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yueting 's review for:
A Tale of Beauty and Beast The Wedding
by Melanie Cellier
3 stars
A Tale of Beauty and the Beast was my second try at a book by Melanie Cellier. The first book of hers that I read I did not end up finishing, so I had pretty low expectations going into this one. However, I am a huge fan of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale and subsequent literary trope, so the bar was pretty low. I am glad that I did end up finishing - and liking - this one much more, and though it doesn't stray from the familiar tale, the original story is one that is done so well, it's hard to fault this book for not trying to go above and beyond.
The plot and premise is very similar to Disney's retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with some almost identical scenes. And while the first third of the book was a bit slow and made me rather frustrated, since we all know how this story goes and I wanted to just get to the good part already, this is really a story that I will never get sick of reading. Sophie and Dominic's relationship is exactly as you would imagine the Beauty and Beast's is: contentious at first before developing into mutual respect and then eventual love.
Sophie was a very unlikable heroine for me, at least in the first half of the book. Perhaps it's because I already know how the book ends and the truth about the Beast's nature, but I just could not get behind how she tried to paint him in a horrible and villainous light. I get that it's part of the story, I get that they are not supposed to like each other in the beginning, but we never see the Beast truly do anything to deserve Sophie's ire besides being curt in a few instances (and if that is enough to get her spitting mad and for her to run away, then maybe she is the one who is arrogant and with a temper problem and not the other way around).
I think one of the problems that made me feel like Sophie's anger was unjustified, is that the book leans heavily on the plot of the first book in the series (of which there was a Tourney that took place that landed Sophie in this situation with the Beast) to fuel her hatred. Specifics of what occurred in the previous book is delayed until about two-thirds of the way through. The omission was never egregious enough to cause major frustration. It is only a pity that perhaps if I understood the trials Sophie had to go through, I would be a bit more sympathetic to her emotions.
The second and third part of the book picks up, in terms of plot and their relationship and that’s when I started enjoying it much more. Sophie redeems herself a bit towards the middle of the book, and addresses the double standards that she's placed on the Beast that I felt was her major flaw in the first half. The prince’s curse and how it came to be in this story is a bit different from the Disney tale, which made it exciting to discover along with Sophie as she tries to solve the curse.
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale and thus, I am a sucker for its happy ending (of which there was never any doubt). I have a very soft spot for the Beast, and Prince Dominic is truly the character that carried this book for me. His development and revelations redeemed any of Sophie's shortcomings, and I teared up especially towards the end as he grows much more tender.
This is a decent retelling of a much beloved tale; and anyone who really adores Beauty and the Beast like I do will enjoy it for the familiar plot, relationship and ultimately the lesson that anyone, no matter what they may look like, is deserving of and capable of love.
A Tale of Beauty and the Beast was my second try at a book by Melanie Cellier. The first book of hers that I read I did not end up finishing, so I had pretty low expectations going into this one. However, I am a huge fan of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale and subsequent literary trope, so the bar was pretty low. I am glad that I did end up finishing - and liking - this one much more, and though it doesn't stray from the familiar tale, the original story is one that is done so well, it's hard to fault this book for not trying to go above and beyond.
The plot and premise is very similar to Disney's retelling of Beauty and the Beast, with some almost identical scenes. And while the first third of the book was a bit slow and made me rather frustrated, since we all know how this story goes and I wanted to just get to the good part already, this is really a story that I will never get sick of reading. Sophie and Dominic's relationship is exactly as you would imagine the Beauty and Beast's is: contentious at first before developing into mutual respect and then eventual love.
Sophie was a very unlikable heroine for me, at least in the first half of the book. Perhaps it's because I already know how the book ends and the truth about the Beast's nature, but I just could not get behind how she tried to paint him in a horrible and villainous light. I get that it's part of the story, I get that they are not supposed to like each other in the beginning, but we never see the Beast truly do anything to deserve Sophie's ire besides being curt in a few instances (and if that is enough to get her spitting mad and for her to run away, then maybe she is the one who is arrogant and with a temper problem and not the other way around).
I think one of the problems that made me feel like Sophie's anger was unjustified, is that the book leans heavily on the plot of the first book in the series (of which there was a Tourney that took place that landed Sophie in this situation with the Beast) to fuel her hatred. Specifics of what occurred in the previous book is delayed until about two-thirds of the way through. The omission was never egregious enough to cause major frustration. It is only a pity that perhaps if I understood the trials Sophie had to go through, I would be a bit more sympathetic to her emotions.
The second and third part of the book picks up, in terms of plot and their relationship and that’s when I started enjoying it much more. Sophie redeems herself a bit towards the middle of the book, and addresses the double standards that she's placed on the Beast that I felt was her major flaw in the first half. The prince’s curse and how it came to be in this story is a bit different from the Disney tale, which made it exciting to discover along with Sophie as she tries to solve the curse.
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale and thus, I am a sucker for its happy ending (of which there was never any doubt). I have a very soft spot for the Beast, and Prince Dominic is truly the character that carried this book for me. His development and revelations redeemed any of Sophie's shortcomings, and I teared up especially towards the end as he grows much more tender.
This is a decent retelling of a much beloved tale; and anyone who really adores Beauty and the Beast like I do will enjoy it for the familiar plot, relationship and ultimately the lesson that anyone, no matter what they may look like, is deserving of and capable of love.