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mayrasbookverse's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
In a world plagued by a devastating curse, Prince Rhen's hope for salvation hinges on a girl falling in love with him. But the curse proves far more sinister than he anticipated, threatening not only his kingdom but also his very humanity. Enter Harper, a resilient young woman with her own struggles, unexpectedly thrust into Rhen's enchanted realm. As they confront the dire stakes and formidable adversaries, a bond forms between them that could mean the difference between salvation and ruin. With time running out and the kingdom's fate hanging in the balance, they must confront the forces of darkness and break the curse before it's too late.
Thoughts: This was a bit slow to start but once it picked up, it got interesting. Plan to continue!
susanneverreads's review against another edition
4.0
I have not want to read a book so much in a long time. I didn't want to stop reading! Some of the reviews had me skeptical about this book plus it being free on Kindle. I am so glad I gave it a shot!
Is it the best book? No but the story line and characters had me hooked! I really enjoyed everything about this. The retelling of beauty and the beast style story was very well done.
I honestly screamed when I realized the book was over. I wasn't expecting that twist. I'm almost nervous to finish the series as I don't know of they will live up to this book!
Is it the best book? No but the story line and characters had me hooked! I really enjoyed everything about this. The retelling of beauty and the beast style story was very well done.
I honestly screamed when I realized the book was over. I wasn't expecting that twist. I'm almost nervous to finish the series as I don't know of they will live up to this book!
adelle_bookworm's review against another edition
5.0
Ten konec jsem teda nepobrala. Chci víc. Vážně.
--------------------------------
I love Beauty and the Beast like for ever. As retellings are popular these days, many of them retells the story of Belle and the cursed prince. And I love exploring the different ways authors play with this storyline, so when I spotted A Curse So Dark and Lonely, I knew I had to read it. And it was great.
We're in Washington, DC, where Harper's father took loan from the bad guys and now their family has to pay. One night, when Harper spots a man trying to kidnap a woman, she tries to save her, but he takes her instead. So she appears in Emberfall, a cursed kingdom, where she meets Rhen. The curse lasts for one season. And she has to fall in love with him.
The story's told from two POVs - Harper's and Rhen's. Sometimes I was wondering if it's a good match since we knew all the secrets Rhen kept from Harper and so on, but in the end, I'm glad it was told this way. Both Harper and Rhen are unique characters and Brigid Kemmerer wrote their characters so good I was able to tell difference even though I got lost with the name at the beginning of the chapter.
It's hard to be original when you're retelling a well-known story, but this was absolutely fantastic. Harper is not that typical YA girl protagonist, she's able to fight for herself, and she was so fun I was laughing the whole time. This book, although it has many serious scenes, is full of funny scenes between Harper and men from Emberfall that I was laughing out loud. Rhen and Grey are fabulous characters. I loved them both.
I even love the way the story goes. You know, when you think about it, you can be sure about the plot in some way since it really goes with the original Beauty and the Beast. But still, there were many scenes where I was surprised, I didn't expect that, and I was glad. Author was able to make me astonished, to make me worried and almost made me cry. If that's not a sign of a good book, then I don't know what is.
The book si long, yes. But it has to be. I didn't even realize that while reading because there's so much to be told, so much what has to be told in this story that I was browsing through the pages just to know more.
And the end? I definitely want to know more.
I was wondering to give it 4* because I wasn't able to understand some scenes, but then I decided I love it anyway. The highest rating without any regret. Right now I'm looking forward to the time I read it again.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for providing me an arc ebook for an honest review.
--------------------------------
I love Beauty and the Beast like for ever. As retellings are popular these days, many of them retells the story of Belle and the cursed prince. And I love exploring the different ways authors play with this storyline, so when I spotted A Curse So Dark and Lonely, I knew I had to read it. And it was great.
We're in Washington, DC, where Harper's father took loan from the bad guys and now their family has to pay. One night, when Harper spots a man trying to kidnap a woman, she tries to save her, but he takes her instead. So she appears in Emberfall, a cursed kingdom, where she meets Rhen. The curse lasts for one season. And she has to fall in love with him.
The story's told from two POVs - Harper's and Rhen's. Sometimes I was wondering if it's a good match since we knew all the secrets Rhen kept from Harper and so on, but in the end, I'm glad it was told this way. Both Harper and Rhen are unique characters and Brigid Kemmerer wrote their characters so good I was able to tell difference even though I got lost with the name at the beginning of the chapter.
It's hard to be original when you're retelling a well-known story, but this was absolutely fantastic. Harper is not that typical YA girl protagonist, she's able to fight for herself, and she was so fun I was laughing the whole time. This book, although it has many serious scenes, is full of funny scenes between Harper and men from Emberfall that I was laughing out loud. Rhen and Grey are fabulous characters. I loved them both.
I even love the way the story goes. You know, when you think about it, you can be sure about the plot in some way since it really goes with the original Beauty and the Beast. But still, there were many scenes where I was surprised, I didn't expect that, and I was glad. Author was able to make me astonished, to make me worried and almost made me cry. If that's not a sign of a good book, then I don't know what is.
The book si long, yes. But it has to be. I didn't even realize that while reading because there's so much to be told, so much what has to be told in this story that I was browsing through the pages just to know more.
And the end? I definitely want to know more.
