Beautiful Darkness (Beautiful Creatures Series #2)

by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl

Overview

Fall under the spell of the Beautiful Darkness, the sequel to the instant NYT bestselling gothic fantasy, Beautiful Creatures!



There were no surprises in Gatlin County. At least, that's what I thought. Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin as a place where nothing ever changed. Then mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes revealed a secret world of curses and Supernaturals with terrifying abilities. Lena showed him a Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen. Sometimes life-ending.
And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316077040
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	09/19/2011
Series:	Beautiful Creatures Series , #2
Pages:	528
Sales rank:	41,968
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.50(d)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Kami Garcia is the #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Beautiful Creatures and the Legion series. Kami lives in Maryland with her family and her dogs, Spike and Oz, named after characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.



Margaret Stohl is a lifelong science fiction fan, former video game designer, and #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Beautiful Creatures, Cat vs. Robot, Life of Captain Marvel, and more. She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her family.

Editorial Reviews

"A potent mix of the gothic, the mythic, and the magical...With original characters, complex world building, and crackling prose, this is masterful storytelling."—Deborah Harkness, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Discovery of Witches on the Beautiful Creatures novels

* "The authors ground their Caster world in the concrete, skillfully juxtaposing the arcane, magical world with Gatlin's normal southern lifestyle. . . Fans will devour this latest book and plead for more."—VOYA, starred review

"The southern gothic atmosphere, several new characters, and the surprising fate of one old favorite will keep readers going until the next book, which promises new surprises as "18 moons" approaches."—Booklist

"This engrossing must-have sequel...will leave readers clamoring for the next installment."—School Library Journal

"Readers eager to revisit Ethan and Lena's romantic tension and learn more about the Caster world and the Ravenwood family legacy will find satisfaction here."—Kirkus

From the Publisher

"The southern gothic atmosphere, several new characters, and the surprising fate of one old favorite will keep readers going until the next book, which promises new surprises as "18 moons" approaches."

Booklist

"A potent mix of the gothic, the mythic, and the magical...With original characters, complex world building, and crackling prose, this is masterful storytelling."

Deborah Harkness

Last year, Garcia and Stohl surprised readers with their first book, Beautiful Creatures, the story of supernatural happenings in the small town of Gatlin, SC. In this Amazon Top Ten of the Year title, hometown boy Ethan fell in love with Lena, the youngest in a family of "casters." One fateful birthday, Lena will be claimed by the forces of Light or Darkness, and until then Ethan will do everything he can to save her. In this second volume of the intended trilogy, Ethan and Lena's relationship is on the skids. True to heroic form, Ethan and his companions follow Lean deeper into the Caster world, dodging peril at every turn. While not as tightly written as the first book, Darkness will please readers eager for a post-Twilight gothic love story. Angelina Benedetti, "13 Going on 30", Booksmack! 10/21/10

Library Journal - BookSmack!

Gr 7 Up—This engrossing must-have sequel to Beautiful Creatures (Little, Brown, 2009) immediately returns to Gatlin, SC, and the seemingly impossible relationship between Caster girl Lena Duchannes, as yet un-Claimed for Light or Dark, and Ethan Wate, her beloved Mortal. Grieving the recent loss of Uncle Macon and worried that her 17th Moon and family curse will destroy everyone else she loves, Lena pulls away from Ethan and runs off to the Great Barrier with Siren cousin Ridley and mysterious John Breed. But is she headed for nirvana or danger? Plagued by strange visions and accompanied by his loyal friend Link and Keeper-in-Training Liv, Ethan travels the Caster Tunnels running beneath the world determined to save Lena. Along the way he faces shocking revelations about his family and gets help from several unexpected sources—developments that will further enamor readers. Familiar and favorite characters behave just as remembered, and sometimes even better. New additions, especially clever Liv, enhance the series and its plot, which is a cycle of hope, despair, and possibility. Like her Book of Moons, it gives and takes with equal measure in a great storytelling balance. Mortal and Castor settings aboveground and below reinforce the novel's Southern and gothic tone. Past and present are navigated successfully, offering new information while creating more questions. With allusions to a bigger game afoot and a classic good vs. evil climax that leaves several loose ends (unique, dangerous, and entertaining), this volume will leave readers clamoring for the next installment.—Danielle Serra, Cliffside Park Public Library, NJ

School Library Journal

This second volume in the trilogy that started with Beautiful Creatures (2009) opens in the aftermath of magic Caster Lena Duchannes's climactic 16th birthday. Mourning the uncle who died in the fight between Light and Dark, Lena drifts away from narrator Ethan. When she runs away with her Dark cousin Ridley and mysterious supernatural motorcyclist John Breed, Ethan follows, jealous and heartbroken. Ethan's traveling companions are Mortals: Link, his dopey but loyal best friend, and Liv, a British exchange student training to be a sort of supernatural librarian. The three are outmatched and unprepared for the perils of the Caster underground but survive a number of deadly encounters, largely because outside parties show up at exactly the right moment. Besides its weaker and more hurried plot, this installment lacks its predecessor's sense of place. Nevertheless, readers eager to revisit Ethan and Lena's romantic tension and learn more about the Caster world and the Ravenwood family legacy will find satisfaction here. (Paranormal romance. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews