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A review by bookish_kristina
His Secondhand Wife by Cheryl St.John
5.0
Beauty and the Beast Western Style! 4.5 stars
I’m a sucker for a BatB retelling. Ironically I wasn’t a fan of the movie as a kid, I always wished the beast would stay beastie. I didn’t want that fancy-pants prince at the end, I liked the growlie guy who was only soft for his Belle. Yes I realize that says a lot about me and probably explains why I like monster smut, but it’s so much more satisfying to tame the beast and look beyond his beastliness. For him to come out of his shell and show his gentle soul. And for his beauty to love him anyway. So I always jump on these retellings with scarred heroes; sometimes they work, most times they don’t. This one worked. It was very good. The author stuck to a simple story, kept a simple setting and put all her work in character development and romance.
Grumpy/sunshine, scarred virgin hero, downtrodden but sweet widowed heroine, this is set on a ranch in 1890 Colorado. It’s a marriage of convenience trope with some family drama but is mostly a story about personal growth, finding one’s place in the world and unconditional love.
This was a really good read about inner strength and the value of heart over looks. Throw in the historical western element and it was magic.
The only critique I have is that his self-loathing went on too long and was overcome too quickly. I’d have rather seen a more gradual transition.
However this was not closed door so I boosted it to five stars for that!
Check out this older romance, it’s super sweet and satisfying.
I’m a sucker for a BatB retelling. Ironically I wasn’t a fan of the movie as a kid, I always wished the beast would stay beastie. I didn’t want that fancy-pants prince at the end, I liked the growlie guy who was only soft for his Belle. Yes I realize that says a lot about me and probably explains why I like monster smut, but it’s so much more satisfying to tame the beast and look beyond his beastliness. For him to come out of his shell and show his gentle soul. And for his beauty to love him anyway. So I always jump on these retellings with scarred heroes; sometimes they work, most times they don’t. This one worked. It was very good. The author stuck to a simple story, kept a simple setting and put all her work in character development and romance.
Grumpy/sunshine, scarred virgin hero, downtrodden but sweet widowed heroine, this is set on a ranch in 1890 Colorado. It’s a marriage of convenience trope with some family drama but is mostly a story about personal growth, finding one’s place in the world and unconditional love.
This was a really good read about inner strength and the value of heart over looks. Throw in the historical western element and it was magic.
The only critique I have is that his self-loathing went on too long and was overcome too quickly. I’d have rather seen a more gradual transition.
However this was not closed door so I boosted it to five stars for that!
Check out this older romance, it’s super sweet and satisfying.