Grim Lovelies: A Book Reviw

Written by Megan Shepherd, Grim Lovelies follows Anouk, a girl made from a creature known as a Beastie. In this world with Royals, witches, and goblins, Anouk and her fellow beasties are forced to fight for their human lives.

This was a fantastic novel. Written from the perspective of someone learning everything it means to be human (Anouk was changed just over a year ago and never allowed to leave the house), this novel hits a lot of wonderful marks. Other than not being a standalone. The sequel, Midnight Beauties, is scheduled to come out sometime this year.

With a compelling main character and fully fleshed supporting characters, shepherd takes her readers on a wild and mysterious ride. I enjoyed Beau and the Prince and all of the complex things that occurred. This is a novel that touches on a lot of things that are popular in Young Adult novels now (transgender, gays, multiracial), but it handles all of those in a wonderful, realistic way. Which is, it doesn’t toss it in your face that those are present in the novel. They do have an affect on the stories and the characters. But they don’t smack you up the face with them.

And the story! This is a twisting story whose twists make sense. Yes, they are from left field, but they come that way through the characters. There is a history that plays into everything that goes on and the progression makes sense as you go. The rules apply, even if you don’t realize why they apply.

Something else that struck me, that I don’t normally take note of, was the goblins and their crazy. They are mad, but they aren’t evil. They are definitely mad, but they aren’t manic. I am struggling with how better to describe this, but they remind me how the mad hatter should be portrayed. It was very appreciated.

Overall, I think anyone could find something to enjoy in this novel. Unless you don’t like blood and gore in your books. Then turn away. Marketed as a Young Adult novel, honestly I think anyone over the age of 10 could enjoy this book. It is written well, has good pacing, and is an interesting story that avoids a lot of cliches.