Book Review: Grim Lovelies by Megan Shepherd

Hey guys! Today I’m bringing a review! I’m going to be talking about all my thoughts about Grim Lovelies by Megan Shepherd, which came out in October of last year. I had a ton of fun reading this book, and I can’t wait to share my feelings with you! Let’s get into the review!

Star Rating

4/5 stars

Summary

Grim Lovelies is an urban fantasy set mostly in Paris, France, where magic exists alongside modern technology. Most of the people in this world are “Pretty,” or nonmagical, and they are the ones who can create things like cars and guns and electric lighting. There are several different species of magical beings, too—the Goblins, the lowest on the magical hierarchy with only a little power; the witches, girls trained to have magical powers; and the Royals, those who are born magical and reign supreme over all other magical beings. Then there are the creatures like our main character, Anouk, creatures called beasties because they were originally animals but were turned into humans.

Anouk and the other beasties work for Mada Vittora, the witch who created them, until one day Anouk finds her mistress dead in a puddle of blood, and she and the other beasties are accused of the crime. To make matters worse, with the witch dead, Anouk and the others have only three days to save themselves before the witch’s spell wears off and they turn back into animals.

The Review

I’m a sucker for any book set in France, so that alone was enough to make me like this book. More than that, though, this book had some great characters and while at times the plot was a little convenient, I think overall the story was very good.

I loved Anouk’s character arc and her fierce determination to save her friends. She truly comes into her own in this book; I really liked watching that.

Predictably, I wasn’t a big fan of the romance. It didn’t seem like it was necessary at all and moreover, I just didn’t feel much real chemistry between Anouk and the love interest. Maybe in the next book, there will be more, but considering how this book went, I kind of doubt it.

My main complaint about this book was that, while the characters did face difficulties and such, it seemed like a lot of the time the resolutions to those problems were too convenient.

Still, I loved the writing, and all the little snippets of the French language that made my French major heart light up (even if a lot of them were curses). Of course, being the Grammar Nazi I am, even in a language I don’t speak natively, I did notice at least a few examples where the French was incorrect. Still, this book made me even more excited about my study abroad trip (which I should be on by the time this post goes up) and I’m very glad I read it, and I can’t wait to read the second book in the duology, which should be coming out later this year.

Okay, that’s all I had for this book review! If you’ve read this book, let me know what you thought of it, and if you haven’t, then let me know what your favorite country setting to read from is, if you have one. I’d love to hear all your thoughts! And while you’re at it, maybe leave a like on this post, or if you like what you see here, you can always follow my blog to get emailed whenever I post.

 See you soon!

-Ariel

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