Mundie Moms

Monday, September 2, 2013

Starry Nights by Daisy Whitney, Book Review


By: Daisy Whitney
Published by: Bloomsbury Childrens
To Be Released on: September 3rd, 2013
Source: arc from publisher at TLA '13
5 Stars: I Loved It!
Purchase it from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Add it to Goodreads

Seventeen-year-old Julien is a romantic—he loves spending his free time at the museum poring over the great works of the Impressionists. But one night, a peach falls out of a Cezanne, Degas ballerinas dance across the floor, and Julien is not hallucinating.

The art is reacting to a curse that trapped a beautiful girl, Clio, in a painting forever. Julien has a chance to free Clio and he can't help but fall in love with her. But love is a curse in its own right. And soon paintings begin to bleed and disappear. Together Julien and Clio must save the world's greatest art . . . at the expense of the greatest love they've ever known.

Like a master painter herself, Daisy Whitney brings inordinate talent and ingenuity to this romantic, suspenseful, and sophisticated new novel. A beautifully decorated package makes it a must-own in print. 

I love it when a book blurs the lines between reality and the exciting "what if". Daisy Whitney has done just that with Starry Nights. Her story blends real life with something extraordinary, and unbelievable to create something that bloomed to life while reading her book. I love that when authors do that. While reading Starry Nights I began to feel not so weird for the times  I've stared at a painting secret;u waiting for something, anything to happen within it. Not to mention the times I have thought that if I just stare at it hard enough it just might come to life. Well seventeen year old Julien doesn't need to worry about wishing, or starring too hard at a painting for them to come to life. He has a gift that allows him to see them come to life all on their own.

I don't know what's more romantic, that the setting is in Paris, or the fact that Julien falls in love with the girl from the painting his mother's museum has finally secured. This painting isn't just any painting, and the girl isn't just any girl. The painting is the highly sought after The Girl in the Garden painted by Renoir, who was friends with Monet and also an admirer of the girl. The painting  disappeared after it was exhibited in 1885, and mystery surrounding it's disappearance and resurfacing was well told in this story. Julien this is huge. Not only does he need to make sure this painting stays protected, he has to keep the girl within the painting protected as well, and that won't be easy. I love how the painting and Julien's ability played such a large part of the story's suspense and magically elements. 

I LOVED the part of the story that gave me the history behind the painting, and discovering just who the girl, Clio is. Not only is her story intriguing, but it's filled with magic, romance, and some danger. Being a huge history fan, I loved the way that Daisy wove history into this story. She also created this beautiful bridge between reality and the possibility of the impossible. That comes in the form of Julien and his special abilities, and how the paintings come to life. The love story between Julien and Clio is just as beautiful as the painting she is from. The whole concept of muses, artists's abilities to protect their work, and being able to go inside a painting, and have it come to life were fascinating, and extraordinary to read about.

I got so wrapped up in Starry Nights, and I loved every moment I spent reading it. Every little detail about this story was explained. Normally I love reading about and watching the love interest's relationship grow, but my favorite part of this story deals with the paintings and their ability to come to life. Okay, well that and the time Julien and Clio spend inside a certain painting. Paris was the perfect setting for this book. I loved that unlike many YA books, this one that took place inside a museum, in France. I loved feeling like I was getting small glimpses into the city of romance, both from the past and present day. 

Starry Nights is about love, art, and the reality of the impossible. It's also a little more than that, and I enjoyed everything about it. From the characters, the romantic settings both in reality and in the paintings, to the story's that were hidden with each painting, everything about this book is brilliant. I love that it's also a story that is unlike any of the ones I've recently read. I know, I've said I love it more than a few times now, and I'm being a little vague on the details of what I loved about the book. There are so many little things that uncover bigger things in this story, and I don't want to spoil anything for readers. 

Starry Nights is the perfect blend of romance, suspense, intelligence, and beauty. I'd highly recommend picking up this clean cut, masterfully told story. 

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