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Review: The Graces (The Graces #1) by Laure Eve



Blurb from Goodreads:
In The Graces, the first rule of witchcraft states that if you want something badly enough, you can get it . . . no matter who has to pay.

Everyone loves the Graces. Fenrin, Thalia, and Summer Grace are captivating, wealthy, and glamorous. They’ve managed to cast a spell over not just their high school but also their entire town—and they’re rumored to have powerful connections all over the world. If you’re not in love with one of them, you want to be them. Especially River: the loner, new girl at school. She’s different from her peers, who both revere and fear the Grace family. She wants to be a Grace more than anything. And what the Graces don’t know is that River’s presence in town is no accident.

This fabulously addictive fantasy combines sophisticated and haunting prose with a gut-punching twist that readers will be dying to discuss. Perfect for fans of We Were Liars as well as nostalgic classics like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the 1996 movie The Craft, The Graces marks the beginning of a new wave of teen witches.
My Review:
 
Wow, that was not good.  This is honestly what comes to my mind immediately upon finishing this book.  I was slightly curious enough to keep reading but I definitely will not read any further books in this series. I think the biggest problem for me was just a total miss on maturity level -- on one hand, the author treated these characters (the MC is 15) as experienced with very mature things such as sex, drugs and alcohol while on the other hand, their reaction to the most basic of things was very odd/very immature.  At no time did I think, well that seems like a way someone would react to this occurrence.  It was almost like these characters were living on another planet.  If this book had one strength, it was probably Summer Grace -- she was the character I connected most with in this book but she was not a narrator and we really don't know what she's thinking most of the time.  This isn't a criticism except to say that it's not good when the narrator/MC is totally unbelievable and unreliable such that you can't fathom her thoughts or reactions, at all.  There was a "twist" at the end but at that point I was so not invested in the book that I wasn't shocked or surprised, I just felt let down.  

Hopefully you have better luck with this one than I did!  It is a bit of a mash-up between Twilight and The Craft but both of those are pretty amazing compared to this book. The Graces comes out next week on September 6, 2016, and you can purchase HERE.
Before the Graces noticed me, I was the quiet one who stuck to the back corners of places and tried not to draw attention.  A couple of other people had been friend enough when I'd first arrived--we'd hung out a little and they'd given me a crash course in how things ran here.  But they got tired of the way I wrapped myself up tight so no one could see inside me, and I got tired of the way they all talked about things I couldn't even muster up fake enthusiasm for, like getting laid and partying and TV shows about people getting laid and partying.

Comments

  1. This sounds like a big old miss. I mean a mash up of Twilight and The Craft is intriguing for me but only if done even better. Sorry this didn't work for you. Greta review!!

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  2. Oh bummer! I hate it when a book is that bad. I'm irritated that I wasted any time reading. Great honest review, Eva!

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  3. Oh my gosh! I was so hoping this would be good! I won't even try now. I love Twilight, but no. Just no. I'm sorry this wasn't for you :/ Lovely review, though!
    Genesis | Latte Nights Reviews

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  4. Ugh. You know it's bad when the review starts with "Wow, that was not good." LOL But when the teen character are mature enough to handle sex, drugs, etc but then react to situations immaturely... the author has really missed the mark in characterization. So lame.

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  5. Aw I am so sorry that you disliked this so much! See... I felt it akin to a train wreck- I wanted to look away, but I could not. It sucked me in, even though I HATED River and wanted to smack her. BUT, even so, I was still curious? I guess I was just more curious than I was put off- maybe that is the key 😂

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    Replies
    1. Train wreck is the perfect way to describe this one except that I didn't feel like rubbernecking at a certain point. There was definitely a fine line between curious and put-off

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  6. Oh wow, this is bad from the sounds of it. Character inconsistency like you described drives me batty blah

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  7. Sorry you didn't care for this one. I've been really looking forward to this one, but sadly all I've seen are negative reviews for it. Maybe I'll just borrow it from the library sometime and see. I hope you next read is much better!!

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  8. WOAH. 1 star? Woah. I have this one for review but I received it unsolicited, so I haven't bothered to read it! I don't think this one would be for me, especially what you've said about the characters. *sigh*

    Great review! Have a fantastic week, Eva. =)

    Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

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  9. Too bad you didn't like this one. Better luck with your next book! :)
    Miranda @ Miranda's Book Blog

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  10. Yikes! That stinks. I wasn't even familiar with this book before, and it looks like I'll keep it that way. :)

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  11. I've been hearing a lot of disappointment about this book. It's sitting on my shelf looking at me right now and i'm like ehhhhhhhhhhh. I can't decide!!!

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  12. Oh shucks. I want to read this one and JUST read a 5 star review and now a 1 star review. Now I'm more confused than ever xD ahaha

    Molly @ Molly's Book Nook

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