Didn’t love it like I did Grim Lovelies. Felt like there was 1 main plot line & all of the minor plots playing into it were all over the place. Not a fan of the romance that was added into Midnight Beauties - could’ve done without.

"They don't know their fates are in the hands of a couple of misfits and dreamers."

"And Viggo."

3/5 stars

I want to preface this review with 1) Thank you to Goodreads and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review, and 2) I love Megan Shepherd s o m u c h ([b:The Madman’s Daughter|12291438|The Madman’s Daughter (The Madman’s Daughter, #1)|Megan Shepherd|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1354155885l/12291438._SY75_.jpg|17268041] triology is *chef kiss emoji* and Rolf, Nok, Lucky, Leon, and Mali from [b:The Cage|16071187|The Cage (The Cage, #1)|Megan Shepherd|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1414088833l/16071187._SY75_.jpg|21864995] are literally my children) so know that I had very high expectations going into this series finale.

Plot: 3/5 - Much like the first book, I think that there was a lot of thought put into this world... in a way that was almost overwhelming. Although I was better able to keep track of the differences between pretties/beasties/goblins/witches/royals it was still A Lot of information. I'm still perplexed about the complexities of magic vs technology in this story, especially when it comes to vehicles, but at this point all I can do is just wash my hands of it. I absolutely loved the first part of this story, which focused on a magical competition of sorts (for lack of spoilers). I thought the characters involved in that section were very intriguing and that there was a lot of suspense building for me. I also thought that certain events brought about by this competition were SO AMAZING for Anouk's character growth, and I wish we had been able to spend more time getting to know her both with and without magic. Oh, and there were two twists at different points in the story that had me surprised, they were very well executed.

However, still consistent with the first book, I found myself caring about the relationships between the characters and not at all about the real conflict. Like I really, really, really didn't care about the politics or the curses or anything, I just wanted to see the characters come into their own (particularly the beasties), develop further (yes, Rennar, I'm looking at you, and also my darling Petra), and see how their relationships grow. Sadly, I did not get as much of this as I wanted. It's pretty par for the course for a fantasy novel to be plot-driven, but that doesn't mean I can't be disappointed.


Characters: 3/5 - I'm SO TORN when I talk about these characters because, while there are a few characters I absolutely adore, I feel like they were either not utilized to the best of their ability in the story, didn't get the page time and development they deserved, or they were KILLED OFF. For the other main characters, I was intrigued by many of them but they came across as quite one-dimensional to me.

I thought the love triangle throughout this second book was so spicy (mamma mia I love me some good romantic/sexual tension), but it was concluded in a way that was cheap and lazy and that I will never forgive.

Pacing: 2/5 - First act: amazing pacing. From then on, too many action scenes that are now a jumble of knives and whispers in my mind. The end was SO RUSHED, and I mean SO RUSHED, that when I hit the last twelve pages I actually swore out loud about the turn of events.

Writing: 4/5 - I really like Megan Shepherd's writing! I love this world in which language is so prevalent, both due to the fact that it's mainly set in Paris and so our characters only swear in French (so cheeky) and because of the language of spells the magical folks use. I didn't end up jotting down a ton of quotes but there were a few moments that made me chuckle and there's a monologue that a certain character gives at the end that I would honestly like framed above my bed so I can see it every night when I go to sleep and every morning when I wake up.

Enjoyment: 3/5 - Sadly, my enjoyment of this conclusion was very middle-of-the-road. The characters I love had me engaged, but when they were under-utilized or sacrificed for the plot I just became utterly frustrated. It's also a really long book and I felt bogged down by it in the middle third. I wanted to love it just because it's Megan Shepherd, but in the end my high hopes left me feeling a bit disappointed. Fans of urban fantasy might get more enjoyment from this than I did!

Rating: 2.6/5.0

Sadly, Midnight Beauties was a disappointment for me. I loved the first book in this duology, Grim Lovelies, and I was excited for its sequel. Sadly, everything I loved from the first book was not present in this one.

Like the first instalment, the plot of Midnight Beauties also centres are a quest. This time Anouk and her friends need to save the world from dark magic. My main issue with the plot that it is trying to do too much, which resulted in a lack of development of main plot points and plot twists that come out of nowhere. The framework is interesting, such as the magical school where regular girls are turned into witches, and there was a lot of potential there. But sadly, due to the lack of development it fell flat.

I LOVED the characters, especially the protagonist, in the Grim Lovelies. In this instalment, the characters lacked the charm and the chemistry they had in the first book. While the found family aspect was still present in the story, the characters felt disconnected due to miscommunication and differences in ambitions. The main protagonist was almost unrecognisable in the way she felt superior, made all the decision by herself, and did not communicate with her friends. Continuing, I dislike the romance due to the events in the first book and overall, the romance comes across as childish. And lastly, the characterisation of the most interesting character in the book suddenly changes completely in the last part of the book, making his decisions completely unbelievable.

The world building was the most interesting part of the book. It was escalated well from the first book and was original. The consequences of the free dark magic were almost surrealistic, and the descriptions of the scene reminded me of a Dali painting. Lastly, I also enjoyed the political and social layers that were included in the world.

In conclusion, Midnight Beauties was a disappointing read for me. It had a lot of potential with interesting ideas. However, due to a lack of development and focus the story fell flat for me.

Rating breakdown: plot (1.8/5), characters (2/5), writing (2.8/5), worldbuilding (3.5/5), overall enjoyment (3/5)

Trigger warnings: Violence, self-harm, murder

Tropes: Found family, friends-to-lovers, quest to save the world.

