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agraves16's review
Could tell a few pages in I wouldn't like the FMC being so young
kelly_reads_books's review
5.0
VF Mason has done it again! Aileen and Rush are the epitome of the tale of Beauty and Beast with a touch of Hades and Persephone thrown in, just to mix it all up.
Rush is a beast, a lonely man enduring life with a vengeance, hoping to seek revenge on those who have wronged him.
Aileen is a young 18 year old woman with a brilliant mind. She is thrown into this tale for the only reason that she is Lachlan's daughter (yes, that Lachlan). This couple becomes entwined, quite by innocence initially, but then with malice and pain.
But that ending, oh my goodness!
Fabulous story! I can't wait for more!
~~Beautiful Quotes~~
Why then do women always expect the beast to turn into a prince?
Shouldn't we love the beast without any expectations?
My lungs cry out for oxygen, but if breathing entails ending this kiss, then I don't want or need it.
Rush is a beast, a lonely man enduring life with a vengeance, hoping to seek revenge on those who have wronged him.
Aileen is a young 18 year old woman with a brilliant mind. She is thrown into this tale for the only reason that she is Lachlan's daughter (yes, that Lachlan). This couple becomes entwined, quite by innocence initially, but then with malice and pain.
But that ending, oh my goodness!
Fabulous story! I can't wait for more!
~~Beautiful Quotes~~
Why then do women always expect the beast to turn into a prince?
Shouldn't we love the beast without any expectations?
My lungs cry out for oxygen, but if breathing entails ending this kiss, then I don't want or need it.
beastreader's review
4.0
I have read several retellings of "Beauty and the Beast" and I have to say that I am so loving this story. The buildup from when Aileen and Rush first met to when they were together was all sorts of angst. I was so here for it that i did not even notice or care about the age gap difference between these two.
The way that Rush tried to warn Aileen that he truly is a villain had the opposite effect on me. Bad boy for life. Yep, sign me up; especially those intimate physical moments between these two. Aileen may just be a young adult but that does not mean she does not have spirit. She stood up to Rush. Oh, and the cliffhanger ending. I need the conclusion to this duet now!
The way that Rush tried to warn Aileen that he truly is a villain had the opposite effect on me. Bad boy for life. Yep, sign me up; especially those intimate physical moments between these two. Aileen may just be a young adult but that does not mean she does not have spirit. She stood up to Rush. Oh, and the cliffhanger ending. I need the conclusion to this duet now!
ive_colon's review
4.0
Ummm let's talk about this book... usually not a huge fan of age gaps but I do love a good enemies to lovers, slow read, angst book and this has it all. He takes what he wants and will get it all just to act on a revenge plot he's had YEARS in the making. Now it's time for book 2!
nitarra's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
kfriend's review
3.0
3.5 stars
A dark retelling of my favorite fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, my literal favorite trope ( dage gap), and a whole dark and twisted vibe? Ah, I was ravenously excited for this- Beauty and the Villain had my name written all over it, and given how many amazing things I’d heart about a few of this author’s prior works, I was extra excited to dive into this new world with this new to me author.
I love retellings, particularly when they are more reinventions with clever referential content that keeps it reminiscent of the original but while paving a creative pathway all of it’s own. And this one certainly isn’t a direct translation. We have our beauty Aileen in relative safety with her powerful father, only our beast Rush has it out for him- so what better way than to hurt him than kidnapping the girl he once loved.
Narratively we have past vignettes interspersed through our present, juxtaposing their feelings so we understand their past motivations and perspectives while we see them going at it in the future.I really wanted to love this- all the elements are there, but I really struggled with the pace of this story, and ultimately even wondered if it needed to be a duet. It’s angsty, but it started to feel really static as a while- these two caught in a cycle of repetitive rehashing.
Towards the end, things started picking up, and we have some twists and a cliffhanger to take us into the finale. The bones of this are great- so I’m hoping our second book will pick up a bit more and have more momentum.
A dark retelling of my favorite fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, my literal favorite trope ( dage gap), and a whole dark and twisted vibe? Ah, I was ravenously excited for this- Beauty and the Villain had my name written all over it, and given how many amazing things I’d heart about a few of this author’s prior works, I was extra excited to dive into this new world with this new to me author.
I love retellings, particularly when they are more reinventions with clever referential content that keeps it reminiscent of the original but while paving a creative pathway all of it’s own. And this one certainly isn’t a direct translation. We have our beauty Aileen in relative safety with her powerful father, only our beast Rush has it out for him- so what better way than to hurt him than kidnapping the girl he once loved.
Narratively we have past vignettes interspersed through our present, juxtaposing their feelings so we understand their past motivations and perspectives while we see them going at it in the future.I really wanted to love this- all the elements are there, but I really struggled with the pace of this story, and ultimately even wondered if it needed to be a duet. It’s angsty, but it started to feel really static as a while- these two caught in a cycle of repetitive rehashing.
Towards the end, things started picking up, and we have some twists and a cliffhanger to take us into the finale. The bones of this are great- so I’m hoping our second book will pick up a bit more and have more momentum.
ridwa's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
3.0
cherrystem's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5