The Belles: Dhonielle Clayton

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In The Belles we follow Camilla, one of the new Belles presented at court. In a world where everyone is born grey, Belles are the only ones who can bring beauty and color to the people through the magic given to them by the Goddess of Beauty. Camilla and her closest Belles sister Amber both covet the postion of Queens Favorite and have been training really hard all their lives to be chosen. Once at court Camilla discovers some secrets that changes her perspective on what it means to be a Belles. Now she must decide if she willing to break all the rules to save the people of Orleans.

Camellia Beauregard is a Belle. In the opulent world of Orléans, Belles are revered, for they control Beauty, and Beauty is a commodity coveted above all else. In Orléans, the people are born gray, they are born damned, and only with the help of a Belle and her talents can they transform and be made beautiful. With that being said, once the plot really started rolling I could NOT wait to see what was going to happen. Camellia Beauregard is a Belle. Belles use an Arcana, a type of magic, to shape and shift paying customers into glowing examples of beauty. The world is equally as individual – Set in a fantasy New Orleans where citizens are born grey, a group of women called the Belles bring beauty to the kingdom of Orlèans. Though there is no modern concept of race/racial tensions, color is beauty and changes as fast as any other fashion trend. It was an interesting take on the many conversations surrounding equality that we are already having today. Regarding the Belles, I did struggle to fully understand how their magic works in the beginning but it felt well developed by the end of the story and I am excited to see how their powers continue to expand in the following books. My only complaint is that I went into this book thinking it was a stand alone, only to find out when I finished that it’s a series. The ending is mildly infuriating, but there’s a great set up for the next story.Camellia Beauregard is a young girl who was born into being a Belle, one that holds magic and can control beauty. In Camellia’s world, Orleans, people are born grey and without the beauty they seek and it’s up to Belles like Camellia to cater to the needs of the citizens. There are so many gorgeous, vibrant descriptions throughout when it comes to the setting, dresses, food, people and just about everything. You can't exactly tell a story with beauty playing such a key component in the plot and not have lush descriptions. It is absolutely marvelous. Nothing feels overwritten, truly just pulling you deeper into the world Clayton has created. The Belles takes place in a fantasy world where humans have been cursed to look ugly, with misshapen bodies and grey skin. However, there are a few non-ugly people- the Belles, blessed by the Goddess of Beauty, and with abilities to transform people’s bodies to make them beautiful too. The Belles are revered above everyone else and our MC, Camellia, is one of them. The book starts off with Camellia and her sister Belles competing to become ‘the favourite’, the special Belle chosen to tend to the royal family, and the plot continues after that.

Next, the writing. I really loved the writing style!! 🤩🤩 It was super descriptive and elaborate and described the beautiful dresses and luxurious lifestyle the Belles enjoyed in loads of detail 😍 I also loved the descriptions of what the Belles did during their beauty sessions with customers. Dhonielle Clayton’s writing style actually really reminded me of Stephanie Garber’s writing! So if you’re a fan of her writing, I’m sure you’d like the writing in this book too 🥰🥰There was a rumour floating around that the author was going to change the fact of this murder, but I want you to know that this is not the case. A queer girl character, one of only two who have any lines or character arc (the other dies as well, in case you were wondering how other queer characters in this book fare), is murdered by Camellia and her bestest buddy. After the princess deems that she’ll marry a sexual predator instead of her girlfriend. This murder occurs for fleeting allocishet pain, and all so that Camellia is hated by the court. I am sure that a queer girl didn’t have to die just so Camellia would leave. There are other ways to spur on that kind of plot point. There are ways other than killing a queer girl. Esta oración no es una traducción de la original. ¡Están tocando el timbre! ¿Quién puede ir a abrir? Camilla was a caring, ambitious and inquistive character. I liked how she tried to make things work without being all selfless and giving up on her dream of being the favorite Belles at the first sign of trouble. I also loved how she believed people were beautiful the way they were and how much she cared for her sister Belles. The sisterhood she had with the other Belles was amazing but I would have liked a little bit more of it. Im sad that her maid Bree was pretty much forgotten because I really liked her. I also thought the villain was really compelling. She was smart, manipulative and frankly terrifying.