Something strange is happening in Ellerton High. Phoenix is the fourth teenager to die within a year. His street fight stabbing follows the deaths ...
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reviews
Aug 06, 2011
Rebecca
rated it: 
This book irked me for many reasons... (Listed in the order that they annoyed me as I read it)
Firstly, the names! How many people do you know with names like Phoenix, Arizona, Darina and HUNTER (esp as he would have been named aaages ago... not exactly a realistic name)? Now, does practically everyone you know have kinda kooky names like that? Probably not! It's fine to have odd names for your SIMs or whatever, but not in books!!!!
Secondly, all the Twilight copying..... I More...
Firstly, the names! How many people do you know with names like Phoenix, Arizona, Darina and HUNTER (esp as he would have been named aaages ago... not exactly a realistic name)? Now, does practically everyone you know have kinda kooky names like that? Probably not! It's fine to have odd names for your SIMs or whatever, but not in books!!!!
Secondly, all the Twilight copying..... I More...
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May 24, 2009
Espo
rated it: 
I think I really, really, really wanted to like this book when I picked it up. The premise looked good. The cover looked good, dark and mysterious. But it just didn't quite cut it. I've been fumbling with the idea of giving this three stars or more, or less, but I think it's three. I did enjoy it - not as much as I wanted to - and some parts of it irked me off unbelievably. But it gave me suspense when I needed it, some of the romance orientated stuff finally cut out of being corny and sounded b
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Feb 02, 2012
Sarah
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Davina is 17, and has recently lost the love of her life Phoenix in a fight which ending in him being stabbed and bleeding to death. She's struggling to come to terms with it, but Phoenix is not the first teen to have died in her year. Over the past 12 months Jonas has died in a bike crash, Arizona has drowned, and Summer has been shot.
Walking in the woods one day Davina comes across a barn, and inside are four people she recognises - Phoenix, Jonas, Arizona, and Summer. All are pale More...
Walking in the woods one day Davina comes across a barn, and inside are four people she recognises - Phoenix, Jonas, Arizona, and Summer. All are pale More...
Dec 18, 2011
Charlotte
rated it: 
When I was little I was taught, that when we died we either went to Heaven or to Hell. As I got older I started to believe more in Heaven but less in Hell. I believe and still do believe, that we make our own Hell. However, what if these are not the only two realms that we can too. Many books and many people talk about the limbo realm, where you go when things are not quite right. People often describe them as ghosts, those who still have to work out what happened to them and why. I suppose man
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Oct 12, 2011
Sharnee
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Oct 05, 2011
Kirsti
rated it: 
I think the 'It was OK' star rating fits this book best. To start with, it was extremely difficult to connect with most of the characters because they all had weird names. It felt like a cheesy sitcom or soapie- absolutely no one had an ordinary name and it was really irritating. The 'romance' between Phoenix (blergh! what a name!) and Darina was actually kind of stupid. 2 months of dating and they were in love forever? I'm not bagging on teen love, really I'm not, and that's because I did find
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May 23, 2011
Lilith-lacrimosa
rated it: 
Tengo muchísimos libros pendientes, deberia terminar de leer El Diosero, Colección Marquez de Sade, La divina comedia y Hex Hall, que deje' pendientes por las semanas tan ocupadas que tuve este mayo, pero hoy que fui al mercado y vi su seccion de libros tuve que aprovechar que tenían el 20% de descuento y me hice de este libro que le tenía ganas desde hace rato. En lo que esperaba en el banco me puse a leerlo y me encanché tanto que no pude soltarlo.
El libro me ha encantado, me atra More...
El libro me ha encantado, me atra More...
Feb 16, 2011
Myhotstylist
rated it:
Book 1 in a 4 part series. 3.5 stars
Darina is your average rebellious teenager. However the book starts off with her in a massive state of depression over the death of her boyfriend, Phoenix.
While wondering around in the woods, she hears a door banging in the distance and stumbles upon an old abandoned house with a barn, and finds none other than her beloved Phoenix, along with a few other people, (3 of them being other students whom had died from her school earlier in More...
Darina is your average rebellious teenager. However the book starts off with her in a massive state of depression over the death of her boyfriend, Phoenix.
While wondering around in the woods, she hears a door banging in the distance and stumbles upon an old abandoned house with a barn, and finds none other than her beloved Phoenix, along with a few other people, (3 of them being other students whom had died from her school earlier in More...
Dec 01, 2010
Mundie Moms & Mundie Kids
rated it:
I'm torn between 2.5 and 3 stars.
Both the cover and the premise of the book really pulled me in. They both caught my attention and make for a dark, mysterious read. I really, really wanted to get lost in this book and really like it, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to.
