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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
A big thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Now THAT'S a twist on the Beauty and the Beast story.
Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly is a YA fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast. What makes a girl "beastly?" Is it having too much ambition? Being too proud? Taking up too much space? Or is it just wanting something, anything, too badly? That's the problem Arabella faces when she makes her debut in society. Her parents want her to be sweet and compliant so she can marry well, but try as she might, Arabella can't extinguish the fire burning inside her -- the source of her deepest wishes, her wildest dreams. When an attempt to suppress her emotions tragically backfires, a mysterious figure punishes Arabella with a curse, dooming her and everyone she cares about, trapping them in the castle. As the years pass, Arabella abandons hope. The curse is her fault -- after all, there's nothing more "beastly" than a girl who expresses her anger -- and the only way to break it is to find a boy who loves her for her true self: a cruel task for a girl who's been told she's impossible to love. When a handsome thief named Beau makes his way into the castle, the captive servants are thrilled, convinced he is the one to break the curse. But Beau -- spooked by the castle's strange and forbidding ladies-in-waiting, and by the malevolent presence that stalks its corridors at night -- only wants to escape. He learned long ago that love is only an illusion. If Beau and Arabella have any hope of breaking the curse, they must learn to trust their wounded hearts, and realize that the cruelest prisons of all are the ones we build for ourselves.
I am an avid lover of Beauty and the Beast retellings. So when I saw this one, I couldn't help but jump at the chance to read it early. This is the first Donnelly retelling I've read, and based off of it, I will gladly reading the rest.
Now THAT'S a twist on the Beauty and the Beast story.
Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly is a YA fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast. What makes a girl "beastly?" Is it having too much ambition? Being too proud? Taking up too much space? Or is it just wanting something, anything, too badly? That's the problem Arabella faces when she makes her debut in society. Her parents want her to be sweet and compliant so she can marry well, but try as she might, Arabella can't extinguish the fire burning inside her -- the source of her deepest wishes, her wildest dreams. When an attempt to suppress her emotions tragically backfires, a mysterious figure punishes Arabella with a curse, dooming her and everyone she cares about, trapping them in the castle. As the years pass, Arabella abandons hope. The curse is her fault -- after all, there's nothing more "beastly" than a girl who expresses her anger -- and the only way to break it is to find a boy who loves her for her true self: a cruel task for a girl who's been told she's impossible to love. When a handsome thief named Beau makes his way into the castle, the captive servants are thrilled, convinced he is the one to break the curse. But Beau -- spooked by the castle's strange and forbidding ladies-in-waiting, and by the malevolent presence that stalks its corridors at night -- only wants to escape. He learned long ago that love is only an illusion. If Beau and Arabella have any hope of breaking the curse, they must learn to trust their wounded hearts, and realize that the cruelest prisons of all are the ones we build for ourselves.
I am an avid lover of Beauty and the Beast retellings. So when I saw this one, I couldn't help but jump at the chance to read it early. This is the first Donnelly retelling I've read, and based off of it, I will gladly reading the rest.
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
⭐️: 4/5
🌶️: 🚪 Closed Door
🌶️: 🚪 Closed Door
Format: 📱
This was so enjoyable for me! This is a gender-swapped Beauty and the Beast retelling, with a twist. This review WILL HAVE SPOILERS which I've hidden below.
This was so enjoyable for me! This is a gender-swapped Beauty and the Beast retelling, with a twist. This review WILL HAVE SPOILERS which I've hidden below.
I thought the twist was so original. While I was able to guess at the twist a little bit once I got to the second or third character involved in it, that didn't take away from how much I liked it. I just thought the use of the FMC's own emotions as her curse and her jailers was both inventive and a really introspective choice. It makes you think about how your own emotions play a role in your actions and choices .
It's also been a long time since I just had a purely enjoyable reading experience like this. The book went by quickly, and the prose was uncomplicated, but there were funny moments, and the book dealt with the harder topics by bookending with lightheartedness, so it never felt too slow or heavy. But somehow that didn't take away from the impact of those topics. This was just a fun read from start to finish.
It's also been a long time since I just had a purely enjoyable reading experience like this. The book went by quickly, and the prose was uncomplicated, but there were funny moments, and the book dealt with the harder topics by bookending with lightheartedness, so it never felt too slow or heavy. But somehow that didn't take away from the impact of those topics. This was just a fun read from start to finish.
medium-paced
3.5 stars rounded up because I have a soft spot for Beauty and the Beast.
