Tropes found in this Book:
Insta-Love

I feel a bit guilty because this book has been sitting in my "to review" pile since December 2013! I stopped reviewing for several years, and now I'm trying to catch up on these older books. So, let’s dive in.

While reading, I got strong Twilight vibes. Some scenes are almost identical to those in Twilight. Interestingly, both series are published by the same publisher. Perhaps this series was inspired by Twilight or was hoping to capitalize on its popularity, especially since it was released during the height of the craze. The key difference is that there are no vampires in this book; instead, some creatures are not alive and feed on souls rather than blood. I won’t reveal too much more to avoid spoiling "the surprise."

The entire premise revolves around Dante (not the character in the book, but the author) and his "banned" manuscripts. The story is filled with existential themes and strange boarding school antics. While the book is interesting and has a unique take on its paranormal system, we don’t truly get into the magic systems or understanding until the last 10%. The majority of the book focuses on our main character obsessing over a boy and mourning her parents’ deaths, which is understandable.

Unfortunately, all the twists and turns that are meant to be surprising are so obvious that nothing is shocking. Overall, I think the story is okay. It has some enjoyable aspects, but it borrows heavily from popular books of its time. Perhaps the author was inspired and aimed to create something similar to another well-known trilogy.

Even though there are a lot of comparisons to Twilight (when aren't there?), I still loved the originality of this book, the characters, and the love story. Yes, it's a little predictably YA, but there are a few surprises in store for the reader as well. Writing and background scenery are beautiful, so I definitely recommend this one!

I requested this several years ago and I don't think it's a book for me anymore. So I will not be reviewing at this time, but if I do read it, I will update this review. Thank you for the opportunity.

For some reason, I had this book marked down as read and waiting for a review, but I can't find anything else and the book has since been archived, obviously, and I can't download it now. I want to apologize for this and let you know that should I have a chance to re-read it in the future, I will certainly come back and post my review.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read and review it.

This file is no longer on my Kindle it seems. Thanks for the opportunity to review this book though. I really appreciate it. If I end up reading it in the future, I will update this review.

Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

9781423119562

465 Pages
Publisher: Disney Book Group, Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: September 21, 2010

Fiction, Teens, Young Adults, Sci Fi, Fantasy

Renee Winters just turned sixteen when tragedy strikes. She finds her parents dead in the woods in what she believes are suspicious deaths. The authorities write the deaths off as heart attacks. Renee is forced to leave her home in California and leaves with her grandfather for a special boarding school in Maine. She is immediately drawn to a boy named Dante. This is unusual because Dante doesn’t have friends and doesn’t talk with anyone except Renee. She begins to notice subtle changes in people and wonders what really is happening at this school.

The book has a steady pace, the characters are developed, and it is written in first-person point of view. There were times when I thought Renee was too cavalier about her adventures and too trusting. Overall, I thought it was a good story with a twist of mystery. If you like young adult science fiction/fantasy book, you will enjoy this book.

This book was okay for me. There were things that I liked about it and things that didn’t work as well too. I have had this book on my virtual shelves for years and am glad that I decided to finally brush it off and give it a try. I did find it to be a very quick read and it held my attention until the very end. I think that this book was definitely worth a read.

Everything changes for Renée on the day that she turns sixteen. She finds both of her parents dead in the woods from apparent heart attacks and she is soon sent to live with her wealthy grandfather. He seems to be very strict and sends her to an exclusive boarding school. The curriculum at the school is a little different than she is used to but she soon excels and starts making friends. She meets Dante at school and the pair are immediately drawn to each other.

I was able to guess a lot of the big twists in this book which took some of the fun out of the story. There is a bit of a mystery around what is really going on at the school and another mystery centered around Renée’s roommate. I did think that a lot of things in the story were rather convenient. It was an interesting concept and I was invested in the story and the characters enough that I was curious about how things would work out for them.

Caitlin Davies did a great job in narrating this story. I thought that she did a great job in bringing this cast of characters to life. I loved the various character voices that she used in her narration. I found her voice to be very pleasant and had no problem listening to this book for hours at a time. I do think that her narration added to my overall enjoyment of the story.

I would encourage readers who are interested in this trilogy to give it a try. I am glad that I read it and did enjoy my time with it but I don’t have any plans to read any further in the series.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers via NetGalley and purchased a copy of the audiobook.

This book got buried in my TBR pile. I enjoyed the story and found it interesting. It's a little dark at times though, I would definitely take a look at the next in the series.

I got an ARC via Netgalley.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. After finding her parents dead in the woods, her grandfather sends her to boarding school where things are not what they seem. Life, death, the soul, and walking dead? Make sure you don't get kissed. It had some parts where it made you think a little, but the characters never really delivered much depth for me.

I unfortunately didn't get to finish it in time before it expired on my computer. Thank you to the publisher for giving me access to this book, and if I manage to read it in the future I shall edit my review accordingly.

Loved this book!



Renee is just a typical teenager. Sneaking off to the beach for her birthday, having a wonderful day with her best friend Ann. They pack up to leave and head home to beat her parents. But something tells her they should take a certain street. And that's when Renee's normal life changed.



On her 16th birthday Renee found her parents in the forest dead in an unusual way. Now she spends days just mourning their loss, not sure whats to come next. Then her grampa comes to be her guardian. It's been years since she has seen him. And sudden her life is changed again. He makes her go to this school on the opposite coast. Its a school that her parents went to and she should go.



Her grampa wouldn't really give into details but once Renee arrived to her school. She will realize things aren't what they seem. Soon she will learn there are undead around her and the one she loves is one of them.



As the ending comes, the pace speeds up, the details get even better, and you'll be hooked until the very last word.





I can't wait to read the next book!

I am sorry I was unable to read this book within the timescales of it being published, thank you for the opportunity, should I read it in the future I will review it online

I was unable to finish the book, but thank you for the opportunity.