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The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh

Young adult

The Beautiful

by Renée Ahdieh

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Quick take

Dig into the first of this series. It's a decadent mix of blood, lust, and lore in 19th-century New Orleans. Yum.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Romance

    Romance

  • Illustrated icon, 400

    400+ pages

  • Illustrated icon, First_in_Series

    First in series

  • Illustrated icon, Murder

    Murder

Synopsis

In 1872, New Orleans is a city ruled by the dead. But to seventeen-year-old Celine Rousseau, New Orleans provides her a refuge after she's forced to flee her life as a dressmaker in Paris. Taken in by the sisters of the Ursuline convent along with six other girls, Celine quickly becomes enamored with the vibrant city from the music to the food to the soirées and—especially—to the danger. She soon becomes embroiled in the city's glitzy underworld, known as La Cour des Lions, after catching the eye of the group's leader, the enigmatic Sébastien Saint Germain. When the body of one of the girls from the convent is found in the lair of La Cour des Lions, Celine battles her attraction to him and suspicions about Sébastien's guilt along with the shame of her own horrible secret.

When more bodies are discovered, each crime more gruesome than the last, Celine and New Orleans become gripped by the terror of a serial killer on the loose—one Celine is sure has set her in his sights ... and who may even be the young man who has stolen her heart. As the murders continue to go unsolved, Celine takes matters into her own hands and soon uncovers something even more shocking: an age-old feud from the darkest creatures of the underworld reveals a truth about Celine she always suspected simmered just beneath the surface.

Free sample

Get an early look from the first pages of The Beautiful.

The Beautiful

Hiver, 1872

Rue Royale
New Orleans, Louisiana

New Orleans is a city ruled by the dead.

I remember the moment I first heard someone say this. The old man meant to frighten me. He said there was a time when coffins sprang from the ground following a heavy rain, the dead flooding the city streets. He claimed to know of a Créole woman on Rue Dauphine who could commune with spirits from the afterlife.

I believe in magic. In a city rife with illusionists, it’s impossible to doubt its existence. But I didn’t believe this man. Be faithful, he warned. For the faithless are alone in death, blind and terrified.

I feigned shock at his words. In truth, I found him amusing. He was the sort to scare errant young souls with stories of a shadowy creature lurking in darkened alcoves. But I was also intrigued, for I possess an errant young soul of my own. From childhood, I hid it beneath pressed garments and polished words, but it persisted in plaguing me. It called to me like a Siren, driving me to dash all pretense against the rocks and surrender to my true nature.

It drove me to where I am now. But I am not ungrateful. For it brought to bear two of my deepest truths: I will always possess an errant young soul, no matter my age.

And I will always be the shadowy creature in darkened alcoves, waiting...

For you, my love. For you.

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Why I love it

A new book by Renée Ahdieh is always a cause for celebration, and I couldn't wait to get my hands on her most recent novel, The Beautiful. Her take on late 19th-century New Orleans is sumptuous, and the sights, sounds, and smells of the city leap off the page and drag you into a story packed with romance, magic, and murder.

The Beautiful opens as intrepid young dressmaker—or modiste—Celine Rousseau arrives in New Orleans, trading a dark past in Paris for a sedate life in the Ursuline convent. Only, this peaceful life is immediately turned upside down when she witnesses the grisly murder of a young woman—a crime that appears to implicate the dazzling Court of the Lions and dangerously handsome Sebastien Saint Germain. Celine is a fearless and brilliant young woman, and she soon finds herself embroiled in a vampiric murder inquiry and with the leaders of a criminal underworld.

I'm a sucker for stories that bring the magical parts of a city to life, populating liminal places with vampires and illusionists, so I sank deep into Ahdieh’s descriptions of vibrant, multicultural New Orleans. I’m also a sucker for stories about women with fierce hearts, brilliant minds, and whalebone corsets—so The Beautiful was pretty much a dream come true. This is the book for you if you're looking for an autumnal escape into mystery and romance from a master storyteller.

Member ratings (695)

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Young adult
View all
The Wild Huntress
Ruthless Vows
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
Dragonfruit
The Thirteenth Child
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
Check & Mate
Divine Rivals
Foul Lady Fortune
Anna K Away
I Must Betray You
A Wilderness of Stars
Warrior Girl Unearthed
Bloodmarked
Instructions for Dancing
The Boy in the Red Dress
Color Me In
Not So Pure and Simple
Throw Like a Girl
Frankly in Love
Wayward Son
The Stars and the Blackness Between Them
Anna K
Patron Saints of Nothing
The Kingdom of Back
Yes No Maybe So
Permanent Record
Full Disclosure
Oasis
Where the World Ends
I Have No Secrets
Song of the Crimson Flower
When the Stars Lead to You
All the Bright Places
Saving Zoë
Symptoms of a Heartbreak
All of Us with Wings
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
Past Perfect Life
There's Something About Sweetie
Again, But Better
Sky Without Stars
How (Not) to Ask a Boy to Prom
Night Music
Shout
The Deceivers
Top Ten
A Million Junes
And We're Off
Salt to the Sea