Review Detail
What Beauty There Is
Featured
Young Adult Fiction
837
captivating and consuming YA thriller read
Overall rating
5.0
Plot
5.0
Characters
5.0
Writing Style
5.0
WHAT BEAUTY THERE IS is a consuming and compelling YA thriller. The book is told from several points-of-view, but primarily the beginning of each chapter from Ava's perspective and within mostly from Jack's. The two teens are captured in something bigger and more dangerous than is easily handled. Jack's father is in prison for a theft from which the money was never recovered. Many parties are watching to see where it could be hidden, and they believe Jack could be key.
After his mother dies, Jack is determined to keep his brother safe. A task that is impossible without money. It starts with a visit and snowballs from there, with Jack and his brother in danger at every turn. Ava gets pulled in to their lives, and with her help, their slim chances improve marginally. With the whole world seemingly against them, the race is on.
What I loved: The writing is absolutely gripping and poetic in a way that makes the real world seem blurry. This book completely captivated me from start to finish - it was impossible to put down. All the characters came to life off the page, and I appreciated the other perspectives sprinkled throughout, in addition to Ava and Jack. The story is dark and full of danger, and this definitely made my heart pound (and breakdown in tears at a couple scenes).
Despite the darkness and danger, one of the major themes was the beauty and power in caring about the people you let into your heart. While there was not really a romance per se, there was a deep caring between the characters that had its own power and beauty, and I loved watching them interact. As they became beloved to each other, so they do to the reader. This was a book with real, three-dimensional characters that leapt off the page.
I would add warnings for suicide, murder, animal cruelty, abuse, homelessness, and (on a lighter note) a somewhat open ending.
Final verdict: Consuming, captivating, and compelling, WHAT BEAUTY THERE IS is a stunning and dark YA thriller that will leave readers reeling. Highly recommend for fans of SADIE, RULES FOR VANISHING, and TRULY DEVIOUS.
After his mother dies, Jack is determined to keep his brother safe. A task that is impossible without money. It starts with a visit and snowballs from there, with Jack and his brother in danger at every turn. Ava gets pulled in to their lives, and with her help, their slim chances improve marginally. With the whole world seemingly against them, the race is on.
What I loved: The writing is absolutely gripping and poetic in a way that makes the real world seem blurry. This book completely captivated me from start to finish - it was impossible to put down. All the characters came to life off the page, and I appreciated the other perspectives sprinkled throughout, in addition to Ava and Jack. The story is dark and full of danger, and this definitely made my heart pound (and breakdown in tears at a couple scenes).
Despite the darkness and danger, one of the major themes was the beauty and power in caring about the people you let into your heart. While there was not really a romance per se, there was a deep caring between the characters that had its own power and beauty, and I loved watching them interact. As they became beloved to each other, so they do to the reader. This was a book with real, three-dimensional characters that leapt off the page.
I would add warnings for suicide, murder, animal cruelty, abuse, homelessness, and (on a lighter note) a somewhat open ending.
Final verdict: Consuming, captivating, and compelling, WHAT BEAUTY THERE IS is a stunning and dark YA thriller that will leave readers reeling. Highly recommend for fans of SADIE, RULES FOR VANISHING, and TRULY DEVIOUS.
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