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skyegbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I had been questioning if I would even enjoy this book, due to putting it off for so long I believed it would seem childish and boring to me. This was not at all the case. The story is so unlike the original, so entirely unique, it's amazingly thought through.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Torture, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Murder, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Gun violence, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
vixenreader's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
The ending is a bit of a bummer, it still has a lot of creativity, and it addresses the hiccups in a more fascinating fashion.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Colonisation, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Medical trauma, Grief, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Body horror, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Abandonment
Minor: Gore, Alcohol, and Sexism
There are discussions of discrimination, segregation, and immigrating outside of a land because of fear for one’s own livelihood.meganpbennett's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I've been a Beauty and the Beast fan for years. I think I wore out a VHS tape of the Disney version, and oh, that library! So when I learned that there was a "twisted tale" version, I quickly added it to my TBR list.
It's an interesting "what if?" and it relies very heavily on the reader's knowledge of the Disney version of the tale, which is far far older than even the Perrault version. This reliance on the reader's knowledge is a drawback, as someone who is casually aware of the story would not be able to understand what is going on in this version, or be able to read other of these "twisted tales" without a thorough understanding of the Disney version of the story.
On to the story. The first half plays out almost exactly like the Disney movie, though with a lot of backstory about Belle's mother. The chapters alternate between Belle and Maurice in the present time, and Maurice and Belle's mother in the past, with nothing to differentiate the time periods, which is a major drawback, and I almost stopped reading when I couldn't figure out *when* the chapter was taking place. The book goes into detail about what the kingdom was like before the prince was cursed, but more specifically, *why* the enchantress felt it necessary to curse the Prince. Very interesting.
The story got much more interesting and intense when Belle finds the rose. As the daughter of the enchantress who set the spell, Belle's accidental touch destroys the rose, dooming the Beast and everyone who was caught in the spell to a life of being enchanted household items. The next sections detail their attempts to research how the curse came into being, who placed the curse and why, and how to break it.
It's an interesting "what if?" and it relies very heavily on the reader's knowledge of the Disney version of the tale, which is far far older than even the Perrault version. This reliance on the reader's knowledge is a drawback, as someone who is casually aware of the story would not be able to understand what is going on in this version, or be able to read other of these "twisted tales" without a thorough understanding of the Disney version of the story.
On to the story. The first half plays out almost exactly like the Disney movie, though with a lot of backstory about Belle's mother. The chapters alternate between Belle and Maurice in the present time, and Maurice and Belle's mother in the past, with nothing to differentiate the time periods, which is a major drawback, and I almost stopped reading when I couldn't figure out *when* the chapter was taking place. The book goes into detail about what the kingdom was like before the prince was cursed, but more specifically, *why* the enchantress felt it necessary to curse the Prince. Very interesting.
The story got much more interesting and intense when Belle finds the rose. As the daughter of the enchantress who set the spell, Belle's accidental touch destroys the rose, dooming the Beast and everyone who was caught in the spell to a life of being enchanted household items. The next sections detail their attempts to research how the curse came into being, who placed the curse and why, and how to break it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Violence, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Murder, Death, Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, Gore, Torture, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Racism, and Blood
knunderb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Such a fun read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Torture, Confinement, and Xenophobia
Minor: Terminal illness and Death of parent
jlfaith21's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I loved this version of Beauty and the Beast! The suspense was always there because I wanted to know what happened to Belle’s mom. This is a great read but did not leave me completely mind blown or in awe once I finished it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement
Minor: Murder and Torture
gmont's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical trauma, Confinement, and Torture
amberrushworth64's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I really liked this book. The story was very confusing at the beginning as it was hard to keep up with the changing of perspectives in each chapter. It was slow to build up. But had a nice tone to it. There were quite a few graphic things in this book and I think it should include a content warning, especially because of the torture descriptions (screaming and such) in the asylum towards the end of the book I did not like the last chapter of the book, and I definitely would have written it differently.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Torture, and Violence
ehmannky's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Well this was a fun time. The romance was definitely the weakest part of this retelling, mostly because it is just so fast-paced that there really isn't a ton of time for Belle and Beast to grow to love each other. The beginnings of something cute is there, but it's not a deep romance. Where this book shines is the portrayal of Belle's mother as the enchantress. I almost would have liked for the book to start somewhere around the time Belle comes to the castle, no prologue, then move to all the exciting action bits, and then have the last third or so be about Belle learning to be around her mother that she isn't sure she exactly likes as a person as she falls more in love with Beast. The book just comes into its own when it does its own thing and breaks away from the Disney movie, and I wish Braswell had had more space to do that.
It does lean on the "fantasy creatures as an allegory for real marginalized people," which isn't a trope I love. I don't know, other than these complaints, I had fun while reading it.
It does lean on the "fantasy creatures as an allegory for real marginalized people," which isn't a trope I love. I don't know, other than these complaints, I had fun while reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Blood, Body horror, and Gun violence
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