I love Beauty and the Beast and I've read a number of retellings and adaptations, but this was a version unlike any I've read before. First, there is a gender swap and "Beauty" is Beau, a handsome rogue and a thief, forced into his life of crime by many circumstances not completely in his control. "Beast" is Arabella, a duke's daughter and one who has been cursed to become the beast at night. This story definitely fell into the category of "dark" as Bella was surrounded by these creepy court women with strange names (you'll find out what their names mean later in the book). I believe that Beau was a sympathetic character from the start, partly because you learn fairly early on why he is such a good thief, and what drives him. Bella was portrayed as cold at the beginning, but as the story unfolds, you start to learn why she is the way she is. What was very different about this version from previous versions that I've read was what/who turned out to be the source of the curse. The story was honestly confusing at first, because there were jumps in time and the changing point of view left me wondering what was going on. I don't want to say more because it might spoil the story for people. But it took me more than half the book to start figuring things out. Despite the confusion, I ended up really liking this story and I appreciated the psychological complexities the author wove into the book.
If you are a fan of the author or of Beauty and the Beast, you should give this version a try. It was a bit more of a gothic mystery than it was your typical fairytale and I definitely enjoyed trying to figure out what was going on. The author has written another Beauty and the Beast retelling geared towards middle school children, and this makes me want to check that out for what should be a very different tale.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I love Beauty and the Beast and I've read a number of retellings and adaptations, but this was a version unlike any I've read before. First, there is a gender swap and "Beauty" is Beau, a handsome rogue and a thief, forced into his life of crime by many circumstances not completely in his control. "Beast" is Arabella, a duke's daughter and one who has been cursed to become the beast at night. This story definitely fell into the category of "dark" as Bella was surrounded by these creepy court women with strange names (you'll find out what their names mean later in the book). I believe that Beau was a sympathetic character from the start, partly because you learn fairly early on why he is such a good thief, and what drives him. Bella was portrayed as cold at the beginning, but as the story unfolds, you start to learn why she is the way she is. What was very different about this version from previous versions that I've read was what/who turned out to be the source of the curse. The story was honestly confusing at first, because there were jumps in time and the changing point of view left me wondering what was going on. I don't want to say more because it might spoil the story for people. But it took me more than half the book to start figuring things out. Despite the confusion, I ended up really liking this story and I appreciated the psychological complexities the author wove into the book.
If you are a fan of the author or of Beauty and the Beast, you should give this version a try. It was a bit more of a gothic mystery than it was your typical fairytale and I definitely enjoyed trying to figure out what was going on. The author has written another Beauty and the Beast retelling geared towards middle school children, and this makes me want to check that out for what should be a very different tale.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think this just wasn't the book for me. It had some very creative elements and twists on the Beauty and the Beast story that I'd never seen in a Beauty and the Beast retelling before, and I really enjoyed the audiobook narrator and Beau's perspective. I had a harder time with the way the themes were handled and the fact that it was they overt, which made it feel more like telling than showing at times. I also struggled with Arabella's perspective as it hit too many of the YA character tropes for me. I think younger me would have absolutely adored this book, and I'm a little sad I didn't read it back then when I would have devoured it and been enraptured. Even where I am now, I enjoyed Jennifer Donnely's creativity. It just wasn't the book for the season I'm in.
mysterious
This story started off with a thief by the name of Beau almost being caught stealing. So he and his gang take off and ride to this castle where they find a table full of a feast fit for a king. Of course they eat and start taking whatever they find of value that they can sell. Only to be ran out of the castle. All of the gang led by Rafael make it across the bridge except for Beau, the bridge collapses and he is on the wrong side of the bridge. He goes back to the castle where he meets a court of ladies with Arabella at the head of them. She is dismissive of him and doesn’t give him the time of day, she puts him in his place repeatedly. This story grabbed me from this beginning and kept getting better and better!!!
The characters were well developed and the scenes weee drawn so vividly the movie in my minds eye was set and it was so hard to put this book down! There was no intermissions nor commercial breaks, I was captivated and couldn’t stop reading. If there could give this book more stars I would. I am off to find other books by this author because this one was great.
The characters were well developed and the scenes weee drawn so vividly the movie in my minds eye was set and it was so hard to put this book down! There was no intermissions nor commercial breaks, I was captivated and couldn’t stop reading. If there could give this book more stars I would. I am off to find other books by this author because this one was great.
I loved it, there are not many retellings where Beauty is the monster instead of the other way around. I loved how she spun the story and captured your attention from page one. I recommend to anyone who loves Beauty and the Beast, you will love this retelling of the book. You will not want to put it down until you have finished the book.
DNF 20%. I dunno, just not feeling this. It’s written in a specific historical time but feels like they could be wearing jeans and sneakers. It’s a retelling but it doesn’t feel different enough. Like gender swapping beauty and the beast is a big change but feels anti climactic still. There are a lot of characters but everyone is normal and human and the cast is massive but I don’t care about any of them.