears and she soon finds herself in a dangerous world that she is unprepared for. Full of twists and turns, this book was compelling, terrifying, and laden with vivid imagery.

The world-building was detailed and thoughtful. The lifestyles of the wealthy are outrageously hedonistic. They even own miniaturized wild animals as pets, i.e., bears, lions, and even dragons. Decadent food is constantly available and those who overeat simply have a Belle remove excess pounds. Princess Sophia is reminiscent of Marie Antoinette in many ways, and by the end of the book I was sort of hoping she would be guillotined!

There are scenes that evoke things like plastic surgery and child beauty queens, calling into question our own societal obsession with physical appearance and the impossible standards many feel they must live up to. Camellia sees the innate beauty of those who cannot see it in themselves and I found myself feeling sad for them. I liked the fact that in this book, in-fashion looks (changing minute to minute) are incredibly diverse in terms of skin color, hair texture, and degree of curviness.

The story itself is fast-paced and engrossing with plenty of intrigue. I began to suspect one of the later revelations partway through, as there were definitely several clues throughout the story. The only reason this isn't 5 stars is that I was a little underwhelmed with the love interests and I wanted to experience more of Camellia's emotions in some parts of the book. I might have liked the book to be a bit longer. However, I absolutely want to continue on with the series and can't believe I have to wait to find out what happens next!

I received this e-book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book a lot. It is set in a world where beauty can only be given by the Belles who are raised to give beauty to others and aren't allowed to get married or have love relationships. The main character is a strong female character and there were so many plot twists. I read most of it during one day at school!

Camellia is a belle in the world of Orleans where belles are revered because they control beauty and beauty is coveted. In Orleans people are born gray and only a belle can turn them beautiful.

Camellia wants to be the favorite and be chosen by the queen, so she can live in the palace and be recognized as the most talented belle of all time.

Once she makes it to the palace she sees that court life is not all that it is made to seem. There are dark secrets buried. She finds out her powers are far stronger than she could have ever imagined. The queen asks Camellia to help a sick princess by using her powers in an unconventional way and she must come to a decision. Save the lives of her and her belle sisters or risk her own life and help the princess.

This book is getting so much buzz in the bookstagram community. The cover is absolutely gorgeous and there's a PINK MAP YOU GUYS! I absolutely love books with maps in them.

The description of the book was extremely promising. I absolutely love that it was a take on a court in a "new Orleans" world. With a plot written around society's obsession with beauty, a bit realistic since beauty makes the world go round today. It gives you a small dose of reality in a beautiful, fictional world. The author has the ability to weave a story that is completely unique and has excellent world building skills. Definitely pick this one up!

I was really apprehensive about this YA book. I am not a reader of princesses, high court, royalty, or any of that jazz. So to say I was amazed and surprised would be an understatement. This book slowly weaves its magic around a set of sister’s called the Belles. Belles are raised to understand that their one and only purpose is to create beauty for the people of their kingdom. One Belle is traditionally chosen to be the “Favorite” of the royal family. To adhere to all beautifying needs. I do not want to give any spoilers. But if your job is to provide the ultimate beauty service to a spoiled princess who is never satisfied and definitely a bit mad. Things are going to get CRAZY!!!!!!!

Thank you NetGalley, and the first thing that needs saying is that there is nothing beautiful about these Belles.
A strangely disturbing read, that led me to expect one thing but delivered a very dark and disturbing tale.

This book was gorgeous. From the descriptions to the writing to the characters, I loved all of it. Camille was a great main character, she was determined to do the right thing no matter what and I really admired her. It took a bit for me to get into it with most of it being description at first, but after the first few chapters I found myself immersed in this world that the author had created. I wasn't expecting such a richly imaged world but this was exactly that. I think that someone who isn't even a fan of fantasy like myself would enjoy this and I would recommend it to anyone. I am looking forward to a sequel and anything else that this author will write in the future.

Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

Wow. First of all check out that cover! Yeah for a female POC, MC!!!! Gorgeous.

If you're not a fan of LOTS of descriptions (see my husband) than this book is not for you. I thought it was amazing though because the whole POINT of this book was how incredibly superficial all of these people are, and how the idea of "beauty" is constantly changing. Lots of interesting social commentary about our society now reflected in this fantasy.

At first I did not like Camellia but she was definitely a product of both nature and nurture and she grew throughout the book so that was good. Edel was amazing! <spoiler> I am super stoked by the ending and hope we get to see WAY more of her in the sequel </spoiler> Sophia was insane! I kept wondering why they didn't just kill her....seriously...do that same stop her heart thingy that had been used before and get rid of the crazy lady.

