I really loved this book. I thought it was beautiful and sad. So well written. It also felt like something completely original which I think is hard to do. I just wish there was more. When I got to the end I wasn't satisfied. I wanted more of Lark's story. More of her family's story. Just more.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Shea Ernshaw has a gift. I never want to wake up from her wonder-speckled dream. I want to breathe the feelings in this book when I wake each morning, and drink them with my tea.

I am a cursed romantic; within the pages of this book is exactly where I long to be

Thank you #NetGalley for this ARC. I am a fan of beautiful words, unique stories, and tales of magic made real

So the cover caught your eye (me), you’ve read the synopsis and now you are here to see what other people think of the book.

Overall, I enjoyed the story. The prose on the page flowed with its own kind of magic. The authors words brought teenage angst alive on the page, as well as how beliefs and superstitions of a small town can take on a life of their own. Lark, our FMC, shied away from the perceived magic of the tulips, conflicted, hiding, a shadow of herself, while her brother, embraces it, encourages it even.

Is there really magic woven into the tulips in their backyard that seem to defy nature? Or, has the Goode family given them power through the years and now the whole town believes it?

There were some plot holes in the book, but if you suspend belief and get lost in the story, it is beautiful, mysterious and heartbreaking. I couldn’t stop reading it and finished it in one sitting.

Most small towns have their own beliefs, superstition and sometimes magic. This book is a mood, vibes, something intangible. If you are in the mood for a beautifully written story with a twist, this one might just be for you.

I would like to thank the author, Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and my review is voluntarily given. Happy reading!

SHORT SYNOPSIS:
Larke Goode is counting down the days until graduation and she can leave her hometown of Cutwater and her family curse behind. The Goode family’s tulip field creates a madness. When the tulips bloom everyone that is around them, fall madly in love. The catch? It doesn’t always last after spring.

MY THOUGHTS:
I always enjoy Shea Ernshaw’s books. She continues to create atmospheric page turners, and THE BEAUTIFUL MADDENING is no exception. I love how Shea expertly weaves magical elements with heartbreak and tragedy. I read this one in less than 24 hours and had a great time with Lark’s story. Her fear of never finding true love was incredibly valid and understandable. And as the reader I was along for the ride questioning if every feeling was real or due to the tulip madness.

Every time I think I’ve figured out one of Shea’s books, I so do not. The ending (much like A WILDERNESS OF STARS), is one that will forever haunt me. 😆 But in a good way…I think?

WHAT YOU’LL FIND:
🌷 Magical Flowers
🪄 Family Curse
💔 Heartbreak
✍️ Lyrical writing
💕 Young Love
🤫 Lies and Secrets

The Beautiful Maddening by Shea Ernshaw follows Lark Goode and her family’s cursed tulips. Every year when the tulips bloom, the town because enamored with Lark and her brother Asher. But it’s not real, it’s just part of the magic. Lark just wants to escape the town and escape the curse but what happens when she meets a boy who seems unaffected by the tulips?

I’m a huge fan of this author so this was a highly anticipated release for me and it did not disappoint! The writing is lush and atmospheric. The magic is dreamy and the whole story feels like a fairytale. I love Ernshaw’s prose and all the poetic lines that are in this book.

This is a book that’s mostly vibes. The magic is loose and it’s not meant to be fully understood. There is a lot of teen angst that can feel like a lot at times but that’s how teens are. When you are a young adult, everything feels so dramatic.

I loved this book. I can’t wait to own a physical copy and annotate it. The story was so magical and unique. This book is for anyone who would label themselves as a dreamer.

Every year, the Goode family's cursed tulips bloom, and everyone is drawn to them. Obsessed with the idea, they are in love until the flowers wilt and they go back to their regular life. Except this year, it's a beautiful maddening when the flowers are stolen and the town is sent in an uproar with all the coupling and uncoupling and flower obsession. Lark is just trying to slescape the flowers curse but gets tricked into love only to question everything as twists and turns keep coming up. Even the end doesn't tie the story up nicely because it's everything she never wanted.