Darina is a strong character who's dealing with the grief of the death of her boyfriend of two months. She's having a hard time coping with not only his death, but that of of More...
Both the cover and the premise of the book really pulled me in. They both caught my attention and make for a dark, mysterious read. I really, really wanted to get lost in this book and really like it, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to.
Darina is a strong character who's dealing with the grief of the death of her boyfriend of two months. She's having a hard time coping with not only his death, but that of of More...
Nov 22, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
I hate when I forget to blog about a book. I know I read this for Voya. So, on Barnes and Noble, here's the review "Darina is grieving—not only was her boyfriend Phoenix just killed in a knife fight, but three other high school students have also died in the past year. While wandering around a deserted house, Darina hears wings fluttering and catches a glimpse of Phoenix fixing a fencepost. Seeing is believing, right? Darina constantly returns to the deserted farmhouse and is rewarded wit
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Aug 05, 2010
Leer es un placer
rated it:
uff al fin se ha acabado, pensé que nunca llegaría al final.
...Llevo una racha últimamente...
60% de culpa: La Traducción
What a pity de book... ¿Por qué hacen esas cosas? Es realmente deprimente que una traducción aniquile (véase también matar, destruir, masacrar) un libro de esa manera. Con lo que se gastaron en la portada podrían haberse estirado un poquito más con los traductores (y sé de muy buena fuente que hay muchos en paro). Ya sé que la crisis nos afecta a todos, pero More...
...Llevo una racha últimamente...
60% de culpa: La Traducción
What a pity de book... ¿Por qué hacen esas cosas? Es realmente deprimente que una traducción aniquile (véase también matar, destruir, masacrar) un libro de esa manera. Con lo que se gastaron en la portada podrían haberse estirado un poquito más con los traductores (y sé de muy buena fuente que hay muchos en paro). Ya sé que la crisis nos afecta a todos, pero More...
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Jun 17, 2010
Michelle
rated it:
A short quick read this book kept me entertained. Despite an underlying tone of sadness there was still a general feeling of hope throughout. Particularly in the romantic areas involving both Darina and Jonas.
I have to say that what made this book the most for me was how the undead were portrayed. These zombies weren’t shuffling, mindless, flesh dripping brain eaters. They were angelic and human and supernatural in nature. Not to be feared in the traditional sense they were, howe More...
I have to say that what made this book the most for me was how the undead were portrayed. These zombies weren’t shuffling, mindless, flesh dripping brain eaters. They were angelic and human and supernatural in nature. Not to be feared in the traditional sense they were, howe More...
May 19, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
This book surprised me - from the cover & reading the description I found myself expecting Angels or something similar - I wasn't expecting zombies!! However, these zombies were so far from the typical kind you see in horror movies that I don't think the name really suits them (even though that is what they call themselves in the book). I think I'd have prefered it if they'd stuck to calling themselves the living-dead but don't let the whole zombie thing put you off reading the book as I ended
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May 06, 2010
John
rated it:
Title: Beautiful Dead
Author: Eden Maguire
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
This book made me completely and utterly stumped as to how to rate it. I had seen it in stores, and loved the premise and cover, but never picked it up. When I got offered an ARC from teensreadtoo, I jumped on the chance. And I still can't figure it out. On one hand, it wasn't amazing, and has first-novel-in-series syndrome, on the other...it was fun and slightly dark and cool to read. More...
Author: Eden Maguire
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
This book made me completely and utterly stumped as to how to rate it. I had seen it in stores, and loved the premise and cover, but never picked it up. When I got offered an ARC from teensreadtoo, I jumped on the chance. And I still can't figure it out. On one hand, it wasn't amazing, and has first-novel-in-series syndrome, on the other...it was fun and slightly dark and cool to read. More...
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Apr 27, 2010
Cynthia (cynthial11)
rated it:
Ever since I saw the cover of this book I had been wanting to read it, I thought the cover was really eye catching and beautiful with it's bright pink color and the big bold letters, plus the wings caught my attention. Unfortunately I made the mistake to judge a book by it's cover and I think I learned my lesson after reading Beautiful Dead.
The story begins with Darina a girl that lost her boyfriend to a knife wound in the back while he was in a gang fight. Soon after his death she f More...
The story begins with Darina a girl that lost her boyfriend to a knife wound in the back while he was in a gang fight. Soon after his death she f More...
Mar 21, 2010
McKenzie
rated it:
Elterton High is odd, and strange things are happening. Four students have died within the last year, Phoenix being the most recent. Phoenix was Darina's boyfriend, and now she's going crazy. She's having headaches and is always hearing wings beating. Then she stumbles upon an old barn where she sees Phoenix and the other dead students gathered together - their spirits that is. They call themselves the Beautiful Dead. What is going on and how can Darina help them?