Anyways, very engaging read and I will certainly be waiting for the sequel!

Incredible. I fell into a world unlike any other, a breath of much needed fresh air in the fantasy world. The Belles creates a world that feels like a world of Rococo. The moment the cover was released, I felt intrigued. I wasn't sure if there was a time period base, and working with history I'm always interested in finding great books to connect with the past. This felt like 18th C. France meets New Orleans.

This was 100% a case of "it's not you, it's me" with this book. This is absolutely a beautiful book (inside and out) - I'm just not really a visual reader so the imagery was a little lost on me and there's SO MUCH of it that I was just kinda reading without really comprehending things (I don't picture anything when I read, I'm a monster, I know). I had a hard time connecting to the characters as well because it felt like a lot of telling, not showing. We're told a lot at the beginning that Camilla is rebellious and like, I can see that from her debut, you don't have to keep telling me over and over how she never follows the rules (this was mostly brought up when she was talking to a guy she meets who she's not supposed to talk to). We're also told a lot about how close the Belles are, but they're apart for most of the book which was disappointing (understandable, but disappointing). The way this ends opens things up for the sequel that I would definitely be interested in, so I'll probably check that it out when it's released. Like I said, this is just a "it's not you, it's me" thing. I wasn't in the right mood or mindset for this, but I definitely still recommend it.

Wow! Something fresh and unexpected for the YA scene!

This was actually a pleasantly surprising good book. I don't really care for the fantasy genre, but the subject and setting were intriguing. It took a few chapters to get me engaged and I felt that some of the characters needed more development, but because this is going to be series that will likely happen in the next book. Toward the end, there so many plot twists and turns that I couldn't put it done. I look forward to the next one.

This was my most hyped read for 2018 so far. I dropped all other reading to read it when I was approved. Sadly, so far, it was my most disappointed reading so far as well. I knew going into it that this book had flaws. I had read reviews about it and knew it was in there. But much like others, I hoped it wouldn't be that bad. And it wasn't at first. It was the book I was waiting for, that felt like utter magic and covered in sugar. As someone who tends to vary in their femme side on a daily basis, this book made me pick up makeup again and try to express it when that side appeared. And I was thankful for that. It reminded that side of me that it can shine. And the story itself felt like magic and original when a lot of stories prefer gritty, it was glitter.

But that started to change as the closer the book came to the end. Flaws started showing up. Camille hadn't really gotten past the one dimension of herself. And she continues being the same naive character to the end, despite going through ordeals that should make her grow. She stays flat, saying she'll do something but puts it off for five more chapters only when there is no choice. Most of the ending could have been prevented if she had just spoken up when she decided to. She instead kept saying Sophia couldn't rule at the end of each chapter and doing nothing to actually stop it. It became painful to even read at times, leaving me frustrating and feeling like I read the same chapter again and again just with slight differences.

The things that became my biggest issue however was three factors: the fatphobia, the bury-your-gays trope being played heavily, and the evil bi person. I nearly didn't finish the book because I was so upset. The fatphobic mentions weren't in most of the book. But as Camille is brought to court, it's shown heavily in court that fat is ugly, that fat people (Claudine) shouldn't eat, that they aren't beautiful, and that they're bad people. Claudine is mostly used as a point to pick at due to the fact she was over weight. Sophia and her other ladies "tease" her about it (it's more then teasing later on). Because of it, she was ugly and ends up dying at the hand of others making her more "pleasing" to look at. But more on that later. As for the evilness, I point to Prince Alfred, a horrible person who happens to be fat. It ends up being his most distinctive feature whenever he's described. He tries to rape Camille and the only describing words I can remember her saying about him is "greasy" and "fat". I can't even remember if they gave him a hair color. But it did say that.

As for the bury-your-gays, we come back to Claudine. We find out she's in love with her attendant, another girl. She's hiding it because the girl is of a poor class. But it's found out despite that and Claudine ends up dead. But first we go through the horrible scene were she's promised to disgusting Alfred to marry. Not another woman, which she clearly would prefer. We know Sophia is being cruel on purpose, but this rubbed me the wrong way. As someone who's gay, the very idea makes me sick and is part of my worst nightmares. Nothing about this is okay. Yes Claudine had other suitors that were men, but she showed no actual attraction to them. She seemed to be doing it simply to please Sophia. Claudine is then tortured to death while Camille and Amber make her 'more beautiful' to please Alfred. Because he doesn't like fat women. I had to stop here for a while, furious. Because it's 2018 and I had hoped that this trend would have stopped and it hasn't. It's one of most disgusting tropes in popular media and leaves actual gay people hurt, including myself. Because I desperately wanted this book to succeed. Because we need a black girl being the most beautiful and working actual black girl magic. We needed stories like this, but this book doesn't hold up, hurting in turn others. Claudine was used only as a plot device to push Camille past her limit and to fight back. That's it. Her death isn't mourned nor is she shown respect in the book. She's simply a throw away for the story of another straight character.