I absolutely love Shea Ernshaw and her writing so this was always going to be a hit for me! Spooky, suspenseful, gothic, and just a little magical, this is just like all of her other books in the best way. I had never heard of the Dutch Tulip Mania, so it was kind of fun to google after and learn about this period in history, despite the fact that I am not a historical fiction fan. Pick this up if you loved Belladonna!

DNF: the "magic" didn't make sense, and there was no reason to really care about Lark. Oh, and if the tulip bulbs were brought the US in 1630 Lark's ancestor was prescient because that predates not only the craze but also the establishment of many villages in the then colonies.

eARC provided by publisher via Netgalley.

I like the writing and the story. But this felt like a waste of time by the.end of it. Maybe some people will like the ending, but I did not. I also didn't care for Lark's brother.

I really enjoy Ernshaw’s writing, I feel like Shea writes in a beautiful, poetic way. I will say, this did take me a while to get into. I absolutely LOVED The Wicked Deep, so the little nods to that in this story were great. Overall, good story, not my favorite.

If anyone knows anything about me, they know that I am @sheaernshaw biggest fan. Her writing just speaks to something deep in my soul.

What if, every spring, flowers bloomed in your yard that made everyone fall madly in love with you? Would you view that as a blessing or a curse?

Well, to Lark Goode and her twin brother, that's exactly what happens. He views it as a blessing, and her a curse. When people find out that it's the red and white tulip blooms that cause this cupid like affection, they go feral over them, trying to get their grubby little hands on them for themselves. Lark avoids everyone she can less they fall in love with her, until she meets him. The one boy who doesn't appear to be affected by her curse.

A huge thank you to @simonteen for the arc! Be sure to pick this one up June 3rd!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

if you've ever read a Shea Ernshaw book and are familiar with her writing, you'll understand what I mean when I say that this book is like the cloying, suffocating humidity of a summer storm just before it downpours; it hangs in the air and sticks to your skin, enveloping you from head to toe in a sweet, faintly ominous atmosphere that feels so beautiful and primal and terrifying, all at once.

this book is ruthless.

it's driven by fear, in the most basic sense, and marked plot-wise by the cut of Lark's heart strings one at a time. it's not always and entirely painful, but it's not light or happy or even forgivable either. it just marinates in its own melancholy in a way that dares you to look away.

the pacing is slow. the character development is even slower. and the ending is both incredible and gut-wrenching at the same time. this whole thing hurt me, but in the best way—in the most deviant and intentional but gentle way. and honestly, I am glad I read it.

I genuinely don't know if this review will sway anyone to pick up this book, but if you're the least bit curious, I dare you pick it up. I dare you to suffer and like it. I dare you to feel everything.

I dare you to enter the garden.

The Beautiful Maddening is just as you would guess it to be, a beautiful story filled with tragedy, hope and love. Following Lark as she navigates her feelings while trying to escape her curse is an emotional rollercoaster.

🪻Another beautiful story by one of my favorite authors. TBM follows the Goodes, two twins who are born into a cursed family. They live in a home with tulips that grow in the backyard causing people around them to be completely obsessed with them. But because of this no one can truly love them. Until one day Lark meets Oak who seems to be immune to her magical charms.

🌷Shea Ernshaw is one of the authors I recommend when people say they want to get into magical realism. I love her whimsical writing and how the reader questions what’s real and what’s magic in her stories. I really liked this one. My favorites of hers however will always be The Wicked Deep (which is referenced in this story!) and A History of Wild Places.

🪻Thank you to NetGalley, Ms. Ernshaw, and the publishers for this early copy!

I found this to be a very enjoyable read, filled with magic, heartbreak, and love.

I really liked the Goode family’s curse—with the people of Cutwater being undeniably attracted to the Goodes and falling in love with them so long as the tulips are in bloom. It was interesting to see how the twins handle the curse differently—with Archer embracing it, and Lark wanting to be free of it. So they were good characters to follow, as was Oak, the boy who seemingly isn’t affected by the curse (and the romance that possibly ensues between him and Lark).

The writing in this book was lovely overall. It just had a magical quality to it, being lyrical without being confusing, which I liked.

I was left with a few questions at the end. For example, I wanted to know how Lark and Acher’s parents got away with essentially abandoning their minor children. And I wanted to know a bit more about the lore regarding the tulips, as they were such a unique concept (and I liked how a beautiful, delicate flower could cause such madness and delirium). However, I would still recommend this book for anyone looking to enjoy a whimsical yet heartbreaking read.


Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for allowing me to read the eARC!

Just like tulips lure those to the Goodes family, they lured me into this story and before I knew it, it was over.

This was an interesting book with a generational curse on a family due to tulips. Tulips you ask? Yes, one of Lark's ancestors stole tulips from overseas and when they were planted on American soil, every spring the tulips make the town fall madly in love with them.

Because of this, lark is afraid she will never be loved for who she is and only from the cursed tulips.

The mysterious boy kept me wanting to read more and see where this madness of tulips went. It as a quick enjoyable read.

Thank you Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I sat down on a Sunday morning to start reading this and didn’t stop until Sunday afternoon. As I was drawn unto Lark’s story, her family curse, and the tulips. I wanted to find out what was happening, if it was all in her head, or if there really was some sort of magic at play.

I would have liked to have the epilogue a bit expanded to include both twins, as this story involves them both. But overall, this was a fun and addicting read.

the Beautiful Maddening is a gem of a precious, twisty, atmospheric story! it’s full of what Shea does best–entangling characters in a complex web of magic, love, heartbreak, and pasts they can’t escape, wrapped up in a ethereal setting you wish were real so you could go and disappear there. while I don’t feel it was the strongest of her previous YA novels, revolving a story around cursed tulips was so refreshingly unique, and the ending definitely had me in an absolute chokehold and broke my heart at least five times...

pros:
➳ tons of inner turmoil and depth in Lark & the other main characters
➳ immersive, atmospheric, & emotional writing style
➳ ending filled with unpredictable twists
➳ love & heartbreak portrayed torturously well
➳ memorable, unique town & setting

cons:
➳ the buildup took the majority of the story, and certain elements felt flat until about 70% of the way through
➳ felt like a repeat of the boy & girl character tropes in all her previous YA books (mysterious boy from out-of-town, girl who is “not like other girls”)

this book in particular felt like it really took a whiiiile to get to the true character development and conflict. but MAN in the final 30 ish percent of the book… I was stuuuuunned by how perfectly Shea wove every tiny detail into its place. I had a similar experience while reading A Wilderness of Stars–the ending was WILD and so worth it, but until I got to that point and everything clicked into place, I was having a hard time feeling invested in the story.

overall, I was so so excited to see a new Shea Ernshaw book out in the wild, and The Beautiful Maddening absolutely did not disappoint!! thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this LOVELY book!!

I really get on well with Shea Ernshaw's writing, and this book was no exception. She paints a beautiful story. The only issue I has for this book was that I wish the romance and plot were more balanced. It was very heavy on the romance and the rest of the plot fell by the wayside.

I love Shea's writing style, but I just don't think her books are for me anymore. I LOVED The Wicked Deep, but since then I've found her writing to have too much repetition and a strange focus on teens in vague consent situations sexually. In The Wicked Deep there was teen body possession and kissing while not in control of the girl's body. Then in this book there is a flower that causes obsession and her brother is out sleeping around because of these effects. These kids aren't fully consenting to sexual contact in these situations. It's a choice and one I just don't understand. How are you going to focus on this in several books when you could do anything-write anything? It doesn't sit right with me. Which sucks, because I enjoy her aesthetic and settings-but I can't get over this fact in her novels. It's so off-putting,