A Great and Terrible Beauty

Libba Bray
A Great and Terrible Beauty Cover

A Great and Terrible Beauty

dr.graynicks
2/27/2013
Email

Not bad. The limited choices facing the protagonist and her friends are accurate and rendered in a compelling way. The details are both factual and imaginative. Gemma holds the attention and refuses to adhere to socially constructed roles of gender and class, even as she attempts to conform. In addition, Bray depicts the unintentional emotional pain teenage girls inflict upon one another with tenderness and in a realistic manner.

The book is a bit predictable for people who've read in the genre before, but it kept my attention throughout, and I would consider further exploring Gemma's adventures to see where her story takes her.