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Of Beast and Beauty

Stacey Jay (Goodreads Author)

3.91 · Rating details · 10,317 ratings · 1,386 reviews

In the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret...

In the domed city of Yuan, the blind Princess Isra, a Smooth Skin, is raised to be a human sacrifice whose death will ensure her city’s vitality. In the desert outside Yuan, Gem, a mutant beast, fights to save his people, the Monstrous, from starvation. Neither dreams that tog ...more

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Hardcover, 391 pages

Published July 23rd 2013 by Delacorte Press

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Aug 07, 2013 Navessa rated it really liked it

Shelves: fairy-tale-retelling

4.5 stars

Growing up, Beauty and the Beast was my favorite Disney movie. C’mon, a chick that likes to read, a spooky castle, evil townies, a Tauren love interest, plus some homoerotic household goods? What’s not to love?

So it’s understandable that I was a little nervous that this book would take those wonderful childhood memories and shit all over them. It didn’t. It took everything that I loved about that movie and made it darker.

Stacey Jay took Belle and said “Fuck what you think you know abo ...more

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May 14, 2013 Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies rated it really liked it

Shelves: on-the-run, romance, ya, fantasy, high-school, mystery, asian-culture, quest, sci-fi, magic

Actual rating: 3.5

This book is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, where Beast is the captive, and Beauty is neither a beauty nor a paragon. Isra is not Belle, she is Rapunzel, she is Sleeping Beauty. She is a princess in a tower, locked up safe, coddled, and infuriatingly protected from the real world.

I wanted desperately to love this book, but it just didn't turn out as well as I had hoped. I absolutely love alternate versions of fairy tales, and let's face it, those of us who have watched Di Actual rating: 3.5

This book is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, where Beast is the captive, and Beauty is neither a beauty nor a paragon. Isra is not Belle, she is Rapunzel, she is Sleeping Beauty. She is a princess in a tower, locked up safe, coddled, and infuriatingly protected from the real world.

I wanted desperately to love this book, but it just didn't turn out as well as I had hoped. I absolutely love alternate versions of fairy tales, and let's face it, those of us who have watched Disney's Beauty and the Beast are hooked for life. This is not a bad book, this is nowhere near a bad book. It just ultimately failed to hold my attention somewhere along the way. The characters were brilliantly portrayed, the writing is poetic, lyrical, and descriptive without being purple prosy or sounding like it was overachieving. Despite all its strengths, Of Beast and Beauty's plot was not engrossing for me overall. Among what I felt were its weaknesses were the unrealistic portrayal of romance, and a storyline that was initially fascinating but progressed too slowly and ultimately lost my interest.

The summary of the book makes the plot sound more simple than it actually is. The actual plot is a lot more complicated, involving enchanted roses, the mystery of the Domed City, the mystery of the Covenant. It deals with issues with beauty within versus beauty without. It questions the characters' own belief in beauty and whether the outward appearance is an accurate reflection of the soul. It deals with internal securities, of anger, inborn prejudices. The book ties everything together well, the world is well-portrayed, particularly that of the desert.

"The desert bears their scars. The land spread out below us is all but barren. The desert floor is baked hard. The wind can barely move it. There are no more dust storms here. The ground cracks like eggshells, the pieces moving farther apart with every month that passes without rain. The trees are dead, and the few cacti that stubbornly push their way up from the scarred earth cast gnarled shadows, crooked fingers."

Did I mention I love the writing? I need to mention it again, because I absolutely LOVED the writing. It's among the best in the YA batches that I've read this year.

I wished that there had been more details on the domed city of Yuan. To be honest, that was part of my interest in reading the book. For me, Beauty & the Beast + Asian-related setting = SOLD (I'm Asian, there's a distinct lack of Asian-related books, so I am admittedly biased). The thing is, I never really got a feel for the culture and description of Yuan. Yes, there are Asian names, references to Asian culture, doing one's duty, etc., but they're just names, ideas. The city itself, the culture, the people, their customs weren't well-built, and never really felt real in my mind. The desert, the harshness of it, the bleak, lifelessness of the setting was so much clearer than the actual city containing thousands of people, an entire culture.