I'll keep this revie More...
I'll keep this revie More...
Mar 08, 2010
Dark Faerie Tales
rated it:
Quick & Dirty: A good first entry to what promises to be an interesting paranormal series.
Opening Sentence: The first thing I heard was a door banging in the wind.
The Review:
First Jonas, then Summer, followed by Arizona, and now Phoenix is the fourth student from Ellerton High to die within a year. Darina, Phoenix’s girlfriend is caught in the grip of grief’s talons and having a hard time dealing with his death. Then Phoenix appears with the sound of beating More...
Opening Sentence: The first thing I heard was a door banging in the wind.
The Review:
First Jonas, then Summer, followed by Arizona, and now Phoenix is the fourth student from Ellerton High to die within a year. Darina, Phoenix’s girlfriend is caught in the grip of grief’s talons and having a hard time dealing with his death. Then Phoenix appears with the sound of beating More...
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Feb 27, 2010
Iffath
rated it:
Something strange is happening in Ellerton High. Four teenagers are dead within a year. All are apparently, ‘tragic accidents’. After being stabbed, Phoenix is the last, following the unexpected deaths of Jonas, Summer and Arizona.
Darina, Phoenix’s broken-hearted girlfriend, is in denial. How is it possible that they are still here? They’re dead..aren’t they? The sounds of beating wings surround her.
But then one day, she discovers they are all still here..but as the Beautiful Dead. Pho More...
Darina, Phoenix’s broken-hearted girlfriend, is in denial. How is it possible that they are still here? They’re dead..aren’t they? The sounds of beating wings surround her.
But then one day, she discovers they are all still here..but as the Beautiful Dead. Pho More...
Feb 21, 2010
Katieb (MundieMoms)
rated it:
I'm torn between 2.5 and 3 stars.
Both the cover and the premise of the book really pulled me in. They both caught my attention and make for a dark, mysterious read. I really, really wanted to get lost in this book and really like it, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to.
Darina is a strong character who's dealing with the grief of the death of her boyfriend of two months. She's having a hard time coping with not only his death, but that of More...
Both the cover and the premise of the book really pulled me in. They both caught my attention and make for a dark, mysterious read. I really, really wanted to get lost in this book and really like it, but as hard as I tried, I couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to.
Darina is a strong character who's dealing with the grief of the death of her boyfriend of two months. She's having a hard time coping with not only his death, but that of More...
Feb 16, 2010
Ellz
rated it:
My thoughts... BLINK. This book was very easy to read and I literally devoured it. When I first saw the cover, I thought "looks very cool". Then I read I heard the word zombies and thought, UGG, but forged ahead anyway. Let me just say that I am so glad I did.
The plot of the story was very unique. Darina found her recently deceased boyfriend alive and well, surrounded by his undead classmates. No vampires, zombies, but not it the theatrical sense. The book held somethi More...
The plot of the story was very unique. Darina found her recently deceased boyfriend alive and well, surrounded by his undead classmates. No vampires, zombies, but not it the theatrical sense. The book held somethi More...
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Jan 16, 2010
Melissa
rated it:
publication date: March 2010
This is the first in a series of four Beautiful Dead books by UK author Eden Maguire. Each book will focus on one of the Beautiful Dead (Jonas, Phoenix, Arizona and Summer), whose mystery will be solved with the help of Darina, Phoenix’s girlfriend.
I liked this book. It had one element, which while it seems really small, made an impact on me. Each of the dead classmates was given wing tattoos in the spot that killed them. This was unique as More...
This is the first in a series of four Beautiful Dead books by UK author Eden Maguire. Each book will focus on one of the Beautiful Dead (Jonas, Phoenix, Arizona and Summer), whose mystery will be solved with the help of Darina, Phoenix’s girlfriend.
I liked this book. It had one element, which while it seems really small, made an impact on me. Each of the dead classmates was given wing tattoos in the spot that killed them. This was unique as More...
Nov 30, 2009
Kristen
rated it:
I have to be very honest about this book. I didn't like it. The beginning confused the snot out of me. In the opening scene, Darina is in the middle of nowhere looking at an old decrepit house. No clue why she's there, but her boyfriend Pheonix just died two days ago and low and behold he is there, with 3 other dead kids and a guy described as "An older guy, with grey hair". And to be honest, the descriptions of characters does not progress - at all. One of the girls is described as "
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Mar 10, 2011
Sun
rated it:
It was nice but it could have been better. When the book started, the writer immediately launch into explaining the mysterious deaths of four teenagers in the town, which was still the hot topic among the people in the town.
