Book Recap: A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies (ARC)

Cover Inspection:
It's okay. It looks like Skye wants to jump from a cliff.

SUMMARY (book description based on GoodReads):
On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites--like fire and ice--Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move--only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.
In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can't help falling for, and Devin, who she can't stay away from, the consequences of Skye's choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.

BOOK REPORT CARD:

Cover	3.0
Plot	2.5
Writing	2.5
Characters	3.0
Ending	3.0
Overall Rating	3.0 Very Good  (89% - 92%) * highest rating possible is 4.0

LOCATION/SETTING:
Modern day Colorado.

MAIN CHARACTERS:
The main character is Skye, an orphan, and adopted by her mother’s best friend. Her parents died in an accident when she was 6; she feels guilty as she was the only one who survived that accident. Then of course, the love interests. Yes. Interests. It seems Skye is confused. There is Devin, part of the Guardian of the Order, and Asher, part of those who rebelled against the Order. Opposites in every way. You see, Devin is stiff and cannot (literally) bend, much less break the rules; and Asher is some sort of a free thinker and does not really care much for the rules.

WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT:
One can say that Skye is a girl with direction, with a plan. She is a straight-A student, and plans to go to Columbia for College. These priorities shatter after she meets two celestially gorgeous guys. Out of the blue, they became interested in Skye. Only Skye doesn’t know their motive – if they truly like her for her, or they just like to get her on either side for her power. The book deals with the issue of free will. (Devin’s side does not particularly favor it, while Asher’s side dwells on it.) Skye does not know which side to choose. She does not know if the lighter side is really the good side, if you get my drift. The ending is a cliffhanger, one that would make you want to fast forward in time.

LOVE:
I love that this book has funny, I mean really funny parts. I found myself laughing while reading it. Nonetheless, the book actually makes one think about free will, and if we all are played like puppets by celestial beings from out there.

NO LOVE:
I didn’t like the ending. A major cliffhanger, a bad one. It kind of annoys me that the very, very exciting chapter is the last one. Then boom! The end

FAVORITE CHARACTER:
Despite all the hotness that Asher and Devin are, there is one boy, a human boy that I love. That is Ian, her childhood friend. I think Ian really loves Skye, and it pains him that he is not actually one of Skye’s choice for a boyfriend.

FAVORITE LINE:

Love. The great destroyer of worlds.

MUSINGS:

Do we really have a choice in all our actions? Is the “good” side really the right side? Those are the questions that this book made me ask myself. I love these kinds of books – easy to read, light, fluffy, but thought provoking.

DOODLES:
A little something about the author

AUTHOR'S WEBSITE:
Jocelyn Davies

SIMILAR READS:
Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
All those angel books

CONTENT REVIEW:
profanity: mild to moderate
violence: moderate
sexual content: mild to moderate
mature themes: mild
age recommendation: 13+

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.