Kassiah

I guess I'd give this book 2-1/2 stars. No, maybe I'll stick with 2. Can I say 2-1/4? Basically, I wanted to like it.

A Beautiful Dark is a great idea: this girl (Skye) finds out that she holds the key to the balance of the universe around the same time that two enigmatic, beautiful boys show up and take interest in her. One's fair-skinned, blonde, with ice blue eyes and a calm demeanor. And the other is dark, mysterious, and makes her breath hitch and her heart beat faster. Who will she choose? What will she learn about herself in the process?

That's the idea. And it sounds good, right?

Here's the thing. When you've got a love triangle, you've got to be invested in both of the boys (or girls). It has to make sense for her to choose one of them. If your heroine is a person who doesn't really connect to either of the boys vying for her heart, then why will the readers give a damn if she picks one--or if one or both of them leaves her or betrays her?

They won't.

They won't care at all. And that's the way I feel about this book. The idea is great. And the pull between dark and light that Skye is feeling could be awesome. But it isn't. She doesn't really let herself commit to the idea of either of them. She doesn't try to get to know either of them to see what it would be like. She wants Asher (I think), but she never admits it to herself. Even after Raven appears, she never explores the wrench that throws into the entire Devin situation. When it comes down to who to choose, the readers are left drifting, forming their own opinions--basically on whether they prefer looking into blue eyes or brown.

For the record, I'm gonna go with brown.

If this story wasn't really supposed to be about the love triangle, then Skye puts an enormous amount of time thinking about it. More than, say--the rest of the plot. She's not a good friend. She's not good at focusing on figuring out what the heck is going on. And she's pretty self-absorbed. The other characters are pretty flip-floppy, too.

I don't know that I will read the next book, but if I do, I hope Ellie isn't in it.