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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
Classic beauty and the beast trope. I did like the modern twist to it. Overall, it was just meh, it wasn't THE best, but it was really good.
Beastly is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast (which is one of my favorite Disney princess’s movies!) It follows a boy named Kyle who has an ugly personality and believes that good looks are the only way to success in life. Therefore a witch named Kendra puts a curse on him turning him into a beast and the only way to break the curse is if he can make someone fall in love with him as a beast. Ringing any bells? ;)
This book pretty much follows exactly the events of Beauty and the Beast, except it’s obviously tailored to a different location and time period. It has the “castle” where he is confined to, the mirror that allows him to see anyone he wishes, the intruder that ends up trading his daughter for his safety, the library to impress the girl, even a fight scene at the end that almost costs Kyle his life. I’m not complaining though because this is pretty much what I wanted from the retelling. I wanted to experience the magical story of his personality transformation and their love.
I loved the addition of Magda which is Kyle’s maid, who ends up being his friend while he is locked away from society. I loved Will, Kyle’s tutor; his witty personality was so enjoyable. Surprisingly I really didn't like Kyle or Lindy, the love interest, at all throughout this story. I enjoyed their cute and corny relationship, but as characters I didn't think they had much depth at all.
I had such low expectations for this book but I ended up really enjoying it. This is a very corny and sappy love story so if that’s not your cup of tea then you might not enjoy this. However, this was the perfect light and happy book to get me through my finals week!
This book pretty much follows exactly the events of Beauty and the Beast, except it’s obviously tailored to a different location and time period. It has the “castle” where he is confined to, the mirror that allows him to see anyone he wishes, the intruder that ends up trading his daughter for his safety, the library to impress the girl, even a fight scene at the end that almost costs Kyle his life. I’m not complaining though because this is pretty much what I wanted from the retelling. I wanted to experience the magical story of his personality transformation and their love.
I loved the addition of Magda which is Kyle’s maid, who ends up being his friend while he is locked away from society. I loved Will, Kyle’s tutor; his witty personality was so enjoyable. Surprisingly I really didn't like Kyle or Lindy, the love interest, at all throughout this story. I enjoyed their cute and corny relationship, but as characters I didn't think they had much depth at all.
I had such low expectations for this book but I ended up really enjoying it. This is a very corny and sappy love story so if that’s not your cup of tea then you might not enjoy this. However, this was the perfect light and happy book to get me through my finals week!
Este libro es esa clase de retelling que sigue exactamente la historia al pie de la letra, pero dándole un enfoque completamente distinto.
Para empezar está ambientado en la actualidad, lo que le da un toque fresco y único a muchas situaciones. Además, viendo más profundo, es una crítica a la sociedad consumista, facilista y vanidosa. Al igual que el cuento original, critica la gran importancia que se le da la apariencia y a la imagen frente a lo verdaderamente importante.
El otro punto positivo es que está relatado por la bestia. Me encantó ver todo desde el lado de quién se transforma, su sufrimiento y su cambio gradual.
Kyle Kingbury, el protagonista de la novela es un chico rico, guapo, popular, vanidoso y egocéntrico. Lo deteste desde el comienzo, me resultaba odioso, pero luego de que Kendra lo transformara, pudimos ver su otro lado, el sensible, que poco a poco ira desarrollándose hasta convertirse en su alter ego, Adrian.
Adrian ya es otra cosa, lo adoré y sentí mucha lástima por todo lo que debe pasar. Él es un chico dulce y tierno, que se preocupa por los demás y siente empatía.
Fue genial leer el cambio gradual de Kyle a Adrian.
Y una de las cosas que más me gusto es que el libro no se centra solo en el romance, aunque claro si es importante, sino que también vemos la evolución interna que se da en Adrian y como aprende a aceptarse (y amarse) a sí mismo antes de enamorarse de Lindy.
Lindy es una nerd y por eso enseguida me cayó bien. Le encanta leer y, a pesar de que su vida es sumamente difícil, es una chica dulce y amable, abierta a confiar en las demás personas. Ella ha estado enamorada de Kyle durante un tiempo y, aun cuando él solo ha tenido un buen gesto con ella, está convencida de que hay algo bueno en él. Evidentemente no se confundió, aunque estaba muy profundo, y aprende a amar a Adrian a pesar de su apariencia y sin saber quién es él realmente.
“La gente da mucha importancia al aspecto, pero después de un tiempo, cuando conoces a alguien, ya ni siquiera lo notas, ¿verdad? Es solo apariencia.”
Kendra, la bruja malvada del cuento, es uno de los personajes que más me gusto. Ella realmente se preocupa por Kyle y le duele que él sea tan banal, y por eso decide darle una lección. Ella desea que él aprenda a ser mejor y lo ayuda durante gran parte del relato con consejos, instándolo a no rendirse.
Will, es otro personaje que adore. El maestro ciego de Adrian que le enseña a ver la belleza en las cosas simples, como una rosa.
Mención aparte, merece el chat que la autora armó al final de cada parte del libro, dónde diversos personajes de cuento transformados dialogan. Fue una de las partes más divertidas de la novela. Muy original.
El libro sigue, luego de la aparición de Lindy, los lineamientos del cuento. No hay un gran giro de la trama que sorprenda ni nada similar, solo un cuento adaptado a la modernidad. Lo mejor es dejarse llevar y leerlo como si aún fuéramos un niño pequeño que cree en la magia.
Para empezar está ambientado en la actualidad, lo que le da un toque fresco y único a muchas situaciones. Además, viendo más profundo, es una crítica a la sociedad consumista, facilista y vanidosa. Al igual que el cuento original, critica la gran importancia que se le da la apariencia y a la imagen frente a lo verdaderamente importante.
