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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
Hmmm. I am game for most fairy tale retellings, and since Beauty and the Beast is my FAVORITE of all fairy-tales-turned-into-Disney-movies (hello, Belle loves to read!!) AND they were about to make a movie out of it, AND it was from the POV of the Beast (why hello, creative)... I really thought I would love this one. But it was... awkward. I kept wondering when I, too, would fall in love with the "beast"... never happened. His internal dialogue was weird (when he stalks Lindy and then wants to hold her or something? I'm thinking... do you even know her? Or is this a "last resort" kind of thing?) A few elements were a surprise - loved the blind tutor angle, and even though the fairy tale chat rooms were UBER-cheesy, they made me giggle - but overall, a mere "MEH" of a read.
An okay take on the original story. Nothing especially inspiring about it however.
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very quick, easy read. It was...okay-ish.
Idk. Obviously the entire premise is a Beauty & the Beast retelling, I fully understand that the point is the guy sucks abs needs to get taught a lesson, but... he is *sooo* intolerable in the beginning, it did not make me want to read on, even though I know the point is to see him change. I grant this is a me thing and not really an actual knock against the book.
BUT... the rest of it. Idk, it just felt very flimsy, and while I liked aspects of the modern twist here - teens in NYC, the situation with Kyle/Adrian's father, the blind tutor, Lindy's terrible druggie father - for me there was too much of him being waaay to intense/kind of a creeper for too much of it. Lindy and Adrian's eventual friendship had some good moments, though it still kinda felt the actual romance on her side was a bit abrupt/rushed.
The chatroom excerpts felt very out of place. I liked the IDEA of them, and they were kind of amusing by implying multiple other fairy tale situations are ongoing, but by the end of the book they really did not seem to actually fit the book at all - not in tone, not in content, and they're never once referred to in the actual narrative nor do they have literally any impact on anything whatsoever. By the end of the book, it just felt like, "Why???" (Also I get the attempt to go for late 2000's or so teenager "chat speak," but the "wat u up 2" type of stuff is sooooo irritating to read.)
I am very curious to see the movie and how it differs (especially since the movie inexplicably does a weird tattoo/scarring thing instead of actually making him a beast like the book lol).
Overall for me this was just eh. Interesting enough, quick read, but not a book for me.
Idk. Obviously the entire premise is a Beauty & the Beast retelling, I fully understand that the point is the guy sucks abs needs to get taught a lesson, but... he is *sooo* intolerable in the beginning, it did not make me want to read on, even though I know the point is to see him change. I grant this is a me thing and not really an actual knock against the book.
BUT... the rest of it. Idk, it just felt very flimsy, and while I liked aspects of the modern twist here - teens in NYC, the situation with Kyle/Adrian's father, the blind tutor, Lindy's terrible druggie father - for me there was too much of him being waaay to intense/kind of a creeper for too much of it. Lindy and Adrian's eventual friendship had some good moments, though it still kinda felt the actual romance on her side was a bit abrupt/rushed.
The chatroom excerpts felt very out of place. I liked the IDEA of them, and they were kind of amusing by implying multiple other fairy tale situations are ongoing, but by the end of the book they really did not seem to actually fit the book at all - not in tone, not in content, and they're never once referred to in the actual narrative nor do they have literally any impact on anything whatsoever. By the end of the book, it just felt like, "Why???" (Also I get the attempt to go for late 2000's or so teenager "chat speak," but the "wat u up 2" type of stuff is sooooo irritating to read.)
I am very curious to see the movie and how it differs (especially since the movie inexplicably does a weird tattoo/scarring thing instead of actually making him a beast like the book lol).
Overall for me this was just eh. Interesting enough, quick read, but not a book for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Confinement, Drug abuse, Stalking
Minor: Self harm
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
Sadly not my favorite book. Some of the scenes and quotes ai love from the movie were not in the book. The book depiction of the beast was interesting, more of a beastly monster with claws/fur than film. The longhand letter writing was in the movie and found nowhere in the book at all! It was just annoying.
I really enjoyed this very light-hearted read. I thought it was fun seeing how to turn the fairytale into a contemporary teen romance story. It was cute, is the best way to describe it.
Phenomenal. Modern retake on Beauty and the Beast from the beast's perspective. A riveting read! The movie version's alright but it doesn't do Alex Finn's work justice.
I really enjoyed this modern day Beauty and the Beast story from the Beast's point of view!