Throughout Ethan and Lena's conversation, Liv shows up. I love how this story has so many twists and turns, and surprises that leave you breathtaken. Sarafine is Lena's mother. As a half-Cataclyst, it is unknown if she gained any Cataclyst powers like Possession. He is being haunted in his dreams that are keeping him up all night - and not by Lena. Ethan Wate longs to escape his small southern town. Lena has gotten somewhat of a better grasp of her powers, though not by much since she still has erratic and spontaneous moments of losing control of her powers for brief moments. Is falling in love the beginning or the end? She is very kind and will always stay true and protect her friends. It is told that girls always picked on her, made fun of her and bullied her without any mercy causing her to be driven out of many schools. The final chapter is of Ethan on top of the water tower and as he goes to the edge to throw himself over it, he is dragged back by his other half. Ethan Wate and Lena Duchannes are recovering from the fact that, Macon Ravenwood died during their battle against Lena's evil mother, Sarafine. The first point of connection between the two main characters is their love of reading. Feb. 13, 2013. I really enjoyed reading the adventures of the Gatlin above and below ground. He drives to Ravenwood Manor and goes inside to find Lena lying on a table, with most of her family members standing around her. There is a girl. Lena Duchannes, a girl who seems too out of place in Gatlin. Not going to spoil it for you. I feel as though I am walking along with these people, haven't had this to happen in way so long. In Beautiful Chaos, it is soon discovered that Ethan is the must-be sacrifice in order for the Mortal and Caster worlds to be spared from destruction after Lena's claiming causes the balance to be thrown drastically off course due to claiming herself as both Dark and Light. First they suspect Lena, but the Demon Queen tells Ethan directly during a visit that Lena isn't the one who needed to die; even adding on how after the One Who Is Two died; she would be the one to Bind the New Order. They were suspenseful, romantic, and chaotic. Since the books came to a natural end regarding Lena and Ethan's future and I thought the movie's ending was kinda trash so this concept was born. When he is released from the Arclight by Ethan and Liv, she is joyful and is finally able to return to her normal self. Alice Englert was officially announced to be set to portray Lena in the film adaptation of Beautiful Creatures and upcoming franchise of the series. She is a Natural, an extremely rare type of Caster who is far more powerful and stronger than all regular Casters are, also having additional powers that can be different for any Natural. I didn't know you were a real person. ", "When were you going to tell me? He's probably trying to find me right now. The two then embark and begin to look into their family's history together and to find a way to help Lena from going Dark. She is Ethan Wate's love interest in the first novel of the series, eventually becoming his girlfriend. In Beautiful Creatures, Lena avoids . Then they study it to see if they can find a way to keep Lena from becoming Dark. In hope of finding her, Ethan and Link drive to Dar-ee Keen, Gatlin's greasy version of Dairy King. This, hence, puts a great strain on their relationship. Lena and Ethan become bound together by a deep, powerful love. (My first book rating, be gentle..). It is something of a running gag in the series for Lena to accidentally set random objects on fire. She then asks if he believes in Love after death and he says, "Yes." However, upon moving to Gatlin, Lena meets a teenage resident of the town named Ethan Wate- a boy who seems to be the exact same guy whom she has been seeing in her dreams. Despite all this, Ethan and Lena are . As time goes and she spends more time with him, Lena soon realizes she has fallen passionately in love with Ethan. After they pronounce Amma legally dead, Lena and Ethan continue to grow stronger through this experience, (example; Lena running up to him and wrapping her legs around him and kissing him repeatedly). Despite this revelation, Lena warns Ethan against getting to know her, telling him its for his own good and safety. After the dinner, Ethan sits in Lena's bedroom as Lena explains that Ridley is a Siren, a Dark Caster with the ability to persuade people to do anything she wants. I'd like Lena to have more character. They then turn over to think it is John who then becomes positive it is him and throws himself over the towns water tower, but the voice Ethan is hearing in his head tells them the price is still unpaid and John does not die in result of so. This being seen in Beautiful Darkness when Ridley betrays Sarafine to help Ethan, Liv and Link save Lena fearing for Lena's safety. On Thanksgiving, Amma invites Lena to Thanksgiving dinner with the Wate family. Lena and Ethan dance together and finally say that they love each other. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms . (Though Ethan is later revived by Lena and Amma.). Macon forbids Lena to attend the party because of the potential dangers, but Lena sneaks out to enjoy the festivities anyway. Thanks to my little sister for the suggestion! Lena is surprised when her Dark Caster cousin Ridley comes to the house with Ethan's best friend, Link, and several other students from the high school. Though there are some people who are happy with Englert being cast as Lena, other people have also commented that she isn't as "goth" or "dark" as they imagined Lena to be as they imagined her in the book series. In Gatlin, South Carolina, Ethan Wate awakens from a recurring dream of a girl he does not know. I was a little disappointed in the final book - "Beautiful Redemption". Macon was an Incubus, a creature who fed on people's dreams and memories to sustain himself and after he was released from the Arclight, he became a Light Caster. This series started with the movie (which I was not a fan of). He also explains how Lila Jane's ghost helped him once The Book of Moons took his life by capturing him inside the Arclight; thereby giving him the chance to be freed and live again. She also painfully strips Ridley of her Siren powers after revealing that she is aware of her betrayal in order to save Lena. Kamis first graphic novel Teen Titans: Raven, with artist Gabriel Picolo, is the first book in her TEEN TITANS series for DC Comics and the adult series JOKER/HARLEY: CRIMINAL SANITY, from DC Black Label. What order should I read the Beautiful Creatures series? Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, "Okay, little Miss I'm-Not-Here-to-Steal-Your-Boyfriend. Sarafine was believed to be dead since then until she shows up to prove otherwise in Beautiful Creatures. Directed by Richard LaGravenese. The books were so much better as everyone should know and agree. Ethan and Lena's relationship is one of the central plotlines in the Beautiful Creatures series. I am looking forward to the movie. Enjoyed these from start to finish and wish they didnt go away so quickly once i started i found myself unable to stop until one book was done into the next and another and another until i came to the end with much dismay. Lena's 16th birthday is coming up in a matter of months and she finds herself fearing and almost becoming fully convinced she will go Dark, terrifying her. This causes Lena to fight with Liv both verbally and physically, accusing Liv of trying to "steal her boyfriend", and launching at her several times just barely being restrained by Ethan. Its one of my favorite book series. I absolutely fell in love with the Ethan and Lena love story. The other half of him tries to stop Ethan from throwing himself over and they fight and battle. But Ethan refuses to sever ties with her insisting that she's "the girl from his dreams" revealing to her that he's been having the same dreams she has as well, where he saves a girl who seems to be her, and keeps associating with her despite her warnings. Lena accepts a ride home from Ethan, which marks the start of their friendship. However, I kept thinking there has to be a good story somewhere and I'm so glad the movie lead me to these books. Just like Uncle Macon wasn't dead. And in the midst of things, strange things are happening to Ethan. There is a secret part of the Gatlin Library known as the Caster Library, and Lena thinks this place may contain the Book of Moons. Worship begins at 9:00! un capolavoro, una lezione di vita. So much young-adult fiction these days is narrated by a female protagonist, and you might expect the same from Beautiful Creatures, which is written by two talented ladies.But having a male narrator is one of the many interesting and different things Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl have done in their book. You fall in love with the characters and want to keep reading until it's all finished. However, when Ridley was growing near her 16th Moon, Lena began to notice changes in her best friend and took a notice how Ridley was beginning to behave much more wildly and starting to become rebellious. He eventually gives her to Sarafine and Abraham, though their plan fails when Macon, Ethan, Link and Liv and Ridley and others show up to save her. I found her distant and detached. John first meets Lena in the second novel of the series. However, on each Caster's 16th birthday they are to be "claimed" by either the Light or the Darkness, otherwise known as good or evil. The Dangerous Creatures series will weave in other Beautiful Creatures characters, including Ethan, Lena, John, Liv; each book will be set, for the most part, in a different city. Lena Duchannes, a girl who seems too out of place in Gatlin, There is a curse. Lena Duchannes is one of the two main protagonist of The Caster Chronicles series. This happens during the time period surrounding the Civil War. Their romance is forbidden since Casters (Lena) and a Wayward (Ethan) are unable to be together due to their incapability of making love without Ethan being killed - therefore severing any chances of true intimacy, marriage, children or a future at all. After declaring his love for her, Ethan proves his love for her by holding her when she needs comfort and freely expressing and showing his feelings for her in front of his basketball teammates and students completely unashamed of her. On January 3, 2013, a new edition of the novel was published, featuring images from the movie on the . The otherworldly inhabitants in "Beautiful Creatures," a pop Southern Gothic amusement . (It is said by Macon that Ethan is the very first boy that she has ever displayed a romantic interest in.). Lena soon even begins to grow so close to him that she soon reveals her supernatural family heritage and how she is a Caster. Link freely accepted Lena since Ethan liked her and grew to be one of the few people who treated her kindly in the first novel of the series. The mothers of the mean girls believe Lena is responsible for the incident, and they sign a petition to have Lena expelled from school. Lena fights back with Liv, both verbally and physically, revealing all her feelings towards Liv accusing her of taking everything in her life that she loves including both Ethan and Macon. Ethan goes to Amma to confront her about her having known the whole time he was going to die. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Beautiful Creatures isn't super racy or intense; in fact, the bigger concern is that it It's rated PG-13 for "violence, scary images, and some sexual material." Beautiful Creatures isn't super racy or intense; in fact, the bigger concern is that it will make teens go all swoony. The books include the following titles: Beautiful Creatures (2009), Beautiful Darkness (2010), Beautiful Chaos (2011), and Beautiful Redemption (2012). "There were no surprises in Gatlin County. Kami Garcia is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and international bestselling author and comic book writer. Sarafine flees, and Amma arrives with the Book of Moons to help advise Lena. But the last book in the series was the worst ever. Meanwhile, after his death, Ethan is also searching for ways to return to the mortal world in the other world of the dead. For example, the relationship between Lena and Sarafine is ANYTHING but simple. 