El otro punto positivo es que está relatado por la bestia. Me encantó ver todo desde el lado de quién se transforma, su sufrimiento y su cambio gradual.
Kyle Kingbury, el protagonista de la novela es un chico rico, guapo, popular, vanidoso y egocéntrico. Lo deteste desde el comienzo, me resultaba odioso, pero luego de que Kendra lo transformara, pudimos ver su otro lado, el sensible, que poco a poco ira desarrollándose hasta convertirse en su alter ego, Adrian.
Adrian ya es otra cosa, lo adoré y sentí mucha lástima por todo lo que debe pasar. Él es un chico dulce y tierno, que se preocupa por los demás y siente empatía.
Fue genial leer el cambio gradual de Kyle a Adrian.
Y una de las cosas que más me gusto es que el libro no se centra solo en el romance, aunque claro si es importante, sino que también vemos la evolución interna que se da en Adrian y como aprende a aceptarse (y amarse) a sí mismo antes de enamorarse de Lindy.
Lindy es una nerd y por eso enseguida me cayó bien. Le encanta leer y, a pesar de que su vida es sumamente difícil, es una chica dulce y amable, abierta a confiar en las demás personas. Ella ha estado enamorada de Kyle durante un tiempo y, aun cuando él solo ha tenido un buen gesto con ella, está convencida de que hay algo bueno en él. Evidentemente no se confundió, aunque estaba muy profundo, y aprende a amar a Adrian a pesar de su apariencia y sin saber quién es él realmente.
“La gente da mucha importancia al aspecto, pero después de un tiempo, cuando conoces a alguien, ya ni siquiera lo notas, ¿verdad? Es solo apariencia.”
Kendra, la bruja malvada del cuento, es uno de los personajes que más me gusto. Ella realmente se preocupa por Kyle y le duele que él sea tan banal, y por eso decide darle una lección. Ella desea que él aprenda a ser mejor y lo ayuda durante gran parte del relato con consejos, instándolo a no rendirse.
Will, es otro personaje que adore. El maestro ciego de Adrian que le enseña a ver la belleza en las cosas simples, como una rosa.
Mención aparte, merece el chat que la autora armó al final de cada parte del libro, dónde diversos personajes de cuento transformados dialogan. Fue una de las partes más divertidas de la novela. Muy original.
El libro sigue, luego de la aparición de Lindy, los lineamientos del cuento. No hay un gran giro de la trama que sorprenda ni nada similar, solo un cuento adaptado a la modernidad. Lo mejor es dejarse llevar y leerlo como si aún fuéramos un niño pequeño que cree en la magia.
Actual rating somewhere between 2.5-3 stars.
I used to love the movie (haven't seen it in a while) and Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney story. Maybe teen me would've loved this book more but adult me, not so much.
I actually really liked it in the beginning, when Kyle is still a jerk and right before Kendra turns him into a beast. But after that, it's pretty uneventful.
Also, the dialogue is horrible. No teens would ever talk like they do in this book, or the adults, for that matter. The romance was bland and bare, none of the characters are relatable or likable. Lindy calls every other person shallow but she's one of the most shallow characters I've ever met.
This is definitely one of those instances where movie > book.
I used to love the movie (haven't seen it in a while) and Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney story. Maybe teen me would've loved this book more but adult me, not so much.
I actually really liked it in the beginning, when Kyle is still a jerk and right before Kendra turns him into a beast. But after that, it's pretty uneventful.
Also, the dialogue is horrible. No teens would ever talk like they do in this book, or the adults, for that matter. The romance was bland and bare, none of the characters are relatable or likable. Lindy calls every other person shallow but she's one of the most shallow characters I've ever met.
This is definitely one of those instances where movie > book.
I love love loved this book. Everything about it was just awesome: the story, writing, characters, and especially the ending! I think Kyle Kingsbury is the definition of what a lot of people are brought up to be, or brought up to think. Maybe not everyone is as mean as Kyle was, especially the things he did and said to Kendra (in person form), but I do think opinions like these are very common. I think the author's exploration of the topic is very creative, even though she took an old story to explore it. She really created an entirely new story. I loved it, and I'll be looking for her other books.
[b:Beauty and the Beast|41424|Beauty A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast|Robin McKinley|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169613617s/41424.jpg|2321285] meets Gossip Girl. Delicious.
The first of the Alex Flinn fairytale retellings that I read, and I have not been able to get enough of them since. I keep coming back to Beastly again and again, and I see no reason that is going to change.
This is absolutely my favorite book. I have two copies, one is at the bottom of my desk drawer because it's too worn out to be read anymore that I had to buy a new one. These characters are my favorites Lindy Owens is my spirit animal and Adrian is sort of my romantic fantasy. I love the Beauty and the Beast fairytale as a whole and this book made me interested in studying the original folklore of the tale and now I own several adaptations. This is the most original modern day fairytale I've seen and it is definitely worth a read.
Kyle is your typical high school freshman snob. He's got it all - money, looks, and attitude. He's for sure the hottest thing around, according to him.
Then Kendra, an old witch posing as a teenager, crosses his path. Annoyed at how she treats him, Kyle decides to humiliate her. And ends up the butt of her joke.
Kyle is now a beast, as ugly on the outside as he is on the inside. He has two years to find his true love, make her love him, and kiss him.
What's a monster to do living in NYC?
Interesting twist on the this fairytale. Lots of versions woven into a great story.
Then Kendra, an old witch posing as a teenager, crosses his path. Annoyed at how she treats him, Kyle decides to humiliate her. And ends up the butt of her joke.
Kyle is now a beast, as ugly on the outside as he is on the inside. He has two years to find his true love, make her love him, and kiss him.
What's a monster to do living in NYC?
Interesting twist on the this fairytale. Lots of versions woven into a great story.