I was wondering to give it 4* because I wasn't able to understand some scenes, but then I decided I love it anyway. The highest rating without any regret. Right now I'm looking forward to the time I read it again.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for providing me an arc ebook for an honest review.
jesschevarie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
3.75
choimaximalistjae's review against another edition
5.0
i definitely was not expecting to like this as much as i did. i went into it thinking that it wouldn't be my thing, since it was made out to be/everyone was making it out to be a heavy romance-based book. but it was definitely more than that. i mean, yeah, it was based around rhen needing a girl to fall in love with him and break his curse, but the story evolved into so much more than that. it was a story of war, strategy, unlikely friendships, unlikely family, female empowerment, and much more. it truly is a story that can speak to many people's interests.
one of my favourite things was the representations this book had to offer. first off, we had a female protagonist, which is something i don't come across too often in the stories i read. and on top of that, our protagonist, harper, was a complete and utter badass, and a woman who was 100% inspiring and iconic. she didn't let others belittle her, bring her down, and didn't let others tell her what to do and how to live her life. she is honestly one of my favourite protagonists i've had the pleasure of reading about. another representation that we got was the representation of cerebral-palsy; i loved this because it's not something that many writers think about when creating a story, even though a good amount of people have it. i loved how harper represented it; she didn't let it control her life, she persevered through it, and she didn't let others bring her down because of it. lastly, though it was minimal, i loved the gay representation that we got. it was represented in a way that wasn't too over-the-top, overly (and uncomfotably) sexualised, and it wasn't the characters' entire personality; it was simply a part of who they are. a good amount of writers don't write gay characters well, but brigid wrote her's extraordinarily.
all-in-all, i'd say that this is one of my favourite books and i can't wait to finish the series, nice job, brigid.
also,,, grey is my favourite and i love him very much. if anything happens to him in the later books, series over. jk, jk... unless?
~ my annotations ~
'freya, you wise and beautiful woman.' - page 346, on "i am always surprised to discover that when the world seems darkest, there exists the greatest opportunity for light."
'now that's freaking cool, changing it up like that to fit with rhen's change.' - page 396, on "CHAPTER FORTY-SIX MONSTER."
'and the use of no words, showing the monster has no thoughts, it's an empty shell. its actions aren't its own, it can't even have its own thoughts. it's just doing what it knows it has to do, and all it knows to do. the only thing it's known for hundreds of years; kill and destroy.' - page 396, on an empty chapter.
'harper you absolute queen.' - page 472 on "failure isn't absolute. just because you couldn't save everyone doesn't mean you didn't save anyone."
'MY BABY DOES GET A CHAPTER!!' - page 474 on "EPILOGUE GREY."
'YOU'RE TELLING ME THAF GREY IS THE HALF-LING CHILD AND THE TRUE HEIR?? THEY'RE BROTHERS!?!?' - page 474, on "You want to know the truth [...] only guardsman to survive?"
one of my favourite things was the representations this book had to offer. first off, we had a female protagonist, which is something i don't come across too often in the stories i read. and on top of that, our protagonist, harper, was a complete and utter badass, and a woman who was 100% inspiring and iconic. she didn't let others belittle her, bring her down, and didn't let others tell her what to do and how to live her life. she is honestly one of my favourite protagonists i've had the pleasure of reading about. another representation that we got was the representation of cerebral-palsy; i loved this because it's not something that many writers think about when creating a story, even though a good amount of people have it. i loved how harper represented it; she didn't let it control her life, she persevered through it, and she didn't let others bring her down because of it. lastly, though it was minimal, i loved the gay representation that we got. it was represented in a way that wasn't too over-the-top, overly (and uncomfotably) sexualised, and it wasn't the characters' entire personality; it was simply a part of who they are. a good amount of writers don't write gay characters well, but brigid wrote her's extraordinarily.
all-in-all, i'd say that this is one of my favourite books and i can't wait to finish the series, nice job, brigid.
also,,, grey is my favourite and i love him very much. if anything happens to him in the later books, series over. jk, jk... unless?
~ my annotations ~
'freya, you wise and beautiful woman.' - page 346, on "i am always surprised to discover that when the world seems darkest, there exists the greatest opportunity for light."
'now that's freaking cool, changing it up like that to fit with rhen's change.' - page 396, on "CHAPTER FORTY-SIX MONSTER."
'and the use of no words, showing the monster has no thoughts, it's an empty shell. its actions aren't its own, it can't even have its own thoughts. it's just doing what it knows it has to do, and all it knows to do. the only thing it's known for hundreds of years; kill and destroy.' - page 396, on an empty chapter.
'harper you absolute queen.' - page 472 on "failure isn't absolute. just because you couldn't save everyone doesn't mean you didn't save anyone."
'MY BABY DOES GET A CHAPTER!!' - page 474 on "EPILOGUE GREY."
'YOU'RE TELLING ME THAF GREY IS THE HALF-LING CHILD AND THE TRUE HEIR?? THEY'RE BROTHERS!?!?' - page 474, on "You want to know the truth [...] only guardsman to survive?"
patienta's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
4.25
brianajamanila's review against another edition
4.0
solid read! i loved the crossover between real life and fantasy
elenats's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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
4.0
Not sure if this was the intent, but this read to me like a new take on Beauty and the Beast
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence
kjthenerd3's review against another edition
5.0
WOW. I’m getting my hands on the sequel ASAP. That’s all that even needs to be said
rosies_elfhame's review against another edition
4.0
За жалост мнението ми за героите, освен един, си остава това, че са много недоразвити, което повлия и на крайната оценка. Съобразявам се все пак с факта че книгата е преразказ. Като цяло историята ми хареса, беше развита интересно, имаше известно действие. Самият свят също нямаше много дълбочина, някои неща бяха излишни или необяснени,но при положение, че действието се развива главно в замъка, пълното развиване на света не е и нужно. Давам 4 звезди заради историята и единия определен герой, който ме спечели. Със сигурност ми хареса защото вече нямам търпение за втора част 🌸