A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

After the suspicious death of her mother in 1895, sixteen-year-old Gemma returns to England, after many years in India, to attend a finishing school where she becomes aware of her magical powers and ability to see into the spirit world

The beginning reminds me a bit of The Secret Garden, but then it ends up a little like a Dead Poets Society for girls. Enjoyable.

I don't think I'll read the rest of the trilogy but on the whole it was a really enjoyable read. It's a mixture of fantasy/paranormal fiction and historical fiction which I think worked really well. The novel was so easy to read, I could easily have read it over a couple of days (I couldn't however due to uni committments!) But it didn't leave me feeling like I wanted to follow the characters any further. If you're into fantasy and/or historical fiction I would definitely recommend :)

Nok ei veldig bra bok jeg har lest i det siste! The Victorian Era er en tid jeg liker godt å lese om - pene kjoler, korsetter, gentlemen og tea parties. Når man så blander det med god fantasy så blir det perfekt! Jeg elsket å lese om turene til The Realms (det var så bra beskrevet) og om de forskjellige personlighetene til Gemma, Pippa, Ann og Felicity – særlig Felicity var artig å lese om. I tillegg var det mange tvister i plottet og slutten gjorde meg veldig trist... Den førte til at jeg har lyst til å lese Rebel Angels så fort som mulig!

I really enjoyed this book. The best way I have found to describe it is that it reminds me of Twilight...but I hated Twilight. Gemma Doyle is an intriguing character whose strength has only begun to be explored (I hope) and while there is the beginnings of a love story, it doesn't overshadow the main plot, which concerns Gemma and her three friends. I have high expectations for the next two books and I can't wait to read them!