Our heroine is blind, consequently, we see how she feels and senses things; her perceptions and heightened senses relative to her lack of sight was beautifully described...when it was described. I was actually a little disappointed at the lack of descriptions when we see things from her point of view (the book is written from a first-person perspective, with alternating narrators). It just doesn't feel like Isra is a good portrayal of a person who is actually blind. The best scenes in the book from her point of view was from the introductory chapters, when we see her running through the dark, feeling things, sensing things. Aside from that, we get very little sense that she is someone lacking sight.

Character development is an absolute must for me within a book, and man, this book did it so well. A little too well, sometimes. Gem, Isra, Bo, are all wonderfully complex characters, imperfect, flawed, human. Bo's character surprised me most. Initially, I felt like there was a setup for us to hate him, and so, like a good little book reader, I did! Frustrating as he is, as much as I disliked his patronizing, condescending ass most of the time, he shows himself to be not completely lacking in kindness and compassion.

"It isn't right that she should live [life] in darkness. I don’t care what my baba said, I will not see my queen suffer any more than she must by virtue of her birth. I will see her eyes light up with wonder. I will see her smile as she looks at me and knows I am the one who restored her."

Gem and Isra are so alike, yet so different. Not just by the nature of their appearance, although there, the difference is obviously vast. Isra is a Smooth Skin, human in appearance, yet flawed, not the ideal beauty by any means, but mainly in her own mind. Gem is a Monstrous, taller and broader than the average Yuan citizen by far, covered in orange and golden scales. They are as different as night and day, one royalty, one a monstrous outcast, not even allowed into Yuan, hunted and despised. Yet both are prisoners of their own mind, both are angry, both are full of self-doubt and loathing for what they feel are their personal weaknesses. They hate each other, having grown up believing nothing good of the other kind, believing in preconceived notions of goodness and beauty.

Isra is sheltered within an inch of her life due to her position as royalty, and due to her disability and the taint of her late mother's madness. Her character frustrated me sometimes, she is so angry, so hurt inside, yet she keeps it bottled up, and ends up more or less a doormat of a queen. Isra is so utterly passive at times, and I can feel Gem's frustration as he suffers in dealing with Isra and her endless list of insecurities. She does not step up as a leader, she lets people tell her what to do, how to dress, how to act. Isra is a fucking QUEEN, she needs to grow some balls. Isra is a puppet of a ruler; she can barely muster up the energy to stand up for herself, much less run a country. Her passivity and her fatalistic state of mind is completely incomprehensible to Gem, because she is so ready to surrender to everyone and everything, and he is unrelenting.

"'Do it...do it! Kill me!'
Her words make my blood burn. 'You're so ready to die?' I demand in her language. 'My people would do anything to live. Anything.'"

I do so love the characters, but their romance felt much too soon, too forced, too fast. They are well in love before a third of the book is through. From literally wanting to kill each other, to falling in love in that short of a time, is incomprehensible to me. Their interactions in-between weren't conducive to romance, they bond, yes, but each have their personal purpose in using the other, and their growing feelings just felt completely obligatory overall. Their love is also overwrought with angst, and the romance is a much too prevalent part of the novel, where I felt like the plot should have been the focus.

"The most accomplished lover in Yuan kissed me, long and deep, and continues to do his best to seduce me, and I feel nothing but vague curiosity and more pronounced anxiety. Now a beast from the desert stands too close, and I am dizzy with wanting him. I crave his calloused hands on me."

Meh.

Overall: excellent characters, lovely writing, a lot of angst (to each his own), but the plot didn't hold my attention overall. ...more

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Apr 22, 2014 Anne rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2015, retelling, fairytale

This one was a very low 3 stars for me. I probably would have rated less than 3, but I didn't think it would be fair to the book, because it wasn't badly written.
But I was so BORED the entire time I was reading. I kept waiting for whatever awesomeness was supposed to happen that made (seemingly) every other reviewer fall in love with it.
It never happened for me.

description

I didn't hate the characters, but I never fell in love with the idea of Isra & Gem together. Part of that reason may have been because ...more

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Sep 21, 2013 Denisse rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: Beauty and the Beast fans

Read for the 2015 Reading Challenges #28 A book with antonyms in the title.

