Se pueden decir muchas cosas de Silvia Moreno-García como autora, pero quizá una de las que más destaca es su versatilidad, ya que es capaz de escribir novelas en géneros muy diversos desde la ciencia ficción a la fantasía. The Beautiful Ones, el libro que nos traemos entre manos, es otro cambio dentro de la trayectoria de la autora, que en esta ocasión nos presenta un romance en toda regla, con un ligerísimo toque de magia, pero tan pequeño que casi no influye en la trama. Se trata de una reedición de un libro publicado originalmente en 2017.


La novela trata sobre la alta sociedad y sus relaciones, se puede considerar como un romance histórico, pero lo más importante sin duda son sus personajes. Conoceremos a Nina Beaulieu, que tras haberse criado en la mansión de su adinerada familia lejos del boato de la gran ciudad, asiste a la Grand Season de la ficticia Losail para cumplir con lo que se espera de toda dama de la sociedad, cumplir con su deber y buscar un marido adecuado para ella.

Nina no es una dama al uso, más interesada por la entomología que por los vestidos y los bailes, así que cuando es recibida en la casa de su rico primo Gaeton, la esposa de este la ve más como un estorbo que como un invitado bien recibido. Todo esto se complicará cuando Nina llame la atención de Héctor, un artista de variedades que tiene un pasado oculto con Valerie.

La historia es bastante típica en este sentido, con las intrigas de la despechada Valerie y los desencuentros entre Héctor y Nina, que parecen condenados a no encontrarse nunca. La prosa brilla por ser extremadamente adecuada al tono y ritmo de la historia, con la descripción del lujo y la opulencia de las clases altas que muchas veces solo oculta rencor y maldad. Existe una crítica nada velada a estas figuras de porcelana creadas solo para satisfacer las necesidades de un grupo enquistado en sus propias costumbres anquilosadas, y a pesar de la previsibilidad del desenlace, no es menos cierto que la novela es muy entretenida de leer y cumple punto por punto con lo que se espera de ella.

The Beautiful Ones es un cambio bienvenido respecto a mis lecturas habituales, de mano de una autora muy versátil a la que merece la pena seguir.

I really enjoyed Mexican Gothic last year so I was keen to read the latest Moreno-Garcia book. The Beautiful Ones is another genre hybrid fusing a historical novel of manners with a light infusion of magical realism. This book doesn’t follow the historic gothic horror genre of Mexican Gothic but reminded me of an Edith Wharton novel. It is not entirely clear where or when the book is set, the vibe is the Gilded age of late 19th & early 20th century when the elite classes are obsessed with manners, social etiquette, old / new money classism, debutant balls and society seasons. So it goes that Hector, has made his fortune as a conjurer with telekinetic powers and returns to Loisail society to pursue an old flame and a fellow beautiful one - Valerie, who callously abandoned him 10 years previously. Knowing that she is married, he instead starts to court her husband’s cousin, enter our heroine - the plain but kind Nina. Nina has none of the social graces, skills or beauty of Valerie but has the gift of telekinesis which she can not control. This tale of forbidden romance and society expectations is a beautifully depicted and seems to be doomed from the outset, as Nina and Hector begin to fall in love as Hector teaches her how to control her powers, and Valerie’s ugly jealousy and vindictiveness becomes apparent and threatens to ruin everyone. Really enjoying the narrative style of Moreno-Garcia books and the uniqueness genre-hybrid mix up.

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Full review live on my blog as of 14th June.

Rating: 4.5 stars!

Thanks to Jo Fletcher Books for the eARC of this book. It has not affected my honest review.

Okay. I don’t usually read historical romance. I was swayed in by Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s name and the mention of telekinesis in the blurb and I’m so glad that I gave it a chance. This book was incredible, and I totally wouldn’t have picked it up normally. There’s a huge focus on society life, the socialites and the grand season and at several points I was literally breathless over the scandals and risk. I was genuinely worried about people finding out the truth about Hector and Nina, it was an emotional ride that I didn’t expect.

