**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
NA Review
My Thoughts
Beauty of the Beast is the first book in the new adult Fairy Tale retellings series by Rachel Demeter. I loved Beauty of the Beast. Totally and completely loved this book. I have been really into retellings lately, and this is a great one. The blurb claims it is "Perfect for fans of Beauty and the Beast and The Phantom of the Opera" and I can totally see that! This is a dark and gothic retelling, so it is not going to be light and fluffy, but it is so heartbreakingly romantic. I just loved seeing Isabelle and Adam.

Isabelle is taking care of her sick father and Adam is a Prince and also the sole survivor of a raid on his castle when he was younger. He now lives in seculsion and when Isabelle and her father happen upon his castle she trades herself to save her father and that is really where our story starts. This story made me super emotional. Both happy and sad emotions. There are two events that took place that really gutted me.

When Isabelle's father dies at the start of the story! At the start! and when the dog stranger was shot. I'm sorry, but there is never any reason to kill a dog! It is a testament to how much I loved the rest of the story if I still gave it five stars when a dog died. That is normally the kiss of death for me. #isthatweird

But still, I loved the writing and the characters and the rest of the story so much that I still gave this book five stars! Which is really big for me if you know what one of the things was. That is normally a huge no-no for me in books/tv shows/movies. But Beauty of the Beast was good enough that I made an exception in this case.

I'm not sure who was more wounded and who I felt for more in the story. Adam and Isabelle really are kindred souls. Adam with his obvious hardship and past and Isabelle with her awful fiance and dealing with family issues. Watching them come together and form a slow friendship and even slower romance was so sweet and satisfying.

I really loved the slow burn romance in Beauty of the Beast. If you like retellings that take the bones of the tale and tell a really strong story with the basic plot, you will love Beauty of the Beast. Rachel doesn't do anything too radical with the storyline and it feels pretty true to the original but she does do a really cool mash up beauty and the beast and the phantom of the opera. The end result is a great slow burn romance with a tortured hero and a really likable heroine. I devoured this story in one sitting! This is a fantastic retelling. I can't wait to read more from Rachel. This is a book you do not want to miss, and it is one sale right now for preorders!

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs