Lush world-building and a strong premise with fully developed characters. I really enjoyed this story. The author's descriptions really made the book come alive.

Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley

We are constantly told that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that is because there is some truth to the statement. Tastes are different after all. But the only time that phrase is trotted out on a regular basis is when talking to someone who is not the standard of beauty (or even okay looks) in society. A bit too heavy, a bit too skinny (less common I know), a nose that is a bit wrong.
Society and people can be cruel to those who don’t met or even care to met beauty standards, ever changing beauty standards too. While currently, body shape might be a consistent, hair styles, dress styles, make-up, and such always seem to be changing.
And the people judged most harshly for not meeting such standards due tend to be women. This isn’t to say that men (and boys) don’t feel the pressure to. But can you name me a movie where an overweight, unattractive woman got the hot stud? Or how about that version of Beauty and the Beast where the beast female?
Still waiting.
In part, this is because girls and women are bombarded with images from the start. As much as you love Disney movies, you have to acknowledge the princess mostly look like and barely have room for a stomach. Want a lower percentage, look at how many are not white. Do the same for pretty much any tv show, movie, or even singer.
Hell, the dancers on any dance show have been called fat by some jackass because they actually have hips.
We have ads that depict young girls dressing as adults. Not playing dress up but actually dress like they have double ds. We have clothes for young girls that say things like future trophy wife.
Clayton attacks society and culture’s obsession with beauty head on in this book.
The Belle takes place in a world where everyone is born grey. Th expectations to this seem to be the Belles, women (seemingly always women) have power. They are basically plastic surgeons who use magic (surgery is still painful, just done by magic). Every three years, a group of Belles is introduced to the court and then sent to severe the royal family and various houses. Camellia, as well as most of her five sisters, aspires to be the Royal favorite, to severe the royal family.
Hence the story starts.
At first, the novel seems to be standard YA. Cameilla is the most powerful of the current crop of Belles, she is a bit rebellious, and her closest rival is her closest friend. Of course, their friendship suffers in the competition to be the Royal Favorite. At the beginning, the only Belle that truly stands out besides Camellia who is telling the story, is her fellow Belle Edel who seems to have the most spirit.
But then Clayton does something that is absolutely brilliant. Usually in many YA and even in adult books, the heroine who tells the story is practically perfect. Clayton doesn’t do this. It’s true that Camellia is clueless in some places about her behavior, but the reader is aware of this. Clayton does this so well, so in part of the story is the mystery and part of it is rooting Camellia on to be a better person. Such change fits the character because there are flashes of it in the very beginning of the story.
This is also true about the world building which in the beginning seems a little confusing, but this is in part because of the Belles’ sheltered existence. Many times, both Camellia and the reader experience something for the first time. While the world is run by the idea of beauty, it is also a relatively open world – gay marriage, for instance, does seem to be allowed. At times, too, Camellia is aware of the different classes and different issues outside of her privilege position.
Slowly, she awakens to what her position really is. At first, one wonders if the Belles are really priestesses, but very quickly the parallels to slavery are shown, and Clayton does not really pull any punches with this connection. She may not be as direct as Whitehead’s Underground Railroad, but the point and setting are far different. Yet, Clayton does seem to draw in much in reference to actual historic slavery.
Another thing that send out in this book is the use of color. Everyone is born grey, and the skin color of a person can change. And before I go any farther in this paragraph, I need to point out a few things. One, I am a white woman who is overweight. Two, I never paid that much attention to people on the covers books until I became friends with Fountain Pen Diva on Goodreads. It would be fair to say that she woke me from my privilege and got me to notice how few people of color are on covers (she didn’t have to get me to notice how few people of color are in books as well, at least as the central figure). It was because her that I noticed this book. Clayton’s characters run the gamut of skin color, yet it is a legitimately varied existence. It isn’t like the all-white New York that seems to exist in so many forms of media. Camellia isn’t the only Belle (or central character) with dark skin, and all skin color, except grey, is shown to be equally admired and desirable by society. Clayton’s book is one of the few where I have seen this, Max Gladstone’s Craft books are another (maybe I am reading the wrong books). In many ways, this detail made me think of Coates’ comments about race.
Looks and race all in one book? And done well, too. Seriously, Clayton needs to win some awards by the end of the year. I give bonus points to Disney and Freeform for publishing this. And it passes the Bechdel test. This isn’t to say there isn’t a love triangle, but the ladies have more important things to worry about, like that mysterious crying.
Is The Belles a perfect book? No. I had some questions – for instance if the ruling line is matrilineal, then wouldn’t the Queen have lovers in addition to or even instead of the king – and the beginning of the book is a little slow, but with some very good, brave narrative choices. Still, despite the flaws, the book is quietly brilliant and stays with reader.
And I find myself waiting for a second book in a YA series.