4.5 This is definitely a must for any Beauty and the Beast fan ~~like me~~. We all know that story, so expect this book to be a romance, centered a lot on the character development and love aspects, not too deep into the fantasy world it creates but involved in a very fantastical atmosphere improved by the beautiful writing. It has the classical B&B elements, but overall it follows its own rules. A fresh retelling for what, ...more

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Apr 10, 2017 Sylvia Mercedes rated it it was amazing

Shelves: dark-fantasy, girl-power, fairytale, beautiful-writing, beauty-and-the-beast, stayed-up-till-four-in-the-morning, surprise-twists, favorites, strong-female-characters

Continuing my Beauty and the Beast Month and that's right . . . that's right. Another five star Beauty and the Beast read. And this one COMPLETELY different from the last one, and yet equally compelling in its own way!

Beauty and the Beast Month photo NewsletterBanner_zps5ds6wu0h.jpg

Visit my website to see all of my Beauty and the Beast reads!

Though I have to say, this wasn't as much of a Beauty and the Beast retelling as I thought it would be. That is NOT a knock on the book, so don't consider it a critique! I was simply expecting more ties to the or ...more

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Nov 20, 2014 Candace Robinson rated it it was amazing

Beautiful writing and a gorgeous ending!!! Review on blog https://literarydust.wordpress.com/20... ...more

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Jun 28, 2015 ♛Tash rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fairytale-retelling

The BatB checklist:

☑ Beauty

Isra is not the conventional Beauty. For one she is blind, but her narrative didn't really feel like she is blind. I mean dude, she rappells from her tower to the garden way below. Daredevil is the only blind person I know who can do that. Second, she wasn't a beauty, at least for the entire first 70% or so. I was under the impression that she isn't conventionally beautiful bordering on hideous, what with the reaction of the people around her. Then in the last 30%, tad ...more

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Dec 19, 2012 Keertana rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2013-favorites, rainy-day-re-reads, swoooon, kick-ass-heroines, wishlist

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Every good fairy tale has a few critical elements. We have our heroine and our hero, their epic tale of romance, the obstacle in their way, and, most likely, there is a curse to break as well. “Beauty and the Beast” is easily the best of these fairy tale stories, far more romantic than “Snow White,” much darker than “Sleeping Beauty,” and all together more satisfying than “Cinderella”. With Of Beast and Beauty, however, Stacey Jay has managed to mix together all of the correct i ...more

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Jan 28, 2013 ♥ Rebecca ♥ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: fans of Under the Never Sky

Shelves: sci-fi, standalone, own-physical-copy, reviewed, young-adult, romance, dystopian, retellings

This book was absolutely nothing like I expected. Even the blurb didnt give away the fact that this was a futuristic sci-fi and not a high fantasy. And it wasnt much of a Beauty and the Beast retelling, either. There was not much left of the original tale. The only similarities I saw was that their love could break a curse, but even the details of that were very different. Besides the drastic change in story and setting, one of the more major changes is the fact that there is no clear beauty and ...more

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Jan 31, 2016 Kristalia rated it really liked it

Shelves: type-standalone-story, i-didnt-sleep-cause-i-read-this, age-young-adult, sob-fest, they-are-so-cute-its-unbearable, me-likey-mucho, be-my-heroine-please, favorite-couple, reviewed, why-u-no-longer-u-make-me-sad

Final rating: 4.5/5 stars

I had nothing left to give. I had lost everything but my voice.
And what good is a voice when so few will listen?
Will you listen, child?

I liked this book. It was a lovely retelling, with a different perspective and nice characterization.

LIKED:
☑ Isra's and Gem's and Needle's characters and their characterization.
☑ Passage of time. Months pass in this book.
☑ I LOVED the fact that Gem hated them all in the beginning, and even later on, and didn't falter in that unti ...more

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Mar 18, 2014 Ari rated it it was amazing

Shelves: recommended, standalone, alternating-pov, fantasy, 2013, retellings

If you are into animation movies, then I'll easily describe this as some sort of 'Shrek' meets 'Tangled' (I don't know about you, but I loved them both!). And I won't even bother with the other end of the 'if' :p

Absolutely lovely! Why didn't I know about it sooner? 4.5 stars.

FULL REVIEW:

It’s not a secret that I have a crush on historical-fantasy alike stories. Ever since the Lumatere Chronicles my heart roots for this type of stories, sometimes I find something that I like, sometimes the sea ...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Mlpmom (Book Reviewer) rated it really liked it

Shelves: kindle-books, book-club

Beauty and the Beast is by far my most favorite childhood fairy tale. Who didn't love the beautiful brown eyed girl who love to read and had a heart of gold?

