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A review by leahegood
A Tale of Beauty and Beast by Melanie Cellier
5.0
"If I truly believed I had power over my own actions and choices, then my apologies and thanks couldn't be conditional on his."
"My gratitude for his rescue was not contingent on his gratitude for me rescuing him back. The beast might not deserve my good attitude, but I did. I wanted to be a royal who earned respect, not one who demanded it."
I'm so happy to have found a retelling of Beauty and the Beast that rivals [b:Beauty|41424|Beauty A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast|Robin McKinley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1294192311l/41424._SY75_.jpg|2321285], by Robin McKinley in how much I enjoyed it. The story mostly follows the traditional plot line, but there are some interesting variations that lend depth to the story world and character motivations.
Near the end of the story, when you are fully invested in the relationship between beauty and beast but everything is falling asleep, I must admit to audibly scolding Sophie for not seeing the reality of the situation! Funny how even knowing the general idea of how the story will end doesn't reduce the mounting tension of the lead-up to the climax.
The one thing that bothered me a bit early on was how often Sophie referenced the beast's appearance. I wanted to tell her, "Yes, yes. I got it the first 50 times. You can stop now." But honestly it was a pretty minor irritation amid wonderful character development and story-telling.
Definitely would recommend this book, especially to lovers of stories such as Robin McKinley's Beauty.
"My gratitude for his rescue was not contingent on his gratitude for me rescuing him back. The beast might not deserve my good attitude, but I did. I wanted to be a royal who earned respect, not one who demanded it."
I'm so happy to have found a retelling of Beauty and the Beast that rivals [b:Beauty|41424|Beauty A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast|Robin McKinley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1294192311l/41424._SY75_.jpg|2321285], by Robin McKinley in how much I enjoyed it. The story mostly follows the traditional plot line, but there are some interesting variations that lend depth to the story world and character motivations.
Near the end of the story, when you are fully invested in the relationship between beauty and beast but everything is falling asleep, I must admit to audibly scolding Sophie for not seeing the reality of the situation! Funny how even knowing the general idea of how the story will end doesn't reduce the mounting tension of the lead-up to the climax.
The one thing that bothered me a bit early on was how often Sophie referenced the beast's appearance. I wanted to tell her, "Yes, yes. I got it the first 50 times. You can stop now." But honestly it was a pretty minor irritation amid wonderful character development and story-telling.
Definitely would recommend this book, especially to lovers of stories such as Robin McKinley's Beauty.