The Belles is not a romantic fairy tale about queens and princesses and castles. It is dark, and sad, and thought-provoking, and quite a fabulous novel. I’m still processing the end and how it caught me off-guard. It makes me happy this is only the first book in the series. I’m going to be impatiently waiting for the sequels. I am so thankful to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to be an early reader in exchange for my fair and honest review.

Let me just say, that I never want to live in the terrifying world but I wish Post Balloons and teacup elephants were real!

The Belles had been one of my most anticipated books of 2018 so when it arrived in my mailbox one day, I might have squealed with happiness. This is a book that will leave you wanting so much more!

We are introduced to this opulent world on the day that Camellia and her sisters are to be introduced to the Queen and her court. One will be chosen as the court Favorite and the others will be given positions elsewhere. Camellia wants nothing more than to be the Favorite, just like her Maman was. But once she and her sisters arrive at court, they soon realize that things are not what they seem and that being a Belle might not be what they originally thought.

There was definitely some good character development from Camellia. At the beginning she was extremely self absorbed and not caring about anything but becoming the Favorite. Once the story progressed, she became more humble, and cared about more than just being a Belle. She realized that her sisters and her were in trouble, and so were the people of Orléans. I really loved the relationship that she had with her sisters. Even though they were technically competing against one another to become the Favorite, they still maintained relatively great relationships throughout the book.

There is PLENTY of court intrigue to go around, especially because of some royals who are up to no good. Lies, betrayals, secrets, and romance gone awry are just a few things that are going on within the pages of The Belles.

I definitely got a Hunger Games feel from the story. The closer one was to the palace, the richer they were, and thus could afford the expensive beauty treatments offered by Belles.

After reading, I still had a lot of questions about the political side, like did they care about anything other than Beauty? Laws were mentioned but they only talked about Beauty issues. Also, how did the mothers of the Belles die, and why? So many unanswered questions combined with one hell of a cliffhanger made me need the next book ASAP! So much happened within the last 100 pages that made the entire book just explode with craziness. Also, I am needing a certain romance to happen because I can tell that it's there.

I cannot wait for the next book to see what happens with Camellia and her sisters.

Lush, exciting, and well-paced. Finished it in two days!

I enjoyed this book from the first page to the last! This is going to be a very popular book at my library!

This book is good in that it the last 15% of the book is interesting. The first 45% dragged and could've been cut down considerably. The plot, once actually established, is good and makes me want to read the next book, but there is so much unnecessary description and world building that it bogs down the plot. This would've been a two-star rating if not for the last 5% of the book.

What a wonderful fantasy book about beauty and madness. Camellia is a Belle - a fantastical beauty expert that can alter appearances with magic. This sumptuous world is a joy to be in. The visuals conjured on the setting is just dazzling and luscious. Can’t wait for the sequel.

This was a wonderful and truly unique story. The world of the Belles is so unlike anything else I’ve read and I was surprised by how truly creepy this world was. Beauty is a unique commodity that is doled out by the Belles who have a special ability to shape people and control “beauty.” The way it was described was honestly frightening, the lengths people would go to in order to be beautiful and the indoctrinated mindsight of people to think it’s natural and okay. I loved this book so much more than I was expecting and the main character is an awesome woman of color who doesn’t sit back quietly and do what she’s told if she thinks something isn’t quite right. I can’t wait to read the rest of this series and see what is going to happen next. There was a lot left open, especially with the princesses and the queen and even the rest of the Belles. I am so excited to find out what’s really going on.

Clayton has excellent writing and worldbuilding, and I know there are a ton of people who will devour this book. I read the first page and desperately wanted a teacup sized elephant, after all, but Camellia's voice was heavy on the exposition and introspection and dragged at the pacing some. Personally, I'm still suffering from dystopian burn-out; this book hit on a bunch of tropes I am tired of, but Clayton weaves them well and many readers are probably going to find them refreshing. I was hoping for more growth from the cast of characters, and not just from Camellia, who starts out so incredibly self-absorbed that there's almost nothing for her to do but develop over the course of the book. It's a unique story that any collection will benefit from, but I just couldn't connect with it.

