A review by journeywithrosie
Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast by Robin McKinley

4.0

This was lovely! I really enjoyed McKinley’s prose and characterization. I think perhaps if I’d read this physically it would have felt too slow for me, but the audio experience was great. I loved all the accents and the narrators expressiveness. The story felt whimsical and cozy, and I found myself smiling ear to ear reading it. This is very different from the more spicy modern retellings of this story, which was refreshing to me.

The beast isn’t introduced until about 40% into the story, and so if you’re wanting a strictly romance story you may be disappointed. I’d love to read her other non romance books, because to me the romance was the least important part of the story. I deducted a star because I wasn’t very invested in the romance at all, I was more invested in beauty as a person, her family, and their journey together. Although beast was the ultimate gentleman, which I loved, I just really enjoyed their friendship. There wasn’t much built up romantically in my opinion.

Also, I found the ending to be a tad bit rushed. I wish there was an extra 20 pages or so to really bask in the moment.

But I really enjoyed this and I’m so glad I was able to grab the audiobook. I look forward to reading more from this author!