A fresh take on the well known fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast. Written in dual points of view from the “Beauty” Harper and the “Beast” Rhen, the main characters of the book.

I absolutely adored this book. When I saw it in my February Fairyloot book box, I knew I wanted to read it. I decided to dive into reading this book as soon as I could. I am a big fan of retellings, I love reading new and imaginative ways to retell a classic story, and this book did not disappoint.

The two main characters are from two different worlds, literally, with Harper being from DC and Rhen from Emberfall. Their different backgrounds in from so much of their individual characters and actions throughout the whole book. Causing some problems at times between the two, especially in the start of the book when they two first met and get to know each other.

Neither of them are willing to fully trust the other.

Harper was kidnapped by Grey, Rhen’s Commander, when trying to save the girl that Grey had meant to take with him back to their world with a tire iron. Pretty quickly we learn that Harper won’t be a hapless girl dragged into a world she doesn’t know and just sit back and gasp in awe at the magical new world that she’s found herself in. Being born with cerebral palsy, living with the consequences of her father borrowing money from loan sharks, her brother having to work for them, and their mother having cancer; Harper has not had an easy life. It has given her a pretty tough exterior and made her pretty distrustful of strangers.

Rhen on the other hand has been trying to break his curse for over 300 seasons. After every season ends everything in Prince Rhen’s castle resets. This curse keeps him and Grey trapped to relive the same season over and over again. The only difference this time is that this season is to be the last. Whether the curse is broken or not it will end. But by this point Rhen appears to be simply going through the motions, thinking everything twenty steps ahead he rarely just lives in the moment. After so many tries Rhen has been left weary, going through the motions of trying to break the curse now seemingly without much conviction. All that changes when he learns that this will be his final season. Although he does not expect a girl like Harper to be his last chance. As she is not the usual girl that Grey chooses for him to try and break the curse.

If you love fairy tales, especially Beauty and the Beast, then you should give this book a try. It is a beautifully re-imagining of the classic tale. Kemmerer puts new spins on the characters in new and creative ways.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend to anyone that loves fantasy, fairy tales and retellings.