The book has all of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s usual, beautiful writing. It’s lush and descriptive, making it so easy to read. The characters were nuanced and interesting, emotive and infuriating in equal measures, and I adore the way that Silvia Moreno-Garcia consistently creates worlds that I sink into whole-heartedly. I think because in my head I thought it was horror (it wasn’t, that was entirely me) I was expecting this to go a different way than it did. I guess I was expecting something that was more Carrie, and instead I got a heart punch instead. The way that this book looked at the difference between cruelty and kindness, and the value of choosing kindness. A lot of that was down to Nina. Nina was so weird and genuine and honest. It made it totally impossible not to love her. Especially when she was compared to Valerie, her cousin and the motivating factor for a lot of the dramatic tension in the story. It made for a gorgeously dramatic romance with a little telekinesis to add a fantasy element.

The Beautiful Ones is a romance fantasy, leaning heavily into the romance. A courtly-styled romance with some telekinesis thrown in. It follows three characters - Hector, Nina and Valerie - and the incredibly messy relationships between the three of them.
Hector and Valerie met while they were young, but were from completely different worlds with different expectations. Still, when Hector left to make his fortune, Valerie promised to wait.
She didn't.
Now, Hector is back, Valerie is married, and her cousin-in-law, Nina, seems to have taken an interest in Hector.
Cue twisty messy love and manipulation, especially as Valerie, despite her marriage, is not willing to have Hector belong to anyone but her.
Silvia Moreno-Garcia's writing is deeply engaging and emotive. She describes events, particularly the expected emotional events, in such vivid and relatable detail that I could feel the heartbreak from the page. I also enjoyed how Moreno-Garcia embodied each character. Valerie, who is poised as the villain of the piece, is understandable, diabolical, and twisted by her upbringing. Hector, despite his reckless decisions, is a likeable character and you do feel sorry for him, find yourself rooting for Hector and Nina's relationship.
As for Nina, I adored her. She was an interesting and intelligent character, naive as her age and experience, and perhaps more importantly, displayed how to recover and grow from heartbreak.
I enjoyed the experience of reading The Beautiful Ones. I finished the majority of the story in one day because I was so engrossed in the drama and intrigue. I look forward to reading more of SIlvia Moreno-Garcia's books in the future!

The Beautiful Ones is an interesting book to review, in that I initially thought I would be giving it a much higher rating.

I love fantasy of manners stuff, so the beginning of this book was right up my alley. Our heroine, Nina, meets Hector, our heroine, and while they understand each other better than anyone else due to their shared status as outsiders in society, pesky social norms are conspiring to make their love affair less than straightforward (along with some deception on Hector’s behalf). Moreno-Garcia also writes well; her prose is very smooth, and I found myself turning the pages quite quickly.

The fantastical elements in The Beautiful Ones are minimal. The setting is a Belle Epoque inspired secondary world, where the standard trappings of a regency romance (a highly stratified class society, in particular) are in still full swing, and the motorcar has only just arrived on the scene. Nina has a unique talent for telekenesis, though ‘talent’ is pushing it – since she barely knows how to control it. has the same ability, which he has parlayed into a career entertaining the masses. None of this really matters in plot terms, except as a front for Nina and Hector’s initial conversations, and while that didn’t bother me since I was in this for the romance rather than the magic, I can see how it might bother other readers looking for something more fantastical since this book is being marketed as a fantasy romance.

Unfortunately, the romance itself quickly falls into all the worst stereotypes of historical romance when it comes to being outright misogynistic, and any enjoyment I was feeling quickly faded. All of the characters are frankly pretty awful. Nina starts off as a sweet, if naive girl who would rather spend her time reading entomology textbooks rather dancing with boys (another talent that sadly goes nowhere), but ultimately becomes a blushing young ingenue who can’t think about anything but romance. The other female character, Valerie, is frankly awful – she’s the worst stereotype of a vicious, shrewd harpy who sets out to destroy Nina’s life because her own romantic dreams were crushed and she feels trapped by society’s expectations of women. Totally relatable, until her entire personality becomes bitter and manipulative and her only role in the story is to stand between our love interests as the jilted ex-lover. The men are no better: all the male characters see women as follies, as objects, or as means to an end, and absolutely none of them are ever openly called out for it or face any punishment. I can see why Valerie’s so bitter.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and a place for writing about the gendered social constructs of the historical upper classes: to deconstruct and shine a light on them, to give a voice to the women who suffered through them, or to provide guidance on how we can move forward. This book does none of those things. If an author can imagine a whole new fantastical world to set their romance in, I’d prefer to see them also imagine a romance that doesn’t rely heavily on gender-based stereotypes to work.

