The Beauty That Remains Book Review

Ziona Walls, Managing Editor

Spoiler Alert: This review contains content that may ruin your reading experience.

I give props to Ashley Woodfolk, the author of The Beauty that Remains. With her amazing writing skills and ability to make the reader feel every emotion through each character, is beauty in itself.

The Beauty That Remains is about how loss pulled apart the three main characters: Autumn, Shay, and Logan. Autumn always knew exactly who she was: a talented artist and a loyal friend. Shay was defined by two things: her bond with her twin sister, Sasha, and her love for music. Logan, on the other hand, has always turned to writing love songs when his real love life was less than perfect.

But when tragedy strikes each of them, somehow music is no longer enough to ease the pain. Now, Logan is a guy who can’t stop watching his dead ex-boyfriend’s vlogs. Shay is a music blogger who’s struggling to keep it together. Autumn sends messages that she knows can never be answered. With Logan’s loss of Bram, his ex that he still loved, Logan grows as a person. He learns that he shouldn’t try to hide his love for Bram and accepts that he misses him a lot. I personally felt this, even though I never lost a boyfriend or ex-boyfriend as a result of his death. I have, however, felt the pain of missing someone and not wanting to admit that I’m mourning. The way Logan handles this dilemma can be very relatable for teenagers and young adults. Despite the odds, one band’s music will reunite them and prove that after grief, beauty thrives in the people that are left behind.

As the character Shay gets introduced, the realization that Sasha was her twin sister was slowly pushed to the limelight. I like how the characters journey starts off with her own spotlight, then we get to know her sister as well. With Shay’s friends mourning along with her, it creates this feeling that she isn’t alone. 

I loved this book. In the very first chapter, I was drawn in by the emotion and descriptive words used to illuminate the pain that Autumn felt. Through the loss of her best friend, Tavia Violet, Autumn creates a closer relationship with Tavia’s brother, Dante. They connect via their share of loss and mutual affection.

I think teenagers to young adults would easily fall in love with this book. I think it is easy to feel all the emotions and get very connected to the characters involved. This book will make you cry, laugh, and fall in love. Not many books can do that.