9. In the end, there is a grave. Even though he knew it wasn't. He seemed to understand her during her rough time and was often seen with her throughout the beginning of the novel even riding with him on his motorcycle. Lena and Amma recite a spell to bring Ethan back to life, and it works. On the last day of school, Lena tells Ethan that she and her family are leaving town. Slowly, she pulled the hood from her head Green eyes, black hair. Ethan, Lena and Link (Ethan's best friend) are alone on a lake because of an incident that took place at the high school's parking lot. He then goes to see Liv and Marion and bids his goodbyes with his loved ones. Ethan's presence seems to break the spell, and Macon's mother, Arelia, concludes that Ethan's love is the only force that can protect Lena from the schemes of Sarafine. Lena can be seen next to Ridley during their graduation. I really liked the first book in the series but the second and the third books in the series disappointed me and the last book was a complete disaster. She and Ridley seem to have a somewhat tense relationship throughout the novel, due to Ridley's new transformation as a new Dark Siren, but it is implied they still do care for each other. Despite fans wariness of how Englert will bring Lena to the big screen, Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl have both stated that Englert, having visited the movie set while the movie was being filmed, is "exactly the way they pictured Lena.". Soon later, while Ethan goes to see the Seer, he shows Ethan images and implies Ethan is the "One Who Is Two." Instead, they meet up with Ridley, Lena's Dark Caster cousin, who always appeared barely dressed in risqu clothing, along with the power of persuasion. When Ethan arrives at school, he hears about a new girl in town, Lena Duchannes. Their relationship hits a huge roadblock in Beautiful Darkness, when Lena sacrificed Macon's life for Ethan's after Sarafine murdered him and was drenched in guilt about it. With Alden Ehrenreich, Alice Englert, Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis. The authors have put a new spin on what has become an overworked genre of supernatural boy meets mortal girl or vice/ versa, etc. However, her 16th birthday arrives and her evil mother, Sarafine, comes and causes mayhem in some woods trying to convince her daughter to turn Dark. Her then-husband John threatened to take Lena, who was a baby at the time, away from her if she continued to see him fearing for their daughter's safety around her. One night after these events, Lena sneaks into Ethan's bedroom wearing one of his oversized t-shirts that ends at her middle upper thigh and shorts underneath and crawls into his bed next to him. She is the coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures and Dangerous Creatures novels and her solo works include the YA fantasy novels UNBREAKABLE and UNMARKED (THE LEGION SERIES), YA contemporary romances THE LOVELY RECKLESS and BROKEN BEAUTIFUL HEARTS, and THE X-FILES . Or another example being how when Lena declines his offer to attend the school's dance and he said he'd just go with someone else then (though not saying it seriously and meaning it in a joking manner), she shoots him a furious look that makes him quickly add on in a slight panic, "Like Amma." I fell in love with this series after reading the first book. She is determined to bring Ethan back to life even if it means "trusting old enemies," and is even willing to go so far as to risk the lives of her loved ones to bring Ethan back to life. When Lena was just a baby, her mother, Sarafine, had turned Dark and became totally consumed in Darkness. If she chooses to go Light, all the Dark Casters in her family will die, including Uncle Macon. You can't understand. At the end of the 3rd book, I had to go to work the next day with swollen eyes. But the two manage to make amends and even become friends by the end of the novel, forgetting about their rough history together. Afterwards, during the pie contest sponsored by Southern Crusty, Ridley, John and Lena cause maggots, beetles and grubs to crawl of every pie except Amma's. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, 11.27: Just Your Average American Holiday. The books are set in a fictional town called Gatlin in South Carolina. Beautiful Creatures is a 2009 American young adult novel written by authors Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl and the first book in the Caster Chronicles series. He then simply holds her as she sobs into his chest and tells her, "It's okay." I appreciated the various struggles that the characters went through - and that there was depth and complexity to the characters and many of the situations they faced. These books are amazing. This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers. Ethan discovers that the woman is not Mrs. Lincoln, but the Dark Caster Sarafine in disguise. Loved the books. I think its an amazing love story. 100,060 ratings4,833 reviews. Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! Kami is a cofounder of the YALLFEST kid lit book festival and the author of five solo novels, including her Bram Stoker Award-nominated novels Unbreakable and Unmarked (THE LEGION series) and The X-Files Origins: Agent of Chaos. Some magical influence is spelling out a code in the books, and the message tells Lena, Claim yourself. When he gets there he drops Lena's necklace in the front seat of the Volvo so nothing will happen to it. Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong. Lena is devastated knowing her choice caused her true love's must-needed death and begs hysterically for Ethan not to go ahead with the sacrifice, even saying she didn't care about the deaths of their loved ones if he did not go through with the sacrifice; insisting she needed him to live and he couldn't ask her to live in a world without him. Jealous and angry when she sees them together once again, Lena takes off, causing a chain reaction of chaos as she goes. There was some fan speculation about whether or not Englert was fit for the role of the franchise since her hair isn't black as Lena's is described in the series. 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