Beautifully Written Books

I’m a sucker for gorgeous writing. I adore it when a book is so beautifully written that I have to stop and take a breath before reading on.

I totally understand that some people absolutely hate flowery prose. I am not one of those people.

And writing doesn’t necessarily have to be flowery to be beautiful to me. Sometimes certain authors have such an incredible ability to describe a thought or feeling in a succinct and unique, yet relatable way that you know exactly what they mean without three paragraphs of description.

Give me all of those books. And all of that talent.

Here are some of my favorite examples of beautifully written books:

 

The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

“My sister will die over and over again for the rest of my life. Grief is forever. It doesn’t go away; it becomes a part of you, step for step, breath for breath. I will never stop grieving Bailey because I will never stop loving her. That’s just how it is. Grief and love are conjoined, you don’t get one without the other. All I can do is love her, and love the world, emulate her by living with daring and spirit and joy.”

“Remember how it was when we kissed? Armfuls and armfuls of light thrown right at us. A rope dropping down from the sky. How can the word love and the word life even fit in the mouth?”

“Remember how it was when we kissed? Armfuls and armfuls of light thrown right at us. A rope dropping down from the sky. How can the word love and the word life even fit in the mouth?”

 

How to Kill a Rockstar and God-Shaped Hole by Tiffanie DeBartolo

“Fate is the magnetic pull of our souls toward the people, places, and things we belong with.”

“Fate is just another word for people’s choices coming to a head. Destiny, coincidence, whatever you name it. It inevitably lies in our hands.”

“I know that if I ever have the audacity to blame fate or God for holding a gun to my temple, I also have the wherewithal to remind myself that if I end up with a hole in my head, I was the one who pulled the trigger.”

“Has the industry done to music what McDonald’s has done to eating?”

“Just knowing you exist changed the world for me.”

“I like to say I don’t believe in mystics . I don’t believe in fate. I don’t believe in destiny or kismet. I don’t believe in God. I don’t believe in anything. But I believe in the possibility of everything.”

“Real annihilation happens from the inside out.”

 

The Nature of Jade by Deb Calletti

“It was one of those times you feel a sense of loss, even though you didn’t have something in the first place. I guess that’s what disappointment is- a sense of loss for something you never had.”

“They say religion is about love, but you wonder how much of it really is about fear.

“Stereotypes are fast and easy, but they are lies, and the truth takes its time.”

 

Darkly Madly Duet by Trisha Wolfe

When gravity makes itself known, we’re powerless to stop the collision. Knowing you’re being drawn into a black hole does little to prevent the inevitable.

When I look into his eyes, I see myself. Not a reflection of the woman—but the hollow echo of my blood-stained soul.

She is my salvation. And I am her long-awaited consequence.

 

Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas

“Time passes by you like a bullet,” he says, “and fear gives you the excuses you’re craving to not do the things you know you should. Don’t doubt yourself, don’t second-guess, don’t let fear hold you back, don’t be lazy, and don’t base your decisions on how happy it will make others. Just go for it, okay?”

“A ship at harbor is safe, but that’s not what ships are for.”

“We don’t need food to survive this life as much as we need our hearts broken at least once. But the best part is, the first break is always the worst. It’ll never feel this bad.”

 

Caraval Series by Stephanie Garber

“She imagined loving him would feel like falling in love with darkness, frightening and consuming yet utterly beautiful when the stars came out.”

“Gold shimmered no matter what, but few people could make darkness glitter the way he did.”

“He smelled of magic and heartbreak, and something about the combination made her think that despite what he claimed, he wanted to be her hero.”

 

American Queen by Sierra Simone

“Jealousy is a word with too many meanings. It’s a TARDIS of a word, bigger on the inside, a small, mean thing on the surface, but a complicated dance of emotions and negotiations within. I’m suffering with every single meaning of the word jealous.”

“Sometimes the forbidden fruit is just too sweet not to bite.”

“I saw that you can be hurt—mortally wounded, in fact—and it doesn’t have to be anyone’s fault. Sometimes the world is just cruel that way, and it wasn’t fair to grudge them their happiness even as it tore down my own.”

 

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

“I am always surprised to discover that when the world seems darkest, there exists the greatest opportunity for light.”

“We are all dealt a hand at birth. A good hand can ultimately lose – just as a poor hand can win – but we must all play the cards the fate deals. The choices we face may not be the choices we want, but they are choices nonetheless.”

“Failure isn’t absolute, just because you couldn’t save everyone doesn’t mean you didn’t save anyone.”

 

Daughter of Smoke and Bone Trilogy by Laini Taylor

“Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.”

“Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there’s no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic.”

“Have you ever asked yourself, do monsters make war, or does war make monsters?”

 

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

“Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.”

“The summer sun was not meant for boys like me. Boys like me belonged to the rain.”

“But love was always something heavy for me. Something I had to carry.”

 

Some Quiet Place by Kelsey Sutton

“People are so complex. They want to hear the truth, but they want you to lie to them.”

“Life. It’s a funny thing. Some want it, some throw it away. Some cling, some have it stolen from them. It’s terrifying… which is maybe why I was drawn to Fear in the first place.”

“But her story isn’t finished, and for once she’s picked up a pen.”