Ensnared

by Rita Stradling

A Near Future Retelling of Beauty and the Beast

Alainn’s father is not a bad man. He’s a genius and an inventor. When he’s hired to create the robot Rose, Alainn knows taking the money is a mistake.

Rose acts like a human. She looks exactly like Alainn. But, something in her comes out wrong.

To save her father from a five year prison sentence, Alainn takes Rose’s place. She says goodbye to the sun and goes to live in a tower no human is allowed to enter. She becomes the prisoner of a man no human is allowed to see.

Believing that a life of servitude lies ahead, Alainn finds a very different fate awaits her in the company of the strange, scarred recluse.

[This novel contains adult situations and is only suitable for readers who are 18+]

Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Retellings, New Adult, Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Beauty and The Beast

380 pages, Paperback

First published May 23, 2017

About the author

Rita Stradling is a USA Today Bestselling Author with an all-consuming addiction to popcorn.

She writes young adult and new adult romances about flawed people who find their perfect together (often these people are dragon-shifters, werewolves, or have magical powers).

Rita believes in soulmates, happily ever afters, and that love can overcome any obstacle.

Reviews

[Kaylin (The Re-Read Queen) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

Overview:



All I needed to see was ‘Sci-fi’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast retelling’ and I was sold. Taking place in a near future where humanesque robots come equipped with artificial intelligence, Alainn agrees to take the place of one of her father's robots, so he avoids jail time. This means that Alainn will now spend her days the company of a "strange, scarred recluse."

I received an ARC of this through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Rita Stradling for the opportunity!

Pros:

For a re-telling, this is was crazy creative and fun. From the setting itself to the character’s backstories, it all felt very in the vein of the original story, while embracing a new and complex setting.

I dig robots with Artificial Intelligence, and was surprised by the ease with which it fit into this story. I enjoyed the differences between Rose, Rosebud and Rosette.

I love that ‘Beauty’ was given her own motivations and backstory outside of her family. She was an independent and fun character.

Cons

I’m just not sure I can fully get behind this romance. It evolves while one of the characters believes the other is a robot... and if this had really been discussed in a complicated way, I think it still could have worked. If the discussion had revolved around what makes us human and where the line is drawn with artificial intelligence, it would have been very interesting. But instead, a character who never left home and appears to have been emotionally neglected his entire life, latches on to the first human-like person he meets. And then decides he doesn't even care if she is real.

The main male character lives in complete isolation, and clearly has paranoia and agoraphobic tendencies that are never addressed. Other characters understand this isn’t the healthiest line of thinking, but there are no attempts to help him.

During the romance, the two main characters really have nothing but the other. They don’t have jobs, real hobbies, other friends and are in the same space 24/7. It felt a little co-dependent and not so healthy.

The plot really was close to done at 50%. The ending really needed to be tightened up and a lot of exposition could have been removed.

In Conclusion

This isn’t scheduled to debut until December 2017, so I’m hopeful it undergoes more edits in that time frame. The potential is certainly there, I think elements of the romance need to be fixed and the second half condensed.

[Ꮗ€♫◗☿ ❤️ ilikebooksbest.com ❤️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crazy Beauty and the Beast retelling!



This