By: Cait Marie
The Belles is a new YA book about a society in which beauty is everything. That being said, everyone’s natural body is gray and they have straw-like hair. Everyone except the Belles.
The Belles have the ability to manipulate people’s appearance, and are trained to do so their entire life. Throughout the kingdom, people pay for the Belles to make them beautiful. When the Belles turn 16, they are presented at court, where they show their abilities and the Queen picks “the favorite.” The favorite works in the palace for the royal family and court, while the others go to various teahouses. The teahouses are spread out through the kingdom, and it’s where people can go to get their beauty treatments.
Camellia, one of the Belles, desperately wants to be picked as the favorite. I won’t tell you if she gets it, but I will say that once she starts treating people, she starts noticing odd things going on. Things are definitely not like what her and her sisters expected.
This book is unlike anything I’ve ever read. It’s not at all what I was expecting. This pretty, sweet-sounding book turns dark and twisty, and it’s fantastic! Even the way it’s written is wonderful. Clayton’s descriptions truly paint images in your mind as she creates this beautiful world. It’s futuristic, yet has elements of an older time. The whole thing is just incredible.
I loved this book and cannot wait for the next one. This is the first time in a while I’ve jumped into a series so early, which I’m kind of proud of. I read it within a month of its release, so now I have a long time to wait for the next one. There’s no word of a date or even a title anywhere I have looked, but there has to be another book. I need it.
Functionally Fictional 