On the night of Skye's
seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete
opposites—like fire and ice—Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair
and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin.
She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every
move—only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events.
Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but
also the truth about her own past.In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can’t help falling for, and Devin, who she can’t stay away from, the consequences of Skye’s choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.
A Beautiful Dark is another book following the current trend: angels, demons, and the girls who have to choose between them. Skye meets the explosive Asher and elusive Devin on the night of her birthday, and after that night the two "cousins" turn up everywhere she goes and almost seem to be fighting over her and her attentions. Then she finds out that they really are doing just that. Asher and Devin represent opposite forces in the world. Devin is from the "good" side, the side that is almost angelic, just that word is never used. Devin is a messenger of the Gifted, the ones who know the future and make it happen. Devin must do what they say, and they send him to convince Skye to join their side. Asher is a rebel, part of the group that decided that they don't want to do as the Gifted say, and Asher is there to counteract any progress Devin might make and to get Skye to join the rebels. Skye is drawn to each of the boys, but as they teach her about her powers, she realizes that choosing one also means choosing his side.
A definite bonus to Skye's character was that besides for her heritage, she was completely normal. She wasn't extra nice, extra pretty, extra smart, or extra anything. She was an average person thrust into a totally non-average situation. She was also average in her choice of guy. Instead of choosing the sweet guy with a tortured soul, she chose the fiery trouble-maker who is hiding way to much from her. At least she knows Devin's got secrets and eventually finds them out, but Asher makes it seem as if he's bared all. Once again, my theory has been proven correct. My theory, for those of you who don't know or haven't been paying attention to my other posts, is that the first guy who enters the book as a love interest (therefore excluding Ian because Skye's not into him) is the guy the main character ends up with. Well, she didn't end up with him yet, but she probably will.
As good as A Beautiful Dark was, it was just another angel book to me. There are so many of them, and I had finished Sweet Evil five minutes before I picked up A Beautiful Dark, so I was a little bored with the theme. The twist that made this book different than all the rest was the ambiguity between good and bad, and right and wrong. The main difference between the two sides is more of rigidity vs. free will than good vs. evil, which also makes Skye's choice that much more difficult to make. Instead of dealing with the somewhat ridiculous choice of whether to turn bad or stay good, the two sides vying for Skye's attentions have elements of both. Something about Skye makes me think she is going to choose neither in the end, or join both sides in some sort of happy medium, because I can't see her settling in and agreeing with either side. Still, the fact that angels have become as mundane as vampires (and not half as interesting) in young adult literature is sad indeed.
4.2 stars. Good, but not that original. Don't go crazy looking for this book, but read if you stumble upon it.
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