Dahlia is the protagonist in this book, she's an orphan who has lived with foster family to foster family never able to fit in and has no memory prior that of being five, scars down her back from an unknown accident and a very life-like dream featuring a wolf and lots of blood.
All Dahlia knows is she's different but upon settling in with her new foster family where she actually feels somewhat welcome thanks to the help of her foster-brother Sam, she starts to focus on living a normaly teenage life, she attends school for the first time and after many years of homeschooling its not exactly as easy as one plus one, on the plus side she manages to make some form of friendships thanks to Sam and she even attends a regular high school party. Kind of. The thing is, whilst she is attempting to live a regular day to day life, weird or unexplainable things just keep happening and this is basically how the book goes until half way through, it isn't until half way through when we actually get some answers and that left me feeling rather impatient with the book, it kept hinting at something and then we'd get a tiny step closer to being more aware of Dahlia's weird life and then woosh, we're flown five steps backwards. It got a little annoying. Luckily though, I felt once we we're in on exactly what the hell was happening, the rest of the book was a lot more enjoyable and face paced though I must point out the book I read prior to this was a very fast paced roller coaster that left me with whiplash so maybe the first half of this book wasn't as slow as I'm making out ...I am a very impatient person at times though.
The reason for Dahlia's odd experiences and encounters is all down to the fact she's half fallen angel and half vampire. I know, pretty interesting right? They have fancier names and a great back story too. Anyway, she's the only one of her kind and because of this some fallen angels want to kill her for being tainted with vampire blood, and others want to keep her alive just until a certain date to perform a ritual to help free their big boss, so Dahlia finds herself slap bang in the middle knowing that at some point she may end up dead, luckily she doesn't have to worry about this by herself because we have Greyson, a fellow fallen angel, to help her out, he's the Prince Charming in the story, only he's a little more bad ass and mysterious, and him falling for her isn't what he's supposed to do of course which makes their romance a little more interesting.
Of course Dahlia doesn't end up dead - but don't think there isn't a trail of dead bodies left behind, because there is! You may need a tissue or two - and this leaves her and Greyson to fight another day. It ends on a little bit of a cliff-hanger, setting the scene for the sequal which I would be very interested in reading because I think these characters and this world has so much potential know the explaining is all out of the way. I really recommend this book too!
I was five when I knew something was different about me...my first memory.
Parentless, I had no recollection of who they were or what they even looked like. All I knew was
that I was alone, residing at an orphanage disconnected from the outside world—disconnecting
myself from the outside world. I pictured it even now, like an oil painting drawn across a
canvas. The thick, heavy bristles of the paintbrush created an array of colors as the bright blue
sky connected to the shockingly white snow. The snow blanketed everything around me, as if
protecting me, the green forest displaying itself at every angle.
This orphanage was out of place in such a nature-infused environment. A large, two-story
building, its windows seemed to cover almost every surface of brick. I remembered the
brightness of the sun as it hit my sleepy face through one of those many windows. It would
instantly warm my body as it greeted me to yet another day.
Taking a closer look, vines covered old, gray bricks as they coursed over the external surface of
the orphanage. I used to have nightmares about those same vines making their way into my room
as I slept. They’d appear ominously as their shadows pounded against the walls, taunting me as
a storm brewed on outside. Venturing toward my bed, the vines would slither across my body,
immediately trapping me in place. One would manage to wrap itself around my neck, squeezing
tightly, as I struggled for air. Rendered frozen, the feeling of fear took hold as it bubbled up deep
inside my chest. And as I felt the burning pain in my throat, a thought would flash through my
mind of this moment being my last. It never was, though, as I would instantly wake up.
I always did have a wild imagination.
To chase away the terror, I found myself standing before my windowpane the morning after. The
bright sun beating down on my skin, I realized my fear derived from nothing more than a dream.
Sighing in relief, I remained motionless, my eyes drawn to the vast forest off in the distance. It
surrounded the orphanage, like a gatekeeper, the leaves of the trees bristling in irritation. The
wind blew right through those tall structures, whistling, as my ears picked up the all too familiar
sound.
I somehow found myself standing directly in front of that very forest. My memory was hazy on
exactly how I got there but I recalled waking up, after one of my many dreams, to the feeling of
immense hunger as my body stirred in discomfort.
Then I was suddenly at the foot of the forest.
This was not me simply being hungry. I would almost describe it as a feeling of starvation, like
there was some essential component that my body missed. Whatever it was, this need was so
powerful that I was weak in the knees by the pain as my belly contracted and released, contracted
and released, continually. Food provided temporary relief for me, but there was always this
presence in the corner of my mind as my brain searched for the one thing my body craved.
I ignored that nagging voice in my head, the one whispering for something I was unaware that I
even needed. It was something unfathomable yet inherent. I paid it no attention and just openly
stared at the forest that beckoned me. The view distracted me for a moment, which was good, as
it temporarily calmed my stomach rumblings. Taking shallow breaths, the cool air blew in and
out between my cold, chapped lips.
It was at that exact moment I realized the forest was in fact isolating me from everything and
everyone outside of its confines. Almost like a hungry bird circling its prey. Even young, my
instincts picked up on that, which immediately told me something.
Eyes were watching me.
Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
