Rebel Angels

Wonderful, wonderful book! Such a great sequel to A Great and Terrible Beauty. I love how Libba Bray continues to develop her characters, including the Realm, even after we think we know all there is too know! The ways in which she slowly divulges the back story belonging to Gemma and her friends is a wonderful lure that pulls you through the book.

The only negative aspect that I found in this novel is that, sometimes, Bray spends too much time describing things that feel trivial. For example, at this point, her long descriptions of the realm make the story drag as do the constant reminders of the unpleasant aspects of her family and their habits and attitudes.
I enjoyed the addition of Lord Denby to the story, even though I didn’t find him overly likeable. In addition, although I know the secondary story about Ann and the theater are intended to make you like Ann more and understand her plight and woes, it mostly just annoyed me.

The mystery surrounding Circe unfolded in a way that I did not expect and was pleasantly surprised that I didn’t figure it out until the main characters did.

Reader reviewed by Emily H.

Wonderful, wonderful book!
Such a great sequel to A Great and Terrible Beauty. I love how Libba
Bray continues to develop her characters, including the Realm, even
after we think we know all there is too know!

Reader reviewed by ash

mum is the word that in this second installment in the 'a great and terrible beauty' trilogy, rebel angles, pippa has come back! after losing one of her closest friends--in the dour, secretive private boarding school that gemma doyle was sent to to become a propper lady--gemma goes back to the realms with felecity and ann only to find pippa waiting for them! but what happens if pippa doesnt want to leave her friends and pass on? and what is gemma supposed o do about the secretive indian man who keeps aunting her dreams? on the bright side... it's christmas in the late 17th century london, and gemma is being courted by the handsome and rich men. but do they have other motives? ad what is gemma supposed to do about the little problem of ghosts stalking her? find out in REBEL ANGELS! 

Reader reviewed by Manda Kay

This second installment of the Gemma Doyle Series, by Libba Bray, is just as great, if not better, than the first.  Having already become enthralled by her writing, Bray has astounded me once again.  In Rebel Angels, Gemma continues on her quest to find the Temple and bind the magic in the Realms.  She also is looking for the woman known as Circe.  Will she find the Temple and protect the magic? Will she find and conquer Circe?  Will everything not be what it seems?  These are all questions that will be answered when you read Rebel Angels for yourself.  If you read A Great and Terrible Beauty and loved it, you will love Rebel Angels even more.  Bray continues this series with another amazing installment.  You will again feel what Gemma is feeling and be enthralled by the good and the bad that ensues.  There is romance, betrayal, and even action and suspense that will keep you riveted. I can officially say, after reading Rebel Angels, I am impressed with Libba Bray and I can't wait for to read the next installment in this series. 

Reader reviewed by Sara E.

I was completely anxious to get my hands on this book after reading A Great and Terrible Beauty, the first in the trilogy. As before, Libba Bray creates a beautiful world with The Realms. More and more mysteries arise at Spence Academy, and Gemma must find a way to figure things out. Not everything is as it seems, and the power of the Realms is something everybody wants but only Gemma can decide who to give it to.

Reader reviewed by Kayla

Rebel Angels is the sequel to A Great and Terrible Beauty. This book follows the continuing adventures of Gemma Doyle as she pursues her recently discovered role in the Order.

Gemma must search for clues to the whereabouts of the elusive lost Temple, where she must bind the magic that is now running amuck in the realms. Gemma also has to discover the identity of the evil Circe.

This book is a great addition to the series. You will be kept guessing, especially on the subject of Circe. This book also tells more about her three friends lifes.

Reader reviewed by Syl

I loved Rebel Angels. I was surprised that I enjoyed this series. I swore to myself that I wouldn't read another series other than my beloved Harry Potter and Twilight. Rebel Angels proved to me opce again that I shouldn't judge a series by its first novel. I detested A Great and Terrible Beauty. But once I picked up Rebel Angels I couldn't put it down.
I loved the action that it involved. Gemma's progress and conflict with her powers is potrayed eloquently. The secrets that surround the Order and Rakshanna will stun you. I highly recommend a Sweet Far thing if you're interested in how Gemma and Kartik will end up. It will leave you breathless.