Being a brown eyed bookworm myself, she was the princess I related to the most. And who wouldn't want to marry a handsome prince?

Being a lover of both the Beauty and the Beast fairytale and of re-tellings, I couldn't resist Stacye Jay's spin on the classic tale. Already loving her spin on the classic Romeo and Juliet in her Juliet Immortal s ...more

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Mar 18, 2015 Daiane rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, i-ve-got-the-power, retellings, surprisingly-good, it-s-magical

Actual rating: 4.5
This book = <3

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Apr 22, 2013 TJ rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobook

THE REVIEW

Why this book?
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairytale

What I thought
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairytale. So I knew I had to give this one a try. This was the most unique retelling of Beauty and the Beast I've read, and I've read many. It was captivating and beautifully written. The emotions in this book were palpable and it just grabs you. Gem's and Isra's relationship was so complicated and yet so well written it leaves you wanting more. Some p ...more

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Apr 16, 2017 sunny marked it as to-read

I was going to read this but then started doing math problems instead, who am i anymore 🙃🙃🙃

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Jan 13, 2016 Julia (ten_thousand_books) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: retellings, favourite-stand-alone-s, books-read-in-2017, fantasy, books-i-own, paranormal, paranormal-romance, supernatural, recommendations-for-mom, want-to-re-read

"The summer star split down the middle, leaving two stars in its place.
One was white and pale as Queen Isra's skin when she was a girl, the other a luminous orange like King Gem's scales when he sat before the fire. They were celebrated and named Beauty and the Beast, but none of the King or queens people would ever say which star was which. They would only look kindly on the stranger who'd asked and say, 'Beauty is wherever you find it, and Beast is there when you need to defend it.'"

Guys thi ...more

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Feb 09, 2014 Jo ★The Book Sloth★ rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Anyone and Everyone

Shelves: fantasy, favorites, my-precious, magic, ya

IN the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret. The secret was as old as the cracked cobblestone streets of Yuan, as peculiar as the roses that bloom eternally within the domed city’s walls, as poisonous as forgotten history and the stories told in its place.

Of Beast and Beauty isn't a book full of sunshine. It is a dark book, a scary fairytale. It has little resemblance to Beauty and the Beast, but that was ok. This book was beautiful in its ...more

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Aug 13, 2013 Cara rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, male-protagonist, favorites, fairy-tales, science-fiction, 2015, pop-sugar-2015-challenge

From my own scientific research with extensive Excel spreadsheets (ok not really, but from my equally impressive informal observations), I have come to the conclusion that behind Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast is the most retold fairy tale. And it’s for a good reason. There is something so alluring about breaking a curse with true love.

This retelling takes some liberties from the original tale. While there is the curse, captivity, and a beauty and beast (kind of), this is set, from what I can From my own scientific research with extensive Excel spreadsheets (ok not really, but from my equally impressive informal observations), I have come to the conclusion that behind Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast is the most retold fairy tale. And it’s for a good reason. There is something so alluring about breaking a curse with true love.

This retelling takes some liberties from the original tale. While there is the curse, captivity, and a beauty and beast (kind of), this is set, from what I can gather, in another planet humans inhabit. There are complications when humans come to this planet though. Some humans mutate to become Monstrous to survive this new land and the others remain Smooth skins, but there is a price for this. A price paid in blood. Isra is a princess of one of the Domed Cities, Yuan. The tradition is the Queen must sacrifice her life to the roses so the city can continue to enjoy their bounty. Isra knows that someday this may be her fate. She lives a quiet and sheltered existence since she became blind the same night her mother died. On one of the nights she sneaks out to visit the roses she stumbles upon a Monstrous named Gem. Gem’s mission is to get the roses and go back to his people but can’t seem to kill Isra like he knows he should. Against everyone’s insistence on killing the beast, Isra decides to hold him prisoner instead. Hence, our story begins!