It was straightforward, easy to read but it could have been better if the writer spends some time with writing about the deeper matters like the relationship between Phoenix and Darina. I would love to know how she come to fall so deep in love with Phoenix but no, the wr More...
It was straightforward, easy to read but it could have been better if the writer spends some time with writing about the deeper matters like the relationship between Phoenix and Darina. I would love to know how she come to fall so deep in love with Phoenix but no, the wr More...
Nov 17, 2011
Kristine
rated it:
I am trying to think of one redeemable thing about this book and I find myself coming up short. At some point in the third chapter I decided to take notes on the things I disliked about the book, but there were so many that it was taking too long for me to read the book and I just wanted to be done with it. There are so many things wrong with this book; the characters were un-relatable, the situations were unbelievable, the setting was just stupid. Just about every sentence I came across some
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Nov 01, 2011
Fredrika
rated it:
Wow. Jag fastnade verkligen för den här boken. Det jag gillade mest var det att man riktigt kunde känna känslorna i boken. Författaren har förmedlat sina tankar om vad hon tänker att karaktärerna ska tänka, på ett fantastiskt sätt. Något annat jag gillar är att dem älskade varandra så mycket. Inte bara Phoenix och Darina, utan alla andra par i boken. Detta gör att allt som händer blir ännu intensivare.
Språket flyter på perfekt och är inte allt för poesi-aktigt. Det är tillräckligt mycket d More...
Språket flyter på perfekt och är inte allt för poesi-aktigt. Det är tillräckligt mycket d More...
Dec 28, 2011
Nikki
rated it:
Zvláštní kniha. Když jsem ji četla, nemohla jsem se odtrhnout. Když jsem se odtrhla, nemohla jsem se donutit do čtení. Asi takto bych charakterizovala celkový dojem, který na mě první díl série Krásní mrtví udělala.
Nejoblíbenější postavou byl pro mne Phoenix. Naopak se mi nejméně zamlouvala Arizona (té je věnován druhý díl) a i hlavní hrdinka - jejíž jméno mi neutkvělo v paměti i přesto, že jsem kniha před deseti minutami dočetla. Vadilo mi na ní, jak je nehorázně bojovná a houževnatá, a v More...
Nejoblíbenější postavou byl pro mne Phoenix. Naopak se mi nejméně zamlouvala Arizona (té je věnován druhý díl) a i hlavní hrdinka - jejíž jméno mi neutkvělo v paměti i přesto, že jsem kniha před deseti minutami dočetla. Vadilo mi na ní, jak je nehorázně bojovná a houževnatá, a v More...
Oct 19, 2010
Annie
rated it:
I loved the spin on 'zombies' in this novel and how they can't move on into the afterlife until they find closure. All of the Beautiful Dead have weird circumstances surrounding their death, and Darina gets roped into helping the dead kids from her school move on.
While it is written that Darina and Phoenix had a tight relationship, I never really got a good feel of how they were before Phoenix died. The opening of the novel just kind of throws you in and sometimes it feels like your More...
While it is written that Darina and Phoenix had a tight relationship, I never really got a good feel of how they were before Phoenix died. The opening of the novel just kind of throws you in and sometimes it feels like your More...
Sep 21, 2010
Chelsea
rated it:
Darina is still reeling from the death of her boyfriend Phoenix, the last of four kids to die within the same year. And it's not just her - the whole town seems to have a gray cloud of misery hanging over it. But then Darina starts to see Phoenix around town, visions which are accompanied by the sound of a thousand beating wings. Darnia soon learns that Phoenix is one of the Beautiful Dead - the lucky chosen few who get to come back and attempt to bring some justice to the manner in which they d
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Nov 22, 2011
Less
rated it:
My attention was caught by the cover. It's a beautiful, inspiring picture. I grabbed the book in the store and stared at it for a long, long moment, tracing every detail with my eyes, before finally deciding to buy it.
Even after I'd read the synopsis, I didn't expect much of this novel. I thought it was going to be just a simple story about a girl in love with her ghost-boyfriend and about the great struggle they had to go through to be together.
When I started reading it, t More...
Even after I'd read the synopsis, I didn't expect much of this novel. I thought it was going to be just a simple story about a girl in love with her ghost-boyfriend and about the great struggle they had to go through to be together.
When I started reading it, t More...
Dec 17, 2010
Ashley
rated it:
alright, frist of all the saying never judge a book by its cover is not far from reality when it comes to Jonas Beautiful Dead. i got the book because i thought that the cover was amazing, little did i know that on the inside it would be the worst book i would ever read. the characters were hard to relate to and not developed. the main charachter is an apsolute idiet and i found that that particuallar trait gratened as the story whent on. the setting was horrible as well. the faces and the wings
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