This book was like Bridgerton meets The Great Gatsby, with telekenesis. If any of those things appeal to you I recommend you pick it up!

This book follows a group of socialites as one of our protagonists, Nina, joins their ranks. Nina has never been fully tamed, despite the efforts of her cousin's wife, Valérie, and her reputation isn't aided by her interest in our third protagonist, Hector, at her first party of the season

I really liked Nina as a character. She was young and naive, but also strong-willed and sure of herself. She is more interested in collecting bugs and going on long hikes than acting "properly" for a lady, much to the annoyance of Valérie. I found myself really feeling for her in the first half of the book, while she's being misled, and rooting for her throughout

Valérie made my blood boil, which I suppose is a compliment to Moreno-Garcia's writing. She epitomises jealousy and vindictiveness, and that determination to be at the top no matter who she has to trample on to get there

One reason that this story didn't fully connect with me was in my not being able to see how Hector is so incredibly appealing to both of these women. We barely know him, see no charisma or interesting aspects of him, yet are supposed to believe that he's irresistible. I just didn't buy it, especially in the first half of the novel

I will say that the second part of this book gripped me way more than the first, and I really enjoyed how the ending played out. It's a pretty slow-burn story with little plot, it's more about societal maneuverings and propriety. But if you're into that kinda thing I really recommend this one

I definitely should have looked up more about this before reading. I was under the impression this was mainly fantasy, totally my fault, when this is more Historical Romance with a small hint at magic. Once I figured that out I enjoyed this more.

This is a slow burn read. But thankfully it didn't feel too dragging. It was easy enough to just sit and read. The pacing just worked for me. The plot itself was good. It didn't really wow me but I was entertained throughout. Which is why I gave this a four not a five.

The relationship itself took majority of the book for me to fully be invested. Something stopped me seeing the chemistry from the beginning. I blame Valerie.

Valerie is a vile character. Full of hate and jealousy. I am glad we saw enough character growth from Hector regarding Valerie. I just couldn't stand her.

Hector himself was likeable enough, by the end anyway. But I was side eyeing him majority of the book. I just didn't trust his intentions with Nina.

One thing that did annoy me with the writing is how often Nina looks were brought up to put her down, to see her as less than. I understand why it was done I just hated it.

I wish we could have seen more of Hector training Nina. Then see then fall for each other during those times.

“You do not know what it is like to want something for so long, you forget why you even wanted it in the first place until the only thing left is a gnawing need and there is nothing that can fill it. And even though everything in your body tells you that you are killing yourself wanting it, you cannot stop.”

Love triangle, scandal, hopeless romance, pettiness, jealousy and telekinesis. This basically describes the book in a nutshell. Overall, the book was interesting but there are certain times when I feel it was kind of draggy which I, myself was kinda surprised considering the amount of drama (and I love drama) and fictional historical setting.

Here’s an introduction to the important characters in the book:
Valerie, judgemental scheming bitter bitch
Hector, major simp
Nina, (slightly) dumb innocent girl
Luc, poor innocent child with a huge ego
Etienne, probably the only sane one
Gatean, another innocent man who gets shit for no reason lmao

I love the world-building in the book. The stark difference between Loisail and Montipouret are huge. One is a posh city (imagine Paris) and the latter is a nice simple outskirt like one of those old manor houses in Britain. The fashion, soirees and extravagant of the city life is chef kiss.

“He felt old and tattered and wanted simply to lie down and lie still”, I, in my early 20s, vibe with this statement.

Remember I said Valerie is a judgemental bitch? Well, this is what she thinks of her husband’s side of the family, “..then came a coterie of aunts, uncles, and cousins, These, like the dogs, were a staple of Oldhouse.”

I would like to thank @netgalley and @JoFletcherBooks for the eBook in exchange for an honest review.

The Beautiful Ones follows Hector and Nina, who both have the power of telekinesis. Nina has always lived in the countryside, but joins her cousin and his wife, Valerie, in the city and is welcomed among socialites. Hector, a previous lover of Valerie's, is intrigued by Nina and desires to get closer to her to learn more about her powers.

Like Moreno-Garcia's other books, the worldbuilding is amazing and the setting is so atmospheric and really draws you into the story.

