My Library in the Making

(This review was originally posted at My Library in the Making.)I admit: what drew me to The Sweetest Dark was that gorgeous cover. Seriously. Look at it. But I shouldn't have let it fool me, because the story bound by that pretty thing left me in ugly tears.In a matter of a few pages, the lyrical and atmospheric writing already gripped me, and I knew I was in the hands of a master. As if that wasn't enough, the mystery was also introduced early on, urging me even more to turn the pages.But even without those two reasons, I would've kept reading for Lora, whose quiet yet fierce demeanor and no-nonsense attitude made me love her immediately. Instead of being intimidated by the rich, snotty girls in her new school, she stood up to them and held her own, just like her harsh life at the orphanage had taught her. She also faced everything that her new magical life threw at her with practicality, honesty, and courage. And fangs and claws too, both metaphorical and not, because this girl knew how to use her aces. She's the YA heroine I'd unknowingly been waiting for.With Lora's new school came two equally appealing boys. First was Jesse, the school's groundskeeper, who charmed with his knowledge and dependability; add to that his hidden "talent", sweetness, gentleness, and beautiful way with words, and I was smitten beyond saving. And the second was Armand, son of a duke, whose tough, bad boy exterior hid his vulnerability, which, although predictable, would never fail to be endearing (at least for me). I was daunted at the hint of this love triangle, but for Lora—and every reader, I suppose—Jesse was the clear choice, which was fine by me because Armand already had too much to deal with.When the magical part of the plot entered, I encountered two problems. I found it weird how easily Lora accepted the truth about her identity, but it was soon realized that it was because the signs that had used to point to her insanity were actually pointing to this truth. Also, as soon as Lora began to delve deeper into her new self, the plot stretched out confusingly, if only at first, to include Armand and his own stash of secrets. It deviated the focus from Lora and lessened the wow factor on her, as she called it, Becoming. But really, these faults were very minimal, and honestly, right now I don't really care about them at all anymore.I should've guessed that setting this story in England during World War I wouldn't bring about any good for the characters, but the ending surprised me. It was heartbreaking but satisfying and utterly beautiful, hence the tears I've mentioned above. The idea of a sequel confuses me, but I'll surely be reading that one. And soon.MY FAVORITE PART was the last paragraph in the epilogue. That's the part that brought out the tears.