From the Bookshelf of Nothing But Reading Challenges…

A Great and Terrible Beauty (Gemma Doyle, #1)

Libba Bray

Start date: October 1, 2011

Finish date: October 31, 2011

Discussion: Books of the Month

Why we're reading this: We voted and this one was chosen as the October YA BOM. Link to discussion;
http://www.goodreads.com/topic …more
[close] We voted and this one was chosen as the October YA BOM. Link to discussion;
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/6...

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What Members Thought

Oct 05, 2012 Jessica rated it liked it

Shelves: victorian, young-adult, almost-read, urban-fantasy

I enjoyed this, but it isn't up to the standards of Libba Bray's newer books. I was disturbed by how quickly our heroine joins forces with the mean girls, and the story felt recycled from a Lois Duncan book I read in the 7th grade (Down a Dark Hall, which is fabulous in a retro way!) I am rather sad, as the idea of it was great - a story about supernatural goings on in the Victorian era is totally my bag. But, alas, this was not all it could have been. I might read the others, as I bought the se ...more

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Apr 22, 2011 Trisha rated it liked it

I actually really enjoyed this book. I liked that the main character and supporting characters were all flawed ~ some more than others. I liked that I didn't always agree with their choices, but I could always see WHY they were making their choice. The characters stayed consistent with who they were.
I also liked the worlds that were set up, and trying to understand the differences of each one.
It is, though, definitely a YA book, so don't go into thinking you're reading adult gothic fiction. It' ...more

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Oct 26, 2015 Rachel N. rated it liked it

After Gemma Doyle's mother is murdered in India she is sent to a girls boarding school in London. Gemma is sixteen and at first she is bullied but soon she befriends the girls who were bullying her. Gemma also has strange visions and soon learns she has the magical ability to connect to an area known as the Realms. The book is set in the late 1800's but little is made of this setting except to show how constrained the girls choices are and to mention corsets a lot. Very little happens for two th ...more

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