Thread: A Great and Terrible Beauty - anyone read it?

I just finished reading 'A Great and Terrible Beauty' by Libba Bray. I've got to say I am quite impressed with it. It is beautifully written and the characters are engaging (if not always likable). What really stuck me about this book is how pervasive the 'mood' is. Somehow the writing conveys how eerie the surroundings are. And the overlap between the real and fantasy worlds is seamless and fascinating. I also found this book inspiring for my own writing - it kind of awakened my own passion for story-telling whenever I sat down to read it.

So I'm just wondering if anyone else has read it, and what are your thoughts about it?

I loved those books. I couldn't get enough of them while I was reading them. I admit, it's been about two years now since I read them, but I still remember bawling my eyes out at the end of the third one. My roommate thought my then-fiance had died, or that our hometown had blown up. I'm really surprised not that many people seem to have read it. The plot is definitely interesting, and The Realms were great. In the first book, the part where they sneak out into the woods reminded me of Dead Poet Society. Nothing beats running naked through the woods (though I don't make that comment from personal experience.) They're definitely listed on my Favorites list.

I was actually surprisingly impressed considering they are YA books. Most of the YA books I've read I can barely get through. I actually finished the whole series here. I do agree with the pp that the mood is fantastic. Reminds me of gothic novels.