A Great and Terrible Beauty, Libba Bray

A Great and Terrible Beauty is a book about witchcraft and ideas of what a “young woman” should be. It is set in 1895 and takes place at an all girl’s boarding school. There are scenes within it in which the young ladies of Spence are taught to behave and act one way to be desirable to men, but in the secrecy of the forest near Spence they misbehave and discuss forbidden notions and actions. The supernatural is another aspect of the book, with the main character, Gemma Doyle, experiencing visions more and more frequently and finding out with the girls with whom she socialises with (as they are not at the point of friendship) the dangers of the power she possesses. Gemma is also on the hunt for answers surroundings her mother’s murder, by a group called “the Order” who show up frequently in discussion about the supernatural aspects. Despite these themes, it is a book written purely for entertainment’s sake, and has no overall grand idea or message it wants to convey to its readers. It has no deep thought—provoking ideas or messages within it, but is an enjoyable read.