The Graces by Laure Eve (ARC review)

The Graces by Laure Eve
Publisher: Amulet Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2016
Pages: 432
Song I Played While Reading: Alarm by Anne Marie
Rating: 5 stars

   Everyone loves the Graces.

Fenrin Grace is larger than life, almost mythical. He's the school Pan, seducing girls without really meaning to. He charms them lazily until he grows tired, breaking their hearts quickly and cleanly, biding his time until someone special comes along. Someone different, who will make him wonder how he got along all this time without her. Someone like me.

Fenrin's twin, Thalia, is a willowy beauty with rippling, honey-colored hair. She's a graceful gypsy who stands aloof - cool without even trying. Wherever she goes, Thalia leaves behind a band of followers who want to emulate her. She casts spells over everyone she encounters, just like Fenrin - even if they both deny it.

Then there's Summer. She's the youngest Grace, and the only one who admits she's really a witch. Summer is brooding, untamable, and lovely. She's dark on the outside - with jet-black hair and kohl-rimmed eyes - and on the inside. She's got a tempest of emotions roiling within her. It was inevitable that she'd find me, the new girl - a loner with secrets lurking under the surface.

I am River. I am not a Grace. But I'll do anything to become one. 

Let's give a round of a applause for not only the designer of the cover (gorgeous, right?), but whoever wrote the summary. It's fucking genius. It hooks you in, wondering just what the hell this is about. Who are the Graces? Who is River? And why is she so confident she'll fit in with them?
I'm going to keep this short, since I don't want to spoil anything. You need to go in blind, maybe a little in awe of River's confidence, but relatively blind. There's a reason for it, and it fucking works. I had no idea what to expect, and I was so blown away. The instant I started reading The Graces, I knew I was a goner.
Eve's writing is so encompassing, so beautiful and rich, that it kind of smacked me in the face. It reminded me why I loved reading so much, and why I had chosen to DNF the last book I had been reading, How To Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather. I remember thinking to myself "This is what a book should be like. Not something lifeless and dull, but full to bursting with life and its tragedies and hopeful moments."
Eerie, dark, tragically beautiful, and otherworldly, The Graces is something that I think a lot of people won't be expecting. It'll stab you right in the heart, and leave you gasping for the sequel.