Reader reviewed by Stephanie

The literary sorceress Libba Bray enchanted us into Gemma Doyle's scary-magic world with her brilliant debut novel, A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY. Did she suffer a sophomore slump as so many others have been known to do? Not at all. REBEL ANGELS is quite possibly even more exciting, confusing, mysterious, and alluring than the first.

Two months after the death of Pippa, who chose to eat the berries from the Realms and remain there, Christmas descends upon England and Spence Academy, where Gemma, Felicity, and Ann are still struggling to understand what is up with the Realms and the magic. A suspicious new teacher, Miss McCleethy, arrives in the middle of a stormy night, and Gemma has got a feeling that she's up to no good. She unearths several clues at Spence and in London that seem to point to the fact that Miss McCleethy is Circe, the horrid monster who was a girl who bound herself to a Winterlands creature and is now pure evil.

But London is not just for investigation. Gemma meets the acquaintance of the charming Simon Middleton--a witty, handsome, and otherwise perfect gentleman, the kind she would be enchanted by if she were not in possession of such terrible and dark secrets. Gemma also befriends again Miss Moore, dismissed from Spence Academy after accusations that Gemma and her friends made against her. Together they try to discover the truth about Circe and to bind the magic before others who might mess with it get to it first.

However, no one is who they seem. Is Kartik, the Indian boy of the powerful group of men called the Rakshana tied to her destiny, whom Gemma cannot stop thinking inappropriate thoughts about, with her or against her? Who is really Circe? Can the remnants of the order even be trusted anymore? There seems to be no one Gemma can trust but herself, and that is how she must conquer the Winterlands creatures and contain the magic in the Realms.

REBEL ANGELS reveals more shocking secrets about its characters and more terrifying situations and environments, but it all makes sense in this character-driven novel. The characters are not perfect and they know that, or they must know that. Libba Bray's second novel is an exultant declaration of femininity and the importance--and dangers--of alliances. This is a trilogy that must not be missed.

Reader reviewed by ambeen

Rebel Angels is the thrilling and engaging sequel to A Great and Terrible Beauty, the first in the Gemma Doyle trilogy.

Libba Bray is delivers with this fast paced, thrilling sequel. I did not want to put it down, it was so engrossing. The characters are as vivid and real as before. Youll find your heart racing while you frantically try to figure everything out along with Gemma, Felicity, and Ann.

Rebel Angels is a truly great sequel that will leave the reader rushing to the bookstore to pick up the third and final installment of the trilogy, The Sweet Far Thing.

Caution: Reading at one oclock in the morning may cause you to hear strange noises and feel that perhaps Circe is after you as well!

Reader reviewed by the book muncher

Rebel Angels is the sequel to the Libba Brays amazing A Great and Terrible Beauty. It is just as good, if not better, than the first.

Things seem to be going well at Spence despite the death of a well loved friend, Pippa. Christmastime is approaching, and soon the girls will go home to their families to celebrate, with the exception of Anne, who must stay at Spence for the duration of the holiday.

But Felecity manages to weave a new story for Anne, who then comes to stay with Fee for the holiday. Gemma is compelled to do a work of good service for a snarky comment she made, and she finds herself talking with Nell, who is a patient in the asylum where her brother Tom works. Nell isnt completely there, and she gives Gemma cryptic messages about the realms, as Nell used to be able to enter them.

There are new characters and struggles introduced. The first is Mrs. McCleethy, who is the teacher who takes over for Mrs. Moore. Gemma and her friends are mistrustful of Mrs. McCleethy and fear that she is one of their enemies concerning the realms. Then there is Simon Middleton, the well-to-do son of a rich family who has taken a fancy for Gemma. There are more visits to the realms, and the magic is taken out and used in Gemmas world. But the most difficult part is that its Gemmas job to find the source of the magic and bind it before Circe finds it first.

Just as I loved the first book in the trilogy, I loved the second. Libba Brays characters are so realistic, and so is the story even though it contains elements that could not be possible in real life. I recommend this wonderful trilogy to all teenage girls out there.