Beautiful Creatures

Beautiful Creatures, Book 1

By: Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl

Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins

Length: 17 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

The first book in the instant New York Times best-selling gothic fantasy series; a modern paranormal romance set against the gothic backdrop of an isolated southern town.

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.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2009 Kami Garcia (P)2009 Hachette

Compelling Southern Gothic tale

I listened to this book and it was the most dramatic studio presentation I have listened to so far. It had sound effects and original music scores that made the listening a real joy.

I found the book original and the story compelling. There is visual imagery that will linger with me for weeks and characters that I quickly identified with and grew to love. I enjoyed the excerpts that bring the reader back to the civil war. I love anything with time travel and flashbacks. I didn't care for the way the authors under estimated the readers ability to interpret what was going on, even if it is a young adult book it doesn't need to be "dumbed down". Overall it was a great book and the love of libraries and classic literature rang through the whole book and struck a strong note with me.

I must say that the movie recently released didn't do the book justice and they missed so many opportunities to really capture parts of the story that would have been spectacular on film. I know movies are never as good as the book but they really missed the mark with this one.

Kept me enthralled all the way

What did you love best about Beautiful Creatures?

The title of this book soooo does not match the storyline. I was pleasantly surprised. I loved it all the way through and I just had trouble putting it down. There wasn't any boring bits and I would highly recommend this one

Beautiful Creatures - Beautifully Crippled

Would you try another book from Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl and/or Kevin T. Collins?

I respect the authors and, overall, enjoyed the story. As you'll see below, I believe that the gave short shrift to their characters, a bit one-sided and their setting, a very clichéd South. I believe they will do better with their characters and won't portray another region quite so poorly. Indeed, it is due to that respect for both Authors I’m so hard on the setting and the characters. I believe there can be so much more here with a bit more nuance. In fact, I anticipate reading Beautiful Darkness and look forward to other work they produce together or individually. I simply hope they let the mess of this world seep through a little bit.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Their twist on the magic theme so prevalent in YA is refreshing as is the ending which brings to the fore the fact that right choices can still have difficult consequences

What about Kevin T. Collins’s performance did you like?

It is read well by Kevin T Collins; his inflections and tone is quite good. His southern accent isn't overdone, which is all too often the case. What makes the audible version great is the eerily performed "16 Moons" song by Michele McGonigle. I can't image a more perfectly fitting performance.

Any additional comments?

I switched between the Kindle edition and the Audible version, made a bit more difficult due to Audible still needing to enable Whispersync for Voice on the Windows Phone app. Yet another plug to the development team.

stunning performance but the story was lacking

I really loved the narration and performance but I was let down in terms of the story. It felt like it wasn't going anywhere half the time and the ending was a little rushed.

Great book

I'm not usually a fan of the paranormal genre but this was a great book. I will be reading the rest of the series.

I enjoyed listening to this book.

Narrator transitions well, love the extra ambient noises. I purchased this because I enjoyed the movie and wanted to read the entire series. I am not disappointed at all, I loved to listen.

Wonderful Story, Wonderful Performance

What did you love best about Beautiful Creatures?

Beautiful Creatures is a slow build romance more about the characters than about getting the main characters together. I love the world behind it. It teeters between light, teen romance and dark undercurrent themes about being who you want to be despite your nature. The characters are fun, and Ethan is a character I'm definitely able to get behind.

I loved the theatrics put behind the narration. The way you could hear the Castor spells as thunder and lightening filled your senses was probably the greatest surprise that, at least in part, made me so addicted to the novel. I literally can't take my headphones off because I'm so eager to get to the next part.

What did you like best about this story?

The slow build romance was my favorite aspect. I usually hate romance, and only gave this book a chance because the trailer for the movie looked interesting. I wish I'd gotten to it sooner. This book makes a romance hater like romance again.

What does Kevin T. Collins bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Kevin T. Collins brings the story to life in a way I haven't heard other narrators attempt. His voice changes between males and females is incredible - it's like there are individual people reading for each person dialoguing. It will be hard to pick up the books to read without his voice and it will make watching the movie even harder.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not a moment, but I love the relationship between Macon and Lena. Also, Amma was just hilarious and amazing in her love for Ethan. I love how well she stepped in as his pseudo mom.

Very nicely readed

Would you listen to Beautiful Creatures again? Why?

Maybe

What was one of the most memorable moments of Beautiful Creatures?

The grave where the ghost sat on the tomb stone

What about Kevin T. Collins’s performance did you like?

Great job on narrating

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

Any additional comments?

Two thumbs up

Great story annoying sound effects

What did you like best about Beautiful Creatures? What did you like least?

Beautiful Creatures was a different and engaging story of love won and lost. I however, struggled to engage in the reading because they used these terrible sound effects. As an avid reader my imagination makes all the sounds I need to enjoy a story. If you are like me and have all the imagination needed to bring the story to life, read this book for yourself.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Beautiful Creatures?

Loved the discoveries of a new world, new ideas about casters.

What didn’t you like about Kevin T. Collins’s performance?

He reads with excitement and passion but someone added to much to him amazing performance.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Yes

Any additional comments?

Take out the sound effects and offer this as a seperated purchase... Just saying.

Good listen

What made the experience of listening to Beautiful Creatures the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed this story and the development of the characters. I would put this book in the teen catagory though based on the theme of the story.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I enjoyed the connection between the characters.