Bueno, este libro si que fue una sorpresa. Y no una buena. Es triste porque el primero me gustó (de ahí que comprara éste), me pareció una idea interesante y aunque tenía sus puntos débiles, en general era una historia solida. En Midnight Beauties la autora tiró la casa por la ventana y no de buena forma.

Creo que mi principal problema con él es que nunca pude creerme el sistema de magia, todo me parecía absurdo, sacado de algún sueño febril y lleno de agujeros, por ejemplo,

Spoiler

en un punto tienen que recoger todos los relojes de Londres, ¿Y qué pasa con los celulares, las laptops y demás sistemas que te dan la hora? ¿Algún Royal se hizo cargo de recoger las Alexas y Siris?

Tampoco es agradable que se cree un mundo apocaliptico y que las personas que lo están viviendo, por ser humanas, nunca se den cuenta. ¿La verdad? No me gustan las historias que recaen en el "el humano promedio es mediocre e ignorante" para contarse, ¿Por qué la gente no va a saber que existe algo así? Si los humanos son buenos para algo son para inventarse historias, ¿Y me van a decir que hay mundos escondidos de su vista? Lo creería si estuvieran a treinta años luz de distancia, pero, literal, los problemas estaban encima de ellos.

Personajes poco creíbles y arrogantes, relaciones superficiales, un triangulo amoroso que jamás se sintió triangulo real, decisiones estúpidas por parte de personajes que se suponía tenían cientos de años de experiencia, personajes masculinos girando en torno a su protagonista -sin nada de chiste- femenina, grupos de personas metidos en el mismo saco a las escuelas de Harry Potter (los Royals son los Slytherin, los Goblins son los Hufflepuff, los Beasties son los Gryffindor), amenazas poco creíbles, sistema de magia roto y sin sentido que no sigue ni sus propias reglas (la piel de Anouk ya no se volvió a mencionar cuándo era de suma importancia la mantuvieran impoluta, y en algún punto la casa en donde estaba la piel se quemó), muertes que ni al caso, exposición de información justo en el momento en que es necesaria para resolver un "problema", y un final (que incluyó asesinato masivo del grupo que ya era maltratado y vejado) tan apurado que da risa porque no crea ninguna consecuencia real. Creo que con este tomo pasé más tiempo rodando los ojos que disfrutando o creyendo algo de la historia.

Los únicos puntos agradables, fueron el párrafo final en donde se dicen familia, y cuándo Luc se despide de Anouk, le dijo cosas lindas, pero aun así, no podía creer Luc no se despidiera del resto de los chicos, ¿Qué no se suponía que tenia una relación cercana con Black? Cricket y Luc se conocían de cuatro años atrás, pero no fue ni para un abrazo entre ellos, no, era importante que Luc usara una página entera para ensalzar las virtudes de Anouk, incluyendo -otra vez- cómo era genial por pasar de sirvienta a princesa.



En fin, no me extenderé en detalles, todo eso ya lo comenté en las notas que hice del libro, las cuáles son un montón y casi todas quejas, así que sí, una gran decepción, probablemente mi peor lectura en lo que va del año.

Ms. Shepherd created another stunningly beautiful volume that was difficult to set aside, even for work and sleep. Anouk is so brave and compelling a character that it is impossible not to cheer for her. From the wilds of the enchanted forest to the insanity of a differently-enchanted London, you hang on every description. The compelling nature of the trial by fire - in its varied forms - and how magic is conveyed was tragically lovely. My only heartbreak was the fear that this was only a duology, and I would beg Ms. Shepherd to please consider at least a third volume to this beautiful story arc - I, for one, could read inside of this world for a lifetime.

An entertaining and lively ending to the Grim Lovelies duology!

I had forgotten how much fun this world was! It was a little bit darker than the first book, but still just as exciting and interesting. I liked how the ending was left slightly open, so it would be a good conclusion if its a duology but I can see potential for future books as well.

I was pretty disappointed by this. There was SO much potential and setup for a really cool fantasy world, but I was disappointed by a lot of plot points that the author chose to use. The first half was good, but the second fell really flat for me. Not sure I'll continue the series.

Grim Lovelies was the book of the month for my bookclub back in November. I had some mixed opinions about Grim Lovelies when we read it back then, but I really ended up enjoying it, by the end of the book, and I wanted to know what was going to happen to Anouk and her friends.

Midnight Beauties is a great continuation of this story. It quickly sucked me into the plight of young Anouk and I eagerly wanted to see what would become of her as she tried to become a witch. There were moments of passion and friendship that made my heart beat widely. I was touched with the display of love these characters often showed each other and the way they formed their own unique family and protected each other. I was holding my breath in moments of betrayal and left wanting more when I read that last page.

I gave this book a 4 star rating. It was an enjoyable read that has made me like Grim Lovelies more than I did before. While there were some moments that were just a bit too slow and too drawn out for me, overall the story held my attention and I appreciated the many strong and fierce characters and found myself growing more attached to them all in this second book.

Midnight Beauties was a great conclusion to the Grim Lovelies Series. I believe that I enjoyed this novel much better than the original. It began where the previous novel left off, with Anouk and her desire to become a witch to save her fellow beasties. She goes on an extraordinary journey and what happens on that journey is not what you would expect. The end of this book rattled me; it was all so surprising. However, the last two chapters felt very rushed and unexpected, which is why I didn’t give the book 5 stars.