Author: Cat Mann
Genre: New Adult Paranormal Romance
Pages: 312
Rating: 3 stars
Book Description (goodreads):
Obsessive and driven by nightmares, Ava Baio is uprooted from her Chicago home after the untimely and tragic death of her loving mother. Taken across country by her antagonistic grandmother and placed as a boarding student at a school in Dana Point, California, Ava struggles with isolation and the loss of her mother and her grandfather. Faced with having left her beloved brownstone behind and attending a new school, surrounded by new faces and unfamiliar scenery, she finds herself sorting through unfamiliar and uncharted feelings with a strange and beautiful boy, Ari – a modern day Adonis. After an unconventional start to their relationship, Ava becomes intensely absorbed by her love for Ari, and with his help and the help of his family, she discovers who she really is – a Fate descended from Atropos. She learns that the Greek mythology she grew up reading is not comprised of myth after all.
Ava faces constant challenges both in her relationship with Ari and with the fact that she is being hunted by six threatening and ruthless men who want nothing more than for her to die so that they can live forever. She has no choice but to stand up for those she has come to love. In doing so, she becomes something she hates, a killer.
A true page-turner, A Beautiful Fate is Part one of The Beautiful Fate Series. The novel is full of suspense, romance and the allure of ancient Greece. Ava and Ari will leave the reader hoping the story will never end.
Review:
Ava Baio feels all alone. Her mother dies and as a result she’s transplanted from Chicago to a boarding school in California. Her only living relative is a grandmother who seems to want nothing to do with her and her best friend is half way across the country. Plagued with nightmares about creepy hallways and ominous scissors, Ava has no relief against the torment. Until she meets Ari – an Adonis who seems like he stepped out of a Greek Myth – and it’s only though him and his family that Ava learns about the father she never knew, her place in the universe and the mythological threat that wants nothing more than to see her dead…
There’s a lot I liked about this book. The setting in the picturesque Dana Point, California, as well as whole idea of Greek fates controlling destiny. The cover of this book is rather appropriate and I found myself liking the cover more the more I read Ava’s story.
I found the character of Ava to be inconsistent in her behaviour. Her relationship with Ari was frustrating with the way she would run hot and cold. She would be furious with him for ignoring her then let him in her to comfort her in the dark of night. And then she would be proud that he was making strides in his attempt to publicly acknowledge their relationship and then because he didn’t smile at her, she’s storm off in a huff only to let him in to her dorm room at 2am again that same night. I also didn’t like how she treated her grandmother. Yes – we find out that Mrs Baio isn’t the lovely warm fuzzies grandmother that Ava wants but I thought that Ava used and abused the older woman. She takes the free clothes, brand new car and all the trimmings that go along with being related to a fashion designer but then Ava would turn around and be incredibly rude to her.
Ari’s one of those characters who are just a little too good to be true – as is his family. Practically perfect in everywhere from their house to the way they’d interact with each other and how accepting they were of Ava. That said – they did add a lot to the whole feeling of the novel. I liked the way that Ava was when she was with them.
Plot wise – this book is full of suspense and action. At times it felt a little too quick but I enjoyed how it played out. Cat Mann sure is cruel to Ava with all that she puts her heroine through! That said, there is a lot more romance than action in this book and as I wasn’t too fond of the main character, I think I would have preferred more plot and less about Ava and Ari’s blossoming relationship.
I’ll be keeping an eye out for book 2 because the cliffhanger has me on edge wondering just what is going to happen next.
Thanks to the author for the review copy.
Teaser
Ari and I lay interwoven together in bed. I felt his hand run down the length of my back. I blinked my eyes open. It was only two in the morning.
“When is doing something you know is wrong the right thing to do?” he asked.
Snuggling deeper into his chest, I thought about his question. I knew what was worrying Ari. Could I do it, could I kill?
Everyone comes from somewhere. Some of us come from good and others from bad. The best part about life is that we have the ability to rise above the situation we find ourselves in; we are dealt certain cards, yes, but we don’t have to cheat to win. My father made the wrong choice; Andy made the right one. I hoped I would make the right ones, too. We were at war, a silent war that would not be reported on the news or told in any history books. The first battle was with ourselves as we decided how to deal with our internal conflicts on a day-to-day basis. Should I choose what’s right or should I choose what’s wrong?
Unfortunately, the line between right and wrong isn’t always cut and dried. The Kakos came from bad, the lowest of the low, and decided to try to go lower. They are direct descendants of Hades. Their blood is not watered down or tainted. They are literal spawns of Satan. They possess no soul and therefore feel no grief or regret for their actions. The Kakos’ ultimate goal is to live forever on earth. They escaped from hell eons ago, tracked down and tricked a descendant of a Fate, who agreed to allot them more time.
They followed this pattern for centuries until finally, the idea came to them that if there were no Fates, there would be no more cutting of their threads, and they would be free to live on earth forever. They then set out to kill every descendant from Clotho, Atropos and Lachesis they could find until they got to my father, the last known Fate on earth. He had made a covenant with the Kakos and then had broken his promise. As a result, the Kakos had declared war on every last Greek descendant. The Greeks could side with the Kakos or they could die.
I was the only weapon the Greeks had, but what do I know about war? I’m a seventeen-year-old girl. I have not yet discerned the path my life will take…and I am supposed to go up against the devil’s brood? If I fail, I die. Eventually the Kakos will come for Andy, Aggie and Ari and everyone I love. Andy will have to choose whether to side with the enemy and spare his family’s life, or accept death. In my heart, I knew Andy would never back down and that his family would die a horrible death because of his decision.
If I hunted the Kakos down, then I would have blood on my hands. I would be a murderer, a sinner, and a criminal. I decided to refuse to murder anyone in cold blood. I saw myself as good and I did not want to tarnish my soul.
Ari had asked me how a person knows when the wrong thing to do is right. And I answered: “If I must do wrong to save someone I love, it is right. I will not murder anyone, Ari…but I will kill to save you.” I will protect my people, but I will not go out in search of blood.
Quotes
Ava: “I hate death — it’s so permanent and so unfair.” “Je t’aime aussi.”
Ari : ““I love the girl that’s in my bed.” “Your skin is soft and I can’t seem to keep my hands off it.”
About The Author
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I’ve read so many YA books about greek mythology that have been purely “okay” but the only thing that’s really intrigued me about this one is that the protagonist needs to kill. That could be interesting. Great Review 🙂
Thanks Lily. I liked that it was a different twist. It wasn’t just another retelling of Persephone. 🙂