Book Review: A Need So Beautiful
Media Type: Book
Title: A Need So Beautiful
Author: Suzanne Young
Publisher: Balzer & Bray
Pages: Hardcover; 272
Release Date: June 1, 2011
Source: Publisher/TBS
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We all want to be remembered. Charlotte’s destiny is to be Forgotten…
Charlotte’s best friend thinks Charlotte might be psychic. Her boyfriend thinks she’s cheating on him. But Charlotte knows what’s really wrong: She is one of the Forgotten, a kind of angel on earth, who feels the Need—a powerful, uncontrollable draw to help someone, usually a stranger.
But Charlotte never wanted this responsibility. What she wants is to help her best friend, whose life is spiraling out of control. She wants to lie in her boyfriend’s arms forever. But as the Need grows stronger, it begins to take a dangerous toll on Charlotte. And who she was, is, and will become–her mark on this earth, her very existence–is in jeopardy of disappearing completely.
Charlotte will be forced to choose: Should she embrace her fate as a Forgotten, a fate that promises to rip her from the lives of those she loves forever? Or is she willing to fight against her destiny–no matter how dark the consequences.
Charlotte is an amazingly multifaceted character. On the surface she is a normal teenage girl. Hanging out with her best friend, sneaking out sometimes, and spending ample hours in the arms of her (extremely hot and swoon worthy) boyfriend Harlin. Just on this level alone I already connected with Charlotte. She was so easygoing, and sweet. However what really made her so fascinating was the heavenly duty with which she had been assigned. This is a girl who, while balancing everything a normal teenager must, has a heavenly duty. She doesn’t like it, but it’s there.
The Need is what really brought this story to life. Charlotte’s sacrifices show the reader how deep of a person she really is. It isn’t as though she can run away from it when the Need pulls her. Oh, she’s tried. Still, watching Charlotte give up so many things that she really wanted, pulling away from people she loved just to fulfill this Need, is what really got me. I know that being a teenager is tough, and at times egocentric. I’ve been there. Watching Charlotte battle the two sides of herself was utterly engrossing. Would you be able to give up what was comfortable and easy to fulfill your destiny? I’m not sure I would.
In case you’re still stuck up there at the name Harlin, yes there is a romance in this story. A Need So Beautiful provides one heck of a love story. If you aren’t sobbing by the end, I’ll be truly surprised. Harlin is such an amazing character. He’s sweet, funny, and so in love with Charlotte that it’s crazy. Rough on the outside and soft on the inside, the perfect boy. Even when everyone around her starts to fade away, it’s Harlin that is always there in the foreground. The chemistry between these two made me swoon, and to anyone who says it isn’t believable, does it matter? I really wish we all had love like these two do. I really do.
Yes, I’m rambling and I know it. It seems that the more I completely fall in love with a book, the harder it is for me to write a coherent review. The raw emotions that this book evoked for me are hard to explain, but I can say that it’s one I won’t forget. Plain and simple, you need to read A Need So Beautiful. A heartbreaking story of sacrifice, love, and hope, it’s just too fantastic for words. My hope is that you fall in love with as much as I did. Make sure to grab a box of tissues before you read the ending, you’ll need it.
FTC Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I was not monetarily compensated for my opinion.