Finally I talk about the last issue, the evil bi queen. Aka Sophia. Though Sophia is only mentioned to have been with one girl, it was similar to Claudine's story, a girl she loved but came from the wrong position. So she had her killed. She in turn poisons her sister to take throne, has Claudine killed, has Bree killed, tortures Belles, and become the villain of this story. This is the second most used gay trope. Bi people, and bi women in particular are often made the villain in stories and in life. To me, I feel it's unfair and throws a stereotype that often leaves people who are bi hurt and accused of being so. This will only add more fuel to it, the intention or not.

I know the author tried, but in hoping to bring together someone beautiful, she hurt too many others in doing it. Sadly, I don't recommend it, even if I'll ache for this book and what it could have been. The writing and descriptions were lovely, it made me long for this world in a way. But the plot is full of pain and the characters fell flat, either as stereotypes or lack of emotion or character. I give this book a 2.5, the world saving the story enough that I give it a 3. But not without a heavy heart and some pain in doing so.

This book is definitely a page turner. I could not put it down! There were so many surprising twists and turns in the book and it was refreshing to read something different. The author keeps the reader engaged and wanting more.

This was such an unusual and gripping book! I loved the opening descriptions and the lush feel to Orleans. Right off the bat, the Belles intrigued me, and reading about Camellia transforming the small (terrified) girl was fascinating. The dark undertones also immediately caught my attention -- and I couldn't put it down for the last quarter! I would call this 4 1/2 stars (missing from 'perfect for me' because of a distance I felt throughout from Camellia...not necessarily a bad thing, but something I noticed). I will definitely pick up the second one.

I really enjoyed this book on futuristic beauty and what it takes to maintain the ideals. There is an evil princess, great dressmaker, and a sorority of beautiful girls trying to stay alive. I loved it.

The villains were just so obvious. I found the concept a little confusing and the characterizations inconsistent. It also didn't feel like a complete story - yes, it's the first in a series but not enough happened for it to stand on its own.

I do think this would be easy to booktalk though!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1916280274?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Orléans is populated with people born gray and ugly but obsessed with beauty and excess. The Belles carry the blood of the Goddess of Beauty and, alone, are born colorful and beautiful. They have the power to restore temporary beauty to the rest of the population. Camellia Beauregard and her five sisters are this generation's Belles. At the age of 16, they are sent to the Queen's palace to compete for the title of favorite Belle. But Camellia finds that the high price of maintaining beauty as the Queen's favorite is rife with ugly politics and dirty secrets. Caught between the wishes of a docile queen and a vindictive princess, Camellia finds herself with an impossible choice.

Dhonielle Clayton has created a lush, detailed world in THE BELLES. The theme of outward beauty being desirable at any cost is woven thickly through the story. Once I settled into this fantasy world, I was swept up in the riveting plot that speeds up as it goes along. I was super excited to get an early look at this book and look forward to the next one!

I received an e-arc of this from Netgalley.

See, I liked this. I read this during jury duty, and it was a really fast and enjoyable read.
It sputters before it starts, and I found myself a bit peeved, feeling like the story didn't really start till 21% in.
I will say that this world and magic system are intoxicating, scents as heady as the flowers and perfumes referenced in the prose. Once it got going, I found myself enjoying it enough that I wasn't trying to guess all the plot points (a horrible flaw of mine), and felt that a couple were really deserving of the word "twist".
I like this take on vanity in a young adult fantasy book, and I think if the trilogy continues with showing the ugly truth behind buying beauty, it will be a series that can boast an immensely powerful message for those who read it.
A character named Bree really stole my heart, and it was a perfect portrayal of the "sweet handmaiden who wants to help too much".
If there's a trope in this book that brought it down though, it's the "girl has insta-love with the Very Obvious Bad Guy" formula. I was pulled out a tiny bit at the scenes with the two of them, feeling like it was very misplaced in this story that was weaving together so nicely otherwise.
I absolutely adored Remy, he was a delight.
Overall, I'm trying not to go into much depth because even with a spoiler warning, people who haven't read might click.
I really did like this, quirks aside. and I look forward to grabbing and reading a finished copy! This is a lovely debut.