Hunted by Meagan Spooner- 3 stars

Hunted is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. My overall opinion is that if you are someone who loves Beauty and Beast you are very likely to love this too.

All the traditional elements of the original fairy-tale are there. It is nothing like Marissa Meyer's retellings though. If you are expecting a completely new story that surprises you at times this is not it. I personally much prefer Marissa Meyer's style of fairy-tale retelling (or in this particular case even ACOTAR- a court of thorns and roses- also a Beauty and the Beast adaptation). I like the surprise element those authors added to their story, it helps (me at least) to engage and immerse myself in the book. In Hunted everything is predictable, and I greatly struggle with fantasy books that are too predictable. That is not a bad thing necessarily, jut not my favorite type of fairy-tale retelling I suppose...

The story is about Beauty (or Yeva), her two sisters and their father. When Beauty's father looses his fortune, they are forced to move back to their lodge in the outskirts of town. Beauty is secretively pleased with that change. She misses being in the forest hunting with her father, something they used to do a lot when she was still a child.

Being back however is not easy. Their father starts to act strange and one day disappears. Beauty goes after him, tracking his steps, she finds the Beast instead!

So, as you can see, very close to the original. Her siblings are kind and selfless here, and they play a special role both in the beginning and in the end of the book, but for the most part it is very much like the classic: Beauty goes after her father, Beauty is kept in the Beast's castle, there is a curse, he eventually lets her go, she returns...

It is a tad darker than the original story. The author hints quite strongly that there is a case of Stockholm syndrome going on towards the end too. And ... well ... why did you do that?! Fairy-tales are not meant to make sense all the time, they are not meant to be real. All the talk of Stockholm syndrome made it real, which in turn makes their relationship creepy. Who wants to read about the girl that goes back to her abuser? it just made the whole ending feel wrong rather than magical.

Anyway... look guys, it was beautiful in many ways! I loved Beauty's bravery; I loved that Solmir (aka Gaston) was a pleasant and loving character, I loved her relationship with her sisters... It was just not enough for me to love the book as a whole too.

It was good, but it is not going on favorites list!

Comments

A Romance Catch Up!

It has been a crazy month and I fell behind badly on my reviews! But here are some highlights for you. Barbarian Lover (Ice Planet Barbarians #3) Ruby Dixon 2.75/5 Although I liked this one it is my least favorite in the series so far. The book was going well until a little over the halfway point when it just doesn't read right. She accepts leaving someone behind too easily and although up to this point the book does a good job at dealing with infertility it all of sudden throws it all out of the window. So good, I will carry on with the series, but not great. A Precious Jewel (Stapleton-Downes #2) Mary Balogh 3/5 This was different, unique. And I like that about it. I have not read any other book quite like it. She is a prostitute; he starts of as just any other client. The story was sweet and interesting . The MC comes across rather clueless at times, but it is somewhat endearing. The romance is believable and they make a very charming couple! The Gunslinger's Guide to

Radiant Sin (Dark olympus) by Katee Robert [arc review]

This is sadly, not going to be a very popular review. I adore Katee Robert. But this one just wasn't for me. It wasn't a terrible book or anything like that, it just left me wanting more and very puzzled. Every one of the books in this series follows a certain trope and/or subplot genre. Neon Gods is very much a Greek Mythology retelling; Electric Idol has the plus size influencer and the sweet bad boy, it is a very modern contemporary romance; Wicked Beauty , and my favorite so far has that hunger games/dystopian vibe. Radiant Sin is a murder mystery. The 'one house'/'one train' style that has always been so popular. Here lies problem number one for me, because I don't like murder mysteries at all. Even on my teen years when I read a lot of mystery it was never those. Problem two- there were way too many characters in that house, and they all got their time on the page making it one very confusing mess. It was very hard to follow at times. I think this

The Book Hater's Book Club by Gretchen Anthony

The Book Hater's Book Club at first appears to be about a struggling bookstore and its imminent sale. Elliot, the co-owner of Over the Rainbow Bookstore, started The Book Hater's Book Club , a newsletter of reading recommendations for the self-proclaimed non-readers of the world, because he believed there was a book out there for everyone. Something I wholeheartedly agree with! For years he and Irma have kept the store going and always had a recommendation in hand. When you finish this book, you will have yet another list of books to read. However, this book is about more than just books and a struggling bookstore. It is also about grief, the price of secrets, and a little more grief. You see, Elliot is gone, and his grief-ridden business partner has agreed to sell the store to developers. Problem is, she didn't tell that to anyone until the deal was almost done. Which is making her daughters ask questions. Why is she selling? Is it grief alone? Is there something else

Glimpses Of My Books

Search This Blog