Review: Beastly by Alex Flinn

Book: Beastly by Alex Flinn

Genre: YA Fantasy

Rating: A

For: Fun and because the librarians talked it up to the teens!

As you know by now, I just got back from a cruise. I took a gazillion books with me (well, six maybe) and this is the only one that I actually read and finished. There's actually not a lot of reading time on a cruise if you are at all enticed by all the many many activities they have for you to do. I was lucky to get the little bit in that I did get!

But this book was perfect for vacation reading. It was talked up at the library during the teen summer reading kick-off and they basically said, "You want to know what The Beast was thinking? Read this book!"

So of course, loving the story of The Beauty and the Beast as I do, that's all the encouragement I needed. My daughter JJ obviously thought the same thing because she instantly put it on hold and luckily, it wasn't long before we had it.

The surprising thing about this book is that it's a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast. And being a YA book, the characters are teenagers. So the boy, or the Beast, gets cursed because he is just snobby and snotty through and through. He needs to learn a lesson in a big way. His dad, who can't handle his transformation, hides him away at a very nice house, complete with his very own tutor, and cook/maid. It's here that he has his change of heart and realizes there's much much more to people than their outward appearance. But is there any hope for him to break the curse? Can he make someone fall in love with him (in two years time), despite the fact that he's hidden away and sheltered from society? Oh, and is an ugly beast? You'll just have to read the book to find out!

I'd never heard of this author before, and I must say, I look forward to gathering up the several other books she (I thought she was a he, but I just looked it up and nope, she's a she!) has written and reading them all.

Other Reviews:

Karin's Book Nook

The Book Nest

Library and Literary Miscellany