I loved almost everything about this story. The tone, pacing, world, plot, beautiful writing, characters, romance so yeah practically everything. One of the aspects I loved the most was how the line between the beauty and the beast is blurred. Is Gem really the beast here? Or is Isra? And what does being a beauty or beast really mean? And why do I always ask so many questions!?!?! But I digress. Isra and Gem kind of hate each other from the beginning. They each carry many years of hate that their people have for each other. The prejudices are strong on both sides, so it seems it won’t be possible for these two to see each other than enemies. These two, goodness they really tugged at my heartstrings. They were perfect for each other. I also appreciated the exploration of why people on each side felt they were justified in their views and how the nuggets of truth, which prejudices are often based on, grow into something incomprehensible when hate is involved.

From the summary I gave it sounds like a simple plot but there is a lot to the story I won’t go into, but the author wrote all facets of the story like an expert. Political nonsense makes an appearance in the story. Nothing too complicated but we do have the court that is trying their best to keep Isra from doing anything resembling knowing or doing something useful, and it’s difficult for Isra to overcome her feelings of inadequacy to do what she needs to do. This inner struggle is a big part of the story and could be frustrating, but I felt Isra’s growth was done beautifully.

During the last 3/4ths of the book I was literally hunching over the book. My eyes scanning the pages ahead. To say I was utterly engrossed would be an understatement.

All this is coming from a person who almost cannot not like a retelling, so I know this book won’t be for everyone. But if you are looking for an epic love story done right, I believe you can stop your search.

Read for POPSUGAR CHALLENGE 2015: A book by an author you've never read before
...more

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Sep 21, 2014 Alienor ✘ French Frowner ✘ rated it liked it

Shelves: retelling, genre-young-adult, genre-fairytales, genre-fantasy

Amazing Buddy Read with Chelsea, Jen, Laura, Kat Stark, Sarah, Jenny, Harriet, Portia, Destini Mia, Maria & Elena for ❦ Chelsea's birthday ❦.

Joyeux anniversaire en avance ma belle!!

This gonna be short, sorry. Because Ash's waiting for me. I might re-write a proper review later.

Rating clarification : 3.5/5

The girl's misery and rage slipped away, and the secret sank like a stone,
deep,
deep,
deep
inside her, until the truth was as forgotten as hope and beauty and all the other things given to th

...more

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Mar 27, 2017 Alissa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-ebooks

Maybe the mind of the majority is always the healthy mind, simply by virtue of its numbers. Maybe it’s the definition of madness to believe I’m right and everyone else is wrong, to find my thoughts rational and reasonable when almost the entire world finds them damaged and flawed.

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Jun 03, 2013 Rebekah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

Original review found http://www.awesomebooknut.com

4.5 LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!

I love retelling of fairy tales, and this is no exception. This author was able to take the idea of a beauty and a beast and completely spin it in a way that makes it fun, unique and completely enjoyable.

The beginning of the story was a bit to get through in order to connect with the characters. Although the author did a grand job of creating her own world that is rich with imagery.

Here in this story it's Beast that i Original review found http://www.awesomebooknut.com

4.5 LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!

I love retelling of fairy tales, and this is no exception. This author was able to take the idea of a beauty and a beast and completely spin it in a way that makes it fun, unique and completely enjoyable.

The beginning of the story was a bit to get through in order to connect with the characters. Although the author did a grand job of creating her own world that is rich with imagery.

Here in this story it's Beast that is the captive, and Beauty is actually neither a beauty nor a paragon. I didn't really see Isra as Belle, but I saw her more as maybe a Repunzel and/or a Sleeping Beauty . She is a princess in a tower, locked up safe, she is lied to, coddled, suffocated, used, manipulated, and "protected" from the real world. She is blind with one handmaiden who is dumb.
Isa will one day sacrifice herself for the good of the city. In order to ensure and keep the dome intact Yuan's queens spill their blood on the magical rose garden and die. It's the covenant they've made with the roses. If this sacrifice does not take place the city will fall, and everyone known as Smooth Skins will be at the mercy of the elements of the desert outside and the people kept without known as the Monstrous.

Gem is a Monstrous. His body was changed in order to survive the harsh elements of the outside world. He has claws, fangs, and scales, he is bigger, and stronger that help him survive. All Monstrous people have traits like this. But the Monstrous people are dying out. With nothing to produce in the harsh desert lands the Monstrous are starving. They know of the roses and it's magical powers but don't know what keeps the roses alive and how it gives the Smooth Skins land fertility. So he tries to steal a rose to bring back to his people. But the night that he is to steal a rose, he is captured by the Smooth Skins.

This story is definitely a powerful one. Because as you read you keep wondering, who is the Beauty and who is really the Beast?

Overall: It was clean and enjoyable and I loved it.

Sexual Content: mild
Language: mild
Violence: mild
Drugs/Alcohol: mild ...more

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Dec 06, 2014 Elena rated it really liked it

Buddyread this book with all of these wonderful ladies: Chelsea, Laura,Jen , Anna, Kat Stark, Sarah, Jenny, Harriet, Portia, Destini Mia and Maria :)

I truly enjoyed Of Beast and Beauty! I was sucked in right at the beginning. The world and the characters seemed strange, out of this world even. Something I had to get used to but intrigued me nonetheless!

It is kind of a reversed Beauty & the Beast retelling. Gem, who is our ''beast'', becomes Isra's prisoner. Which means: they HATE each other.
H Buddyread this book with all of these wonderful ladies: Chelsea, Laura,Jen , Anna, Kat Stark, Sarah, Jenny, Harriet, Portia, Destini Mia and Maria :)

I truly enjoyed Of Beast and Beauty! I was sucked in right at the beginning. The world and the characters seemed strange, out of this world even. Something I had to get used to but intrigued me nonetheless!

It is kind of a reversed Beauty & the Beast retelling. Gem, who is our ''beast'', becomes Isra's prisoner. Which means: they HATE each other.
Hate that grows to love, is always something I ADORE in books!

''I stretch and smile and run. And run and run and run.
It's safe for a blind girl to run here.''

Isra is our main protagonist and the blind Princess of Yuan. Yup. BLIND! Honestly, that was something that truly made me want to read this book! I've never read about a blind character and I think it's interesting to read from someone's perspective who sadly can't see.
But this is not the only thing, that made Isra stand out from YA protagonists. She was hidden her whole life, didn't really have contact to anybody. Her maid is mute and the only other person Isra talked to was her father. So, naturally, she was kind of strange.

''It's too late for kindness. No amount of kindness can change who she is or what her people have done to mine.''

This book is not only written from Isra's POV but also from Gem's, a mutant beast. (And another really shitty person I'm not going to talk about :P)
Gem is fighting for his people, who are called Monstrous, and when one day he tries to steal Roses (not just any roses, obviously) from the Palace's garden he gets captured and becomes Isra's prisoner.
They truly hate each other, but when someday Isra needs Gem's help, they get to know and deal with each other.
My favourite part of this book would have to be their relationship! I just loved how they truly hated each other and then with each passing day, they realized, that the other one isn't how he seemed to be.

While I had a couple of issues with it I still enjoyed the book to no end! It was a quick and great read and I definitely need to read more by Stacey Jay! ...more

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Jun 18, 2015 Kat Kennedy rated it it was ok

I just never managed to get into this book. DNF at 50%

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Mar 18, 2014 Andrew (BritBookBoy) rated it really liked it

"Beauty is wherever you find it, and Beast is there when you need to defend it."

I’m such a sap for fairytale retellings and this book gave me everything I want from one. Stacey Jay managed to maintain enough of the original’s iconic moments and plotlines, while serving something fresh, inventive and beautiful. While I don’t usually like to compare, this was the exact type of story I was looking for in Rosamund Pike’s Cruel Beauty, but was unable to find.

Told in dual perspective (with a very "Beauty is wherever you find it, and Beast is there when you need to defend it."

I’m such a sap for fairytale retellings and this book gave me everything I want from one. Stacey Jay managed to maintain enough of the original’s iconic moments and plotlines, while serving something fresh, inventive and beautiful. While I don’t usually like to compare, this was the exact type of story I was looking for in Rosamund Pike’s Cruel Beauty, but was unable to find.

Told in dual perspective (with a very minor third perspective appearing now and then), it follows the story of Isra, the Princess of Yuan and Gem, a mutated man from one of the ‘Monstrous’ tribes in the surrounding desert. Isra’s life ticks by under the protection of the domed city of Yuan that prospers thanks to the sacrifice of a Yuan Queen every few decades to feed the magic that lurks beneath. Meanwhile, Gem and his tribe battle through every day to survive out in the harsh and desecrated landscape the magic has neglected to care for. Each faction blames the other for their planet’s demise. Once Isra and Gem’s worlds collide, however, everything their people have known for centuries begins to crumble.

