The Belles #2

The Everlasting Rose by Dhonielle Clayton

Publication Date: March5, 2019

Summary from NetGalley:

Camellia Beaureguard, the former favorite Belle, must race against time to find the ailing Princess Charlotte, who has disappeared without a trace. The evil queen Sophia’s imperial forces will stop at nothing to keep Camille, her sister Edel, and her loyal guard, Rémy, from returning Charlotte to the palace and her rightful place as queen. With the help of an underground resistance movement called the Iron Ladies–a society that rejects beauty treatments entirely–and the backing of alternative newspaper the Spider’s Web, Camille uses her powers, her connections, and her cunning to outwit her greatest nemesis, Sophia, and attempt to restore peace to Orléans. But enemies lurk in the most unexpected places, forcing Camille to decide just how much she’s willing to sacrifice to save her people.

ARC provided by Disney Book Group via NetGalley for an honest review. 

Confession:

Sigh! I really wish they would change the covers for these books.  I think this one is worse than the first one.  If I didn’t know how good these book were I would never have picked them up because of the cover.  I only read the first one because I read an interview with the author and Scott Westerfeld who compared it to the Uglies series, which I adore.  So I closed my eyes and gave it a chance.  I am glad I did because I really enjoyed The Belles and this one too.  So if you are like me and saw this cover and went yuck no, just open the book and give them a chance, they are excellent.  

I think that I enjoyed this book a little bit more than the first one.  It wasn’t too long, although it almost felt too short.  About 2/3rds of the way through I started thinking that there was no way to wrap it all up, but it does.  The ending therefore was a tad rushed, but still was satisfactory.  The pacing was much better though and there were some pretty exciting scenes.

I enjoyed Camellia’s character a bit more in this book, she has had to grow up quick and get her act together enough to accomplish the impossible.  She continues to struggle with who to trust, and unfortunately she put her trust into the wrong people sometimes.  Her inner dialogue was great, especially as she is trying to expand and control her power.  

Reny is still my favorite character, and the two of them together was just adorable.  He was so tender and protective of her at the same time, but he also able to let her make the decisions and take care of things when needed.  He also trusted her to carry out part of the mission without him.  

The plot was faster paced than the first book.  Although a lot of the plot was about their hiding from the world, and running away from the people who want to hurt them. But at least this allowed us to see more of the world of Orleans.  The last 50 or so pages were pretty intense and the confrontation between Sophia and Camellia was amazing.  I love the world the author has created and that is what kept me engaged with the books.  I love the mix of magic and science, especially when it became know how the Belles come to be.  

I have to put in a special plug for the tea cup dragons.  They were all adorable, and I really want one!  They were a nice touch to the world. 

Overall this was a good sequel to the first book.  It gave us more background information on the Belles and how they work.  It ended in a satisfactory way, but I would like to see more books set in this fascinating world.  The overall message about how obsession with beauty can destroy was interesting.