But my favourite part is the romance between Nina and Hector. I'm a sucker for an age gap romance, especially one with angst.

I highly recommend this book, and Moreno-Garcia's other ones too !!

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is quickly becoming one of my all time favourite writers!
She has a wonderfully unique style of writing that works perfectly with the stories she’s telling and this book was no exception!
It was wonderful and I loved every moment of it!

I think it's important for readers to know going into this book that it is very different from Silvia Moreno-Garcia's Mexican Gothic and Gods of Jade and Shadow.
Which just goes to show you the reach and talent the author has for writing multiple genres.

While this book does contain an element of fantasy with the telekinetic abilities of two main characters, this is very much secondary to the world building and plot. If you are someone who needs very detailed and laid out magic systems within books I don't know if this aspect would be your cup of tea.
In my opinion it fits in more with an odd whimsy of magical realism than a fully established magic/fantasy element within the book.

For me, this gave me the same feeling of reading a romance from Jane Austen or The Bronte sisters, while some of the back and forth in miscommunication can be repetitive it was wholly satisfying to see the villain of the story get her comeuppance.

This was my first experience reading a book by this author and I have heard so many good things previously so I was looking forward to it.
The Beautiful Ones is a story about love and betrayal, about youth and adulthood and privilege and entitlement. The author has managed to capture all of this and more within this book, many issues surrounding these topics are addressed which I think draws attention to how we act in our own lives and social structures.

It was a slow start but once I got into it, it was an enjoyable read. I managed to finish it in one sitting (mainly reading it at work). Thank you for the chance to read this in advance and I will get the full review up on my blog soon.

As enthralling and surprising as Mexican Gothic. The beautiful ones was impossible to put down and will stay with me for months to come

Thank you to Jo Fletcher books for sending me this ARC in exchange for review.

2.5*

Something I love about Silvia Moreno-Garcia is her ability to write books and every single one be completely different, in genre, in style, in themes, they’re different every time and there is bound to be something in her repertoire that will speak to every person. Unfortunately, this wasn’t really that for me.

When I first stumbled upon this book, I was drawn in by the aesthetic and the era in which it is set. The regency era setting based in the fictional city of Loisail is absolutely stunning, and did not let me down. I’m not a historical romance reader generally, but this was beautiful, and the writing was absolutely gorgeous. There are so many stunning lines throughout the book, and I found myself revisiting several of them after reading.

In all honesty, I’m not sure what about this book didn’t click with me, it most certainly isn’t the writing, and it definitely is not a badly written book. I think for the most part I struggled to connect with any of our three main characters. I found them all to be generally unlikeable, and so it made it difficult for me to fall for the romance happening, despite the words on the page being absolutely gorgeous. I also found myself a little disappointed with the fantasy element, but that’s less a product of the book and more a product of the tags on Goodreads. The highest genre tag on this book is fantasy, and I feel like it’s quite misleading as the fantasy in this book is very very minimal, so if you’re looking for something fantasy heavy, this isn’t the one for you.

Overall, I don’t think this is a bad book and I could see myself recommending it to others, unfortunately it just didn’t entirely click for me.

Set during an unnamed time and in an unnamed country, a beautiful love story full of magical realism and intrigue. A complicated cast of characters and pages full of tricks and turns.

I really enjoyed this one. I went in blankly, and was pleasantly surprised by how quickly I was wholly immersed in this story! It reminded me a little of Bridgerton, which is a big compliment. Can highly recommend this!

Silvia Moreno-Garciai is an author who cannot be pigeon holed to a particular genre and this is one of the reasons I find her fascinating. Her works range from urban, gothic, mythology and romance and her writing is effortless and fluid.
The Beautiful Ones follows a romance between Hector and Nina, but with the added twist of Valerie the love of Hectors life - or so he thinks. The world they move in parallels the manners and social dance of a great Regency novel ,however with a touch of the other as both Hector and Nina have the gift of telekenisis..
Hector is the older self made man, still in his prime who has an undimished love for Valerie, the most beautiful woman of his aquintance and who broke his heart. Valerie, from a noble but impoverished family, followed duty and family wishes, spurrning Hector to marry the wealthy Gaetan, thus restoring her family fortunes. Antonia or Nina is Gaetan's cousin, brought to Loisail for the Great season and some town polish, naive, obsessed with nature and forthright, she challenges Valeries efforts to bring her out to society.
Love, loss, betrayal, jealousy, manipulation and triumph of the heart are at the core of this novel and it kept me enthralled.
I would definitely recommend this book and author - you never know what to expect bar superlative writing..
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC and all opinions are my own.

