From my book review website "Reader's Enchantment":
I really enjoyed Beautiful Malice. I found Rebecca James's writing to be authentic, especially when it comes to teenage friendships and the newly termed "frenemy." This story begins with a haunting phrase ("I didn't go to Alice's funereal.") and moves on from there back and forth through time. In alternating chapters of the present, the distant past and the time Katherine spends with Alice, the reader begins to slowly understand that something is not quite right with Katherine, that she has secrets and no one suspects her true story.
Katherine Patterson is a senior in high school, and she's new at her school, without many friends. So she's surprised when popular Alice invites her to a party and persuades the reluctant girl to attend. Alice introduces Katherine to her boyfriend Robbie, and together the three of them form a friendship and spend a lot of time together. Alice has some moments of incredible cruelty, but both Katherine and Robbie brush them aside when "sweet" Alice pleads for forgiveness time and again.
Katherine eventually reveals her secret: she was once Katie Boydell, the girl who had a sister and was involved in a devastating crime that was splattered over the media. She changed her name and moved to a new city so she could have a chance at a normal senior year of high school.
Through Alice, meets several other new friends, and these friends come to her aid when Alice suddenly turns on Katherine. Alice will not let their friendship die away; instead, she begins to stalk Katherine and confronts her in public places. Alice's behavior grows increasingly erratic, and while most would call the police for help, Katherine simply feels sorry for Alice and walks away from her every time.
The eventual outcome is, for me, unexpected and deeply sad. There is so much heartbreak from a heinous crime, and the different possibilities of how a person moves on with their lives is illustrated well by the author. The characters are well written and their interaction is authentic. Because the author is Australian, I was afraid the setting would be too unfamiliar for me to connect with; instead, she writes a story that could happen anywhere.
I'm not crazy about the cover of the book. There are some really awesome covers of books coming out in the next couple of months, and I don't think "Beautiful Malice" will be able to stand out in a bookstore.
My only complaint about the novel is that the characters are still in high school. Katherine is only 17, and the birthday party Alice invited her to was to celebrate turning 18. I feel the maturity of the characters and their actions would have been more believable if they had all been in college, in their early 20s. However, I know that in Katherine's case, living through a tragedy can "age" anyone, so this is a very minor complaint.
Overall, I think this is a very good book, one I rated as 4.5 out of 5 stars. I highly recommend this book to YA readers who may need a break from all the heavily published paranormal titles. This would also be a good book for readers in college since the characters are so mature, it won't have a feel of returning to the high school scene they just graduated from.
I really enjoyed Beautiful Malice. I found Rebecca James's writing to be authentic, especially when it comes to teenage friendships and the newly termed "frenemy." This story begins with a haunting phrase ("I didn't go to Alice's funereal.") and moves on from there back and forth through time. In alternating chapters of the present, the distant past and the time Katherine spends with Alice, the reader begins to slowly understand that something is not quite right with Katherine, that she has secrets and no one suspects her true story.
Katherine Patterson is a senior in high school, and she's new at her school, without many friends. So she's surprised when popular Alice invites her to a party and persuades the reluctant girl to attend. Alice introduces Katherine to her boyfriend Robbie, and together the three of them form a friendship and spend a lot of time together. Alice has some moments of incredible cruelty, but both Katherine and Robbie brush them aside when "sweet" Alice pleads for forgiveness time and again.
Katherine eventually reveals her secret: she was once Katie Boydell, the girl who had a sister and was involved in a devastating crime that was splattered over the media. She changed her name and moved to a new city so she could have a chance at a normal senior year of high school.
Through Alice, meets several other new friends, and these friends come to her aid when Alice suddenly turns on Katherine. Alice will not let their friendship die away; instead, she begins to stalk Katherine and confronts her in public places. Alice's behavior grows increasingly erratic, and while most would call the police for help, Katherine simply feels sorry for Alice and walks away from her every time.
The eventual outcome is, for me, unexpected and deeply sad. There is so much heartbreak from a heinous crime, and the different possibilities of how a person moves on with their lives is illustrated well by the author. The characters are well written and their interaction is authentic. Because the author is Australian, I was afraid the setting would be too unfamiliar for me to connect with; instead, she writes a story that could happen anywhere.
I'm not crazy about the cover of the book. There are some really awesome covers of books coming out in the next couple of months, and I don't think "Beautiful Malice" will be able to stand out in a bookstore.
My only complaint about the novel is that the characters are still in high school. Katherine is only 17, and the birthday party Alice invited her to was to celebrate turning 18. I feel the maturity of the characters and their actions would have been more believable if they had all been in college, in their early 20s. However, I know that in Katherine's case, living through a tragedy can "age" anyone, so this is a very minor complaint.
Overall, I think this is a very good book, one I rated as 4.5 out of 5 stars. I highly recommend this book to YA readers who may need a break from all the heavily published paranormal titles. This would also be a good book for readers in college since the characters are so mature, it won't have a feel of returning to the high school scene they just graduated from.
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