The Belles (The Belles #1) by Dhonielle Clayton
Camellia Beauregard is a Belle. In the opulent world of Orléans, Belles are revered, for they control Beauty, and Beauty is a commodity coveted above all else. In Orléans, the people are born gray, they are born damned, and only with the help of a Belle and her talents can they transform and be made beautiful.
But it’s not enough for Camellia to be just a Belle. She wants to be the favorite—the Belle chosen by the Queen of Orléans to live in the royal palace, to tend to the royal family and their court, to be recognized as the most talented Belle in the land. But once Camellia and her Belle sisters arrive at court, it becomes clear that being the favorite is not everything she always dreamed it would be. Behind the gilded palace walls live dark secrets, and Camellia soon learns that the very essence of her existence is a lie—that her powers are far greater, and could be more dangerous, than she ever imagined. And when the queen asks Camellia to risk her own life and help the ailing princess by using Belle powers in unintended ways, Camellia now faces an impossible decision.
With the future of Orléans and its people at stake, Camellia must decide—save herself and her sisters and the way of the Belles—or resuscitate the princess, risk her own life, and change the ways of her world forever.
But it’s not enough for Camellia to be just a Belle. She wants to be the favorite—the Belle chosen by the Queen of Orléans to live in the royal palace, to tend to the royal family and their court, to be recognized as the most talented Belle in the land. But once Camellia and her Belle sisters arrive at court, it becomes clear that being the favorite is not everything she always dreamed it would be. Behind the gilded palace walls live dark secrets, and Camellia soon learns that the very essence of her existence is a lie—that her powers are far greater, and could be more dangerous, than she ever imagined. And when the queen asks Camellia to risk her own life and help the ailing princess by using Belle powers in unintended ways, Camellia now faces an impossible decision.
With the future of Orléans and its people at stake, Camellia must decide—save herself and her sisters and the way of the Belles—or resuscitate the princess, risk her own life, and change the ways of her world forever.
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Rosie Jones
Performance: 🌑🌑🌑🌑🌑
Story: 🌑🌑🌑🌑🌑
In Orlean, beauty is everything. The belles, blessed by the Goddess of Beauty, can create and enhance any look. The belles compete to become the favorite, the one chosen to attend to the royal family. Camille who failed the first time was then name the favorite shortly after Amber, who won the competition to become the favorite, was demoted. Camille relished her position as the favorite. She had always wanted to be the best. Soon she discovered that the glittering world of the belles is not what it seems.
The book opened with all the six belles being introduced. I don't have a favorite belle. I liked them all. I like how close they were to each other. Camille is closest to Amber but there some competition between her and Camille that resulted in tragedy. Even with that, the sisterly love with between them is strong as in with all the other belles. All six of them were scattered all over the kingdom and I am looking forward to their reunion (hopefully) in book 2.
I love the writing. Lush and opulent, there were charming food and flower metaphors. The vibrant color palettes, textures and hues just pop outs. An added layer of charm came in the way french names were sprinkled all over with narrator Rosie Jones on point French accent. Her interpretation of Sophie and Dhonielle Clayton's characterization of the princess were so perfect it got on my nerves which is always a sign of an effective antagonist. There were times when the details were a bit too much but overall the pace flowed smoothly and the story kept me riveted.
Beauty wraps the entire book with gloss, glitter and glamour but underneath it there's pain, blood and monstrosity. People go to such great length to be beautiful. In Orlean, people spend more money on beauty products than food. They changed their hair color, skin tone and temperament all for the price of a huge amount of spintria and a lot of pain. There was a time, when I was younger when I hated how I looked. I would look at pictures of white people at magazines, statues of saints and the Virgin Mary and thought I want to look like them. I wished my hair was platinum blonde, and I had violet eyes and delicate mouth. When I got into Japanese culture, I started appreciating Asian looks and wished I looked like a pretty looking Asian boy in Visual Kei style. Now that I am older, I don't care so much anymore as long as I look young, thin and cool. If I live in Orlean, what lengths would I go through just to get these looks?
I think this is a great start for The Belles series. I am looking forward to the other books!
Performance: 🌑🌑🌑🌑🌑
Story: 🌑🌑🌑🌑🌑
In Orlean, beauty is everything. The belles, blessed by the Goddess of Beauty, can create and enhance any look. The belles compete to become the favorite, the one chosen to attend to the royal family. Camille who failed the first time was then name the favorite shortly after Amber, who won the competition to become the favorite, was demoted. Camille relished her position as the favorite. She had always wanted to be the best. Soon she discovered that the glittering world of the belles is not what it seems.
The book opened with all the six belles being introduced. I don't have a favorite belle. I liked them all. I like how close they were to each other. Camille is closest to Amber but there some competition between her and Camille that resulted in tragedy. Even with that, the sisterly love with between them is strong as in with all the other belles. All six of them were scattered all over the kingdom and I am looking forward to their reunion (hopefully) in book 2.
I love the writing. Lush and opulent, there were charming food and flower metaphors. The vibrant color palettes, textures and hues just pop outs. An added layer of charm came in the way french names were sprinkled all over with narrator Rosie Jones on point French accent. Her interpretation of Sophie and Dhonielle Clayton's characterization of the princess were so perfect it got on my nerves which is always a sign of an effective antagonist. There were times when the details were a bit too much but overall the pace flowed smoothly and the story kept me riveted.
Beauty wraps the entire book with gloss, glitter and glamour but underneath it there's pain, blood and monstrosity. People go to such great length to be beautiful. In Orlean, people spend more money on beauty products than food. They changed their hair color, skin tone and temperament all for the price of a huge amount of spintria and a lot of pain. There was a time, when I was younger when I hated how I looked. I would look at pictures of white people at magazines, statues of saints and the Virgin Mary and thought I want to look like them. I wished my hair was platinum blonde, and I had violet eyes and delicate mouth. When I got into Japanese culture, I started appreciating Asian looks and wished I looked like a pretty looking Asian boy in Visual Kei style. Now that I am older, I don't care so much anymore as long as I look young, thin and cool. If I live in Orlean, what lengths would I go through just to get these looks?
I think this is a great start for The Belles series. I am looking forward to the other books!
SOUNDTRACK
Monster
Band of Horses
Everything All the Time
A tree for all these problems
A tree for all these problems
They can't find you for the moment
Then for all past efforts
They're buried deep beneath your heart
And somewhere in your stomach
And hey, transform all others
When awful people they surround you
Well ain't they just like monsters
They come to feed on me
Giant little animals to feed
Though to say we got much hope
If I am lost it's only for a little while
A tree for all these problems
They can't find you for the moment
Then for all past efforts
They're buried deep beneath your heart
And somewhere in your stomach
And hey, transform all others
When awful people they surround you
Well ain't they just like monsters
They come to feed on us
Giant little animals for us
Though to say we got much hope
If I am lost it's only for a little while
Though to say we got much hope
If I am lost it's only for a little while
If I am lost it's only for a little while
If I am lost it's only for a little while
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