A Great and Terrible Beauty-Andrea Mackey

Mackey, Andrea

English Per. 6

November 19, 2008

A Great and Terrible Beauty-Andrea Mackey

Ever wanted to read a book with adventure, suspense, and a bit of magic with the turn of every page? Well, if you have, the book by Libba Bray called A Great and Terrible Beauty is the novel to go to. Friends have recommended it to friends, and that's how I was able to hear about it. After reading the reviews about it, I had to stop by the library and check this book out.

It's 1895, and sixteen year old Gemma Doyle is living out her young life in India. She yearns to go to England where all the balls and dances, and she gets her wish when her mother kills herself. There, she is sent to Spence Academy, where she is supposed to learn about grace, charm, and beauty, but she ends up learning a bit about herself that no one could ever dream about. She has the supernatural ability to see visions of the dead and can go into the world of it, called the realms. She doesn't like and neither does her mystifying follower who tells her to close her visions. At first, she is marked an outcast in the groups at Spence having her poor roommate, Ann Bradshaw, for an acquaintance. Yet through a secret, she becomes friends with a strong-headed Felicity Worthington and the beautiful Pippa Cross. Together they read the chilling diary of Mary Dowd, a deceased girl, writing about her experience to see visions of the dead and the world of it with her best friend Sarah Rees-Tomes. They call themselves the Order, after the group of sorceresses spoken of, inside the journal. One night, when they come together, Gemma opens the door to the realms and they all go inside. Gemma and the girls have fun playing in the beautifully colored garden, and to make things even better, Gemma discovers her late mother. She learns about herself and realizes that there are dark forces out to get her and everyone else. That they will stop at no cost. That they are willing to kill.

"What if I told you the Order was real? That the realms are real? And that I know how to get there?" This quote seemed very important to me. It is when Gemma is finally reveals to her friends the secret that has been bottled up. I felt it was when the story really began, when the magic really took off. This quote made the whole story come to me with open arms, it just made everything fall into place.

I rated the book with a five out of five, because it was such a great book. I used crescent moons because the crescent moon with the all seeing eye is a symbol of great significance. It was the symbol of the Order, the group of sorceresses who could go into the realms. It was also on the necklace that Gemma wears, which links back to the Order. This book deserves five crescent moons given to it.

I definitely recommend A Great and Terrible Beauty. The story kept me going, holding on to my attention with every word. Libba Bray did a nice job writing the story, filling it with the main components that most readers would enjoy. I personally liked how she used the Victorian age as the time setting, it made things seem more supernatural, and someone else might think so too. I recommend this to female teenagers about the ages of 11 to 15 years old for semi-high level vocabulary. Warning, this book contains mild violence, and alcohol. This book was sensational, in its own way, making you feel and believe in the magic of Gemma Doyle.