A large portion of the book is spent on building the world, the book's plot picks up more towards the end of the novel and all I can say is WOW! I can't wait to read more from Clayton and to see how the series develops in the future!

The Belles is a rich, engrossing fantasy story set in a French-inspired nation called Orléans, where Beauty is a goddess to be worshipped and blessed beings known as the Belles bestow her beauty amongst the rest of society. In the creation myth of this world, humans were cursed after Beauty was accused of caring for them too much, and they were turned into the Gris, with gray skin and devoid of traditional marks of beauty. The story follows Camellia, who is just graduating from her Belle upbringing to begin working to make people beautiful. Camellia is a sort of over-achiever, and longs to be the favorite of the royal family and be stationed as the official palace Belle. However, she finds that life at court is not what she thought it would be, and she's faced with choosing between following the strict rules of society and being an agreeable Belle, or finding what she truly believes in and standing up for herself.

What I loved about this book was definitely the beautifully imagined world that Dhonielle Clayton created. Every detail is richly described, and I was immediately transported into the world. The world-building was excellent, and the magic system, known as the Belle's arcana, was unique and well-done. The Belles is not a particularly short book, but it's highly addictive and definitely draws the reader in with its' beautifully rendered world, high-stakes drama, and strong, kind heroine, Camellia, as well as the supportive side characters such as her sister Belles and her servant, Bree. There are a lot of complicated women in this story, which makes it even more interesting. At times I thought that the villain was a little much (think Marie Antoinette meets Joffrey from Game of Thrones), but her actions didn't hinder the storytelling at all. Overall, an excellent start to the series and I can't wait to see how these characters evolve as the story continues!

I was disappointed in this one. I just never felt connected to the characters, and I never felt like I fully understood the world in which they lived. Nevertheless, I know a few readers who will enjoy it, so I will purchase if I have enough funds.

I'm guessing this is going to be a series? And if so sign me up for the next book please. Great detail! Loved the New Orleans vibe. The cover didn't really attract me, but the story line sounded good so that's why I tried for a copy. Even though it's a long book, it was a quick read, and kept me interested until the end. I loved the characters so much!!!

I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy of this book. It was so refreshing and I found myself not wanting to put it down! For sure going to be one of my top reads of 2018, along with a few more that is. I am going to be raving about this one for a while. The way that Clayton puts certain scenes, and the dialog is outstanding! I will be ordering for my YA section in my library for sure!

I read any advance reader copy of this book granted to me by the publisher on netgalley.

I don't feel I can leave a true review since it's my understanding changes are maybe being made... so I'll just say that as is right now I'd give it 2 stars. I'm unlikely to try reading this again when it actually comes out so my review is basically meaningless.

Book could've been edited down a little bit. Overall writing style/plot mirrored parts of different popular YA: Leigh Bardugo's Grisha that could augment beauty, Kiera Cass' The Selection, and the horribly written YA attempt by Tyra Banks, Model Land.
Good very ending, some characters not fleshed out. Put a lot into this book as a set up for a sequel, probably 2 books more. Motivation for characters didn't always make sense (no spoilers).
I hated the balloon posts and lantern references. Too much.

Overall enjoyed, gave 1 more star for the cliffhanger.

I think this book is basically what Tyra Banks was trying for when she wrote Modelland? And I applaud the work deconstructing beauty standards and think that'll be important for a lot of teens to read, especially related to skin color/social construction of race.

That said, I didn't love this? It has a lot of kind of steampunk-y trappings that just aren't my jam. (For example, measuring time in "hourglasses" but not specifying how long an hourglass is? You'd think an hour, since it has "hour" right in there...but it seemed inconsistent? This is a minor point but also something that consistently distracted me...) But also I'm never really into steampunk type situations, so again, this is the kind of thing that might be a draw for someone else.

Also the friendship between Camellia, the protagonist, and her best friend Amber, seemed a little strange to me? A lot was made about how they're ~best friends~ and tell each other everything...but also have secrets and also are very competitive?? I mean I guess as I type it out, that's pretty typical ~teen girl but it just felt very hollow as I was reading it.

I'm filing this under Things That Are Not My Personal Cup Of Tea But I'm Glad They Exist For Other Readers.

I asked for the ARC because the author is coming to our library in the spring and I wanted to be familiar with the title. Now I am hooked and can't wait for more in the series! I work primarily with our Adult book clubs, but I can really see promoting this as a great crossover read.

Loved this book! I totally bought in to the story and characters! Can't wait for more! Really like the mythology and world building. Bravo!