It was hard not to route for the romance in this when you throw a blind and supposedly mentally incapacitated princess of soft skin “Beauty”, and a mutated, Monstrous “Beast” from warring human factions together. The build up and struggle of the characters in dealing with how they feel for each other was superbly captured, and one of the reasons I liked it so much.

The distinction between Beauty and Beast is fairly apparent in most versions of the story, what I really enjoyed about this reinvention was how much the author blurred the lines between the two. What exactly makes a person beastly, while making another beautiful? In this book it’s all a matter of perception, often perceptions that have been ill taught and stand on a foundation of lies. Seeing those foundations fall away was thrilling.

There was strong characterisation, interesting world building, lyrical writing, and an effective and well earned romance (no insta-love here!). That’s enough for it to score a solid 4 stars. ...more

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Jan 04, 2016 rachel ☾ rated it it was amazing

Recommended to rachel ☾ by: Nick's Book Club (Jan 2016 BOTM)

Shelves: retelling, 5-star, fantasy, young-adult-lit, favourites-2016

It seems that every time I read a book worthy of five stars I write the same sentence to start my reviews: People say that bad reviews are the hardest to write, but I find it impossible to review my favourite books and do them justice. And once again, I have to agree with myself. If the words could exist to explain to you just how much this book effected me emotionally, I would pour them onto this page without hesitation - so you could understand, so you would go out and pick up this book right ...more

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Nov 02, 2013 Summer rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, fairytale-retellings

Oh, how refreshing it is to read a YA fantasy novel that is not part of a series.

How invigorating it is to read of a fairytale that stays faithful to the original while deviating from the standard to create a world that is incomparable in characters and prose.

Recently, I read a novel based on Beauty and the Beast--Cruel Beauty, by Rosamond Hodge (here is ze review) and while I do admit it was quite good, albeit peculiar, it didn't wow me as much as I'd hoped it would. That cannot be said of Jay ...more

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Dec 15, 2014 Cee (The Mistress Case) rated it liked it

Beauty is wherever you find it, and Beast is there when you need to defend it.

A Blind Beauty.

A Humane Beast.

Our beast Gem isn’t cursed, selfish, or ugly.

Our beauty Isra isn’t loved, pure, or untouchable.

As a matter of fact, Isra and Gem practically have death sentences hanging over their heads.

My life grows shorter than the rose on the royal roses.

These characters’ journey is heartwarming and raw with emotions of anger, hatred, doubt, pity, fear and . . . lust. I fucking love it.

However, ...more

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Nov 13, 2013 Andrea ❤Ninja Bunneh❤ rated it really liked it

Shelves: its-raining-ninja-bunnehs, hack-slash-boom, kept-me-up-reading-nom-nom, beautifully-written, pass-me-the-tissues, kill-me-why-dont-you-angst, fantasy-island

I have a confession to make. I adore all things Disney. If I pass a Disney Store, I must venture inside. If a new Disney movie comes out, I must go and watch it. It's a weakness, but I regret NOTHING. My absolute favorite movie from Disney, watched more than a two dozen times over more than a dozen years is Beauty and the Beast.

photo 1139335_1352149344050_full_zps58597c8b.jpg

If you're about to run and grab Of Beast and Beauty, thinking it's a sweet fairy tale full of rainbows and unicorns, don't. It has the feel of the enchanted movie, bu ...more

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Feb 05, 2015 Dystopia28 rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, read-alongs, main-characters-with-disabilties

Okay, so Of Beast and Beauty is a Beauty and the Beast retelling (obviously) which I thought was very interesting. I've heard of Cinderella retellings, Snow White retellings and others but I haven't really heard of a Beauty and the Beast retelling. But this one was done PERFECTLY!
Isra was amazing. She was my favorite character! Everything she goes through in this book is so terrible and awful but she keeps moving on no matter what. Gem. What do I even say about Gem? He was the perfect Beast. H ...more

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Jun 11, 2013 Lili rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: everyone!

