Hey lovelies! 

Today I am going to be sharing with you the spoiler free review for The Graces by Laure Eve! I had requested this for review (however, this does not affect my opinions whatsoever!) because I had seen it pop up quite frequently on Instagram! However, after hearing some mixed reviews, I was slightly unsure as to whether I'd like it or not!

But firstly, before the review, can we just talk about how awesome the aesthetic of the book is? It's so gorgeous and gold and purple and stunning! The other editions have fantastic covers too and I am absolutely awestruck! Huge props to Faber and Jan Bielecki for such a beautiful design! 

Now onto the review!

About the book. 

{ WRITING }

The writing of this book worked really well with the vibe! I found myself really engaged in the world of the Graces and I felt almost like I was a part of it! It had a good pace to it and at times. I found it very hard to put down because I HAD to know what was going to happen next!

The only criticism I can give for the writing is that while I really enjoyed it and it worked well with the book, there was nothing too outstanding about the writing style (eg. it wasn't really poetic or cry-worthy). Nonetheless, it was perfect for this book! 

{ IDEA }

I found the idea of this book to be super cool! I don't reach much magic realism but have been wanting to get into it and this book is perfect for that! I liked how it incorporated magic, myth and mystery all into one book, while showing a parallel with the real world. It was very seamlessly done too so it didn't feel clunky and awkward!

The uniqueness of the book is what drew me to it and kept me reading! I liked the topics that Eve explored in this book with witches, magic, an elite family and a whole town's obsession with them. Eve made it really realistic and I found the way she explored the main character's desperation in this book to be quite raw.

You don't find many books about witches and witch magic (not the Harry Potter, wave you wand magic although that's fab too!) and it was quite refreshing to read!

There are some criticisms about this book and how it contrasts almost to Twilight with the mysterious, elite and untouchable family that is quite close-knit, however, when reading it, I didn't get that impression and I found it veered off on a completely different and unexpected path! 

{ PLOT }

So going on what I said just before, this book was quite unexpected and more twisty -turny than I had originally expected! I liked how unpredictable and mysterious the vibe of the book was! It was impossible to guess what would happen next but you most likely will guess because you won't be expecting to be wrong! (But you will be, trust me!)

There was so many unanswered questions at the end of this book (don't worry, there's another book coming!) and I felt myself falling deeper and deeper with the plot. 

{ CHARACTERS}

The characters I felt remained quite distant from the reader! (Which I think was the point of the book.)

You feel for the main character, River, as she is quite desperate at times, but you don't really connect with her because she is a little obsessive, immature, haughty and suffers from self inflicted special snowflake syndrome! I found that added quite well to the story though as it worked well with the plot and the ending and made for a realistic portrayal of a character.

The Graces were also great characters but very aloof and untouchable. They are shown to be a close knit group that are also quite haughty, full of themselves and immature. The way they have grown up has lead them to believe they are the very centre of the universe and that comes across in their actions and the way they treat other people. However, I also quite liked that about them as it complemented the vibe of the book.

I liked how the characters were quite distant from the reader because it meant the reader could never really trust them and it kept the readers constantly on their toes! 

{ FINALLY…}

I, like mentioned before, was really surprised to enjoy this but I'm very glad I got to read it because it was fabulous! I read it in two days and have then proceeded to write the review which you are currently reading! I thought this was a very complex, layered and unpredictable book and I CANNOT wait for the next book to come out so it can answer my unanswered questions!

I definitely recommend you read it if you enjoy mysterious magical realism!

OVERALL RATING: