From the shelf: Beautiful Creatures

Title: Beautiful Creatures
Author: Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance, Witches
Date read: October 19-21, 2012
Dawn Rates: ★★★★ (4/5)

Summary (cr: goodreads)

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.

My opinion? I wanted to read the series even before Beautiful Chaos came out. But it seemed like I didn't have the time then...so, here I am now minutes after reading the first book giving my review of it. The male protagonist Ethan Wate (also the narrator of the story) is 16 years old. Yeah~ this is a paranormal YA novel AND yeah~ the character is almost 10 years my junior...seriously~ Anyway, situated in a small town named Gaitlin, here comes the typical "new-girl-in-a-place-where-everybody-knew-everybody-and-a-small-town-boy-who-wanted-to-live-away-from-the-town-he-knew-his-whole-life" scenario. She has this mystery vibe to her and that's where the plot thickens (another same-same situation). Truthfully, the beginning was a bit bland not until I made it to page 65 where they saw the locket in what it seemed to be like a token of distant past, a certain past which involves the mysterious Genevieve - Ethan couple. Interesting. The book captured me when Amma said, "you are not ready"  I thought, ready for what? HUH? What makes it different from the rest? The way the story builds up making you want to ask a thousand questions. Though I wouldn't give it a perfect score, it got better and better as I turned the page. This book at first was so-so but it became so addicting. The mystery in this novel extends to numerous possibilities. I wouldn't spoil it but I felt sorry for Macon Ravenwood, his character may be annoying but still...

Seventeen moons, seventeen years,

Eyes where Dark or Light appears,

Gold for yes and green for no,

Seventeen the last to know.

My favorite line: “Mortals. I envy you. You think you can change things. Stop the universe. Undo what was done long before you came along. You are such beautiful creatures.” - Macon Ravenwood

Till the next read...and when I say next, on to the next novel in the series (Beautiful Darkness)
Do you smell lemons and rosemary? ;)