Shelves: favorites-2013

I think that writing a coherent review currently is impossible. It’s been a really long time since a book made my heart speed up, my breathing shallow because I was so engrossed. It’s been a really long time since I thought that a writer’s writing style is really beautiful and went out of my way to tell others that. It’s just been a while since a book managed to truly blow me away and make me love it so much. OF BEAST AND BEAUTY, the first book I’ve ever read by Stacey Jay, managed to do all tha I think that writing a coherent review currently is impossible. It’s been a really long time since a book made my heart speed up, my breathing shallow because I was so engrossed. It’s been a really long time since I thought that a writer’s writing style is really beautiful and went out of my way to tell others that. It’s just been a while since a book managed to truly blow me away and make me love it so much. OF BEAST AND BEAUTY, the first book I’ve ever read by Stacey Jay, managed to do all that and more. I can already tell that this book will stick with me for a while.

The intricacies of this new world was fascinating. They easily engross you and hold you captive throughout the duration of the book--making it an incredibly quick and enjoyable read. It’s set in a dying world where domed cities must make royal sacrifices every thirty years in order to ensure the continual thriving of their people. Isra, the blind future Queen of Yuan, is set to be the next sacrifice to allow her people to continue to live. The domes are necessary to cut the citizens off from the evils of the outside world and the disfigured race that lives in the desert. The Monstrous are beastly people with poisonous claws and they must be feared, but when they break into Yuan and one of them murders the King, everything spirals out of control. They leave a single Monstrous prisoner behind named Gem in order to ensure peace between the two races, but he is unwelcome by all except Isra who is strangely fascinated by her new prisoner and eventual friend. A lot of the amazing world-building was displayed through personal anecdotes and the telling of old legends from both races, and I found this to be a welcome, unique touch that kept my interest without having to info-dump. This also allowed the mystery of Yuan to be unraveled in a really unique way that left me flipping pages as fast as I could.

I think the strongest point of this story was the characterization. Both Gem and Isra live in two completely different yet equally dying worlds, and they both will do anything required to save those they love. But, in the end, they both have the biggest hearts of gold. They can plan to do terrible things but never follow through with it. They’re both just so good, and I truly truly loved that. Isra never allowed her blindness to hinder her. In fact, it just made her stronger. And Gem was proud of who he was, even if the Smooth-Skinned people that Isra ruled believed he was disgusting. His form was beautiful and his people were beautiful. In his eyes, everything somehow was beautiful. I liked the hidden messages that such a thought process shared. And I also loved the side characters, especially Needle, Isra’s loyal maid, best friend, and dress-maker despite being born mute. Bo was a unique side character as well, often warring with himself about what is right since he tended to simply feel for so many people. He had a good heart, he just didn’t know how to manage everything. This book is told in the altering perspectives of Gem and Isra, with a few chapters in Bo’s perspective thrown in. I normally would think his perspective was completely unnecessary, but he added a lot of back-plot to the story and summed up all questionable plot lines. Although, I have to admit, while I enjoyed his voice I did not love it nearly as much as I loved Gem and Isra’s.

And, while this book has so much more to it, it’s still a BEAUTY AND THE BEAST re-telling at its heart, meaning that the romance is important. And, damn, can I say that I love love and this love story. It was slow-going and passionate all at once--the way a love story should be. And the BEAUTY AND THE BEAST interpretation was great. It added all the more meaning to the words “beastly” and “beautiful” and made me smile endlessly while reading the epilogue--an epilogue so sweet and perfect that I never wanted it to end. While I couldn’t have asked for a better story, I was saddened to turn to the last blank page because I grew so attached to Isra and Gem. Even now, I don’t want to leave them behind just yet.

I don’t know what else to say about this one aside from the fact that it blew me away entirely. I can’t think of a single piece of criticism because I did love it so much. I recommend this book to anyone willing to read it. Those who love fantasy re-tellings, those who love an amazing romance, those who love something different and unique or a book littered with fascinating political intrigue and dark unknowns lurking beneath the surface. This is a book that could be universally loved and I truly hope anyone who picks it up will love it as much as I did. To put it simply, this book is a must read of 2013, no questions asked. ...more

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YA Buddy Readers'...: Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay - GBR - Starting March 22nd 2017	12	137	Mar 30, 2017 08:01AM
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About Stacey Jay

Stacey Jay

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Stacey Jay is a recovering workaholic (or at least working hard at recovering) with three pen names, two small children, and a passion for playing pretend for a living. She’s been a full time mom-writer since 2005 and can't think of anything she'd rather be doing. Her former careers include theatre performer, professional dancer, poorly paid C-movie actress, bartender, waiter, math tutor (for real ...more