3.5/5

This was my second foray into the works of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and my immediate thought was ‘wow, this woman’s writing style is impeccable’. The genre of The Beautiful Ones is a complete 360 from that of Mexican Gothic, in that it’s a historical romance with a subtle fantastical element that is utilised perfectly as a driving force for some of the characters. It truly impresses me that Moreno-Garcia manages to nail both the horror genre and the historical romance/fantasy genre perfectly, regardless of their being on entirely different sides of the literary spectrum.

There were moments of this book where I did feel as though the pacing could have been improved - I’m simply a person who prefers constant action and dips in eventful writing tend to leave me wanting more. That being said, if you’re a fan of a slow burn story, this will definitely appeal to you. Though the pacing wasn’t quite perfect to me, this says nothing about the writing style. I say the same thing here that I said when reviewing Mexican Gothic - her writing is always so atmospheric, her stories so immersive. You feel as though you’re there in the moment, experiencing scenes live in front of you, it’s truly wonderful.

I think the ending was perfect, although the build-up to it left something to be desired - that, however, is only because I made a prediction that would have been perfect for the story if I were personally writing it, but it naturally didn’t happen. That being said, I thought most of the characters were given a full story arc, fully developed and fleshed out as they should have been. Moreno-Garcia always nails characterisation, especially when writing grand families with some hidden secret. The tension is always so well written in their movements and interactions, in particular with Valérie.

The Beautiful Ones was, for me, an unexpected joy to read. The melodrama and the hints of paranormal were seductive throughout, constantly pulling you in and making you demand more. I really did enjoy this - I simply would have preferred a more consistently fast-paced narrative!

Thank you to Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Quercus/Jo Fletcher Books, and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Nina Beaulieu has arrived in Loisail for the Grand Season where she's staying with her cousin and his calculating wife, Valerie. Nina has often felt like the odd one out and Grand Season is no different as she struggles to conform to the rules of notable socialites; The Beautiful Ones. During the Grand Season Nina meets Hector Auvray, a performer with a gift for telekinesis. But during their courtship it turns out that Hector has alternative motives for courting Nina, reasons that might actually involve Valerie.

Once again Silvia Moreno-Garcia has written a captivating and mesmerizing story. The Beautiful Ones is a story about love, betrayal and the pressures of society. The writing completely sucks you in from the very first page. The characters aren't very compelling but I enjoyed their journey. Nina was sweet and innocent, Hector was tame and Valerie was very calculating and cruel. I enjoyed how the story progressed and eventually ended.

I must applaud Silvia Moreno-Garcia for being able to seemingly write effortlessly in various genres. I loved Gods of Jade and Shadow. I loved Mexican Gothic. And I love The Beautiful Ones. All very different but amazing in their own way. I can't wait to read more of her work.

𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬, 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘯, 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥.

They are the Beautiful Ones, Loisail’s most notable socialites, and this spring is Nina’s chance to join their ranks. But she has always struggled to control her telekinesis—neighbors call her the Witch of Oldhouse—and the haphazard manifestations of her powers make her the subject of malicious gossip.

I want to start this review off by laying all my cards out on the table, this book just wasn't for me. It reads like a period soap opera, and although the writing is great, it is just not a genre I enjoy. If you love books by Jane Austen, or have devoured the Bridgerton series, then you will absolutely devour this book.

I love Silvia Moreno-Garcia and I definitely class her as one of my favourite authors, after reading and loving both Gods of Jade and Shadow and Mexican Gothic. But I think the reason I loved those so much was because she took well known genres, and added a little spice. The Beautiful Ones is a re-release of one of her first books, and I am glad I read it, but I think she was still finding her niche as an author. Saying that, she writes strong female characters like nobody else, Nina, the main protagonist, was one of the reasons that kept me reading.

If you love a period romance you need this book, plus the cover is BEAUTIFUL, and it looks amazing on my shelf next to my other Silvia Moreno-Garcia books! I am counting down the days until Velvet Was The Night is out in August! Thanks so much to @quercusbooks for gifting me a copy of this book!