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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
Robin McKinley's prose was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! I loved reading it and couldn't put the book down. She really brought the fairytale to life with a perfect balance of nostalgia and freshness. I was really cheering for Beauty and her Beast!
However, I was SEVERELY disappointed by the ending. I know the solution to Beauty and the Beast is supposed to be magical, but it was all way too fast and easily accepted by everyone in the book. Oh, we'll just have four weddings at once? Sure! *rolls eyes* I was so frustrated because the whole book had been full of all these characters realistically reacting to these magical elements, and then suddenly these truly fantastical magical happenings were brushed over as if they were a matter of course. It was SO unsatisfying. (On top of it all, I really felt like I didn't get the right closure with Beauty's feelings about her nickname and the idea that her real name was honor. I would have loved to have seen more of a theme involved with that!)
So, it was a beautiful read, but I was very upset with how poorly the ending was handled.
However, I was SEVERELY disappointed by the ending. I know the solution to Beauty and the Beast is supposed to be magical, but it was all way too fast and easily accepted by everyone in the book. Oh, we'll just have four weddings at once? Sure! *rolls eyes* I was so frustrated because the whole book had been full of all these characters realistically reacting to these magical elements, and then suddenly these truly fantastical magical happenings were brushed over as if they were a matter of course. It was SO unsatisfying. (On top of it all, I really felt like I didn't get the right closure with Beauty's feelings about her nickname and the idea that her real name was honor. I would have loved to have seen more of a theme involved with that!)
So, it was a beautiful read, but I was very upset with how poorly the ending was handled.
I gave this an extra star for being McKinley's debut novel and because I'm not the young adult audience it's directed at.
The beginning is slowwwww, and I don't feel that Beauty really has enough character to make me really care about her. But, it picks up near the end and Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney film, so here we are.
The beginning is slowwwww, and I don't feel that Beauty really has enough character to make me really care about her. But, it picks up near the end and Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney film, so here we are.
Not quite as magical as when I first read it many years ago, but still wonderful in its own way.
Always a fabulous book. I've read it several times now. The breezes are by far the best ever just because they are so frivolous and invisible. And the ending is beautiful.
This was such a charming fairy tail retelling! McKinley took the original tale of Beauty and the Beast and elaborated on it in such a way that it felt magical and wonderful. I loved the setting of the enchanted castle and I loved the character of Beauty who was both headstrong and pragmatic but also insecure and self-conscious. I highly recommend this to anyone who loves a good fairy tale retelling.
A solid 4.5 stars. I am a sucker for fairy-tale retellings and adaptations, and this one did not disappoint.
It's exactly what the subtitle suggests--a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. A good one.
I can definitely see why this book would be held so dear by so many, especially as a first approach to romance. I really enjoyed the take on the story, which has the familiar beats of the class story but brings to it a more modern approach. I particularly enjoyed the Relationship between the sisters, and spending so much time with the family. The romance itself, however, left me a little cold, and the ending did not quite send the right message.
G
A wonderfully involving retelling of the old classic. I was very glad to see that the sisters weren't so bad.
A wonderfully involving retelling of the old classic. I was very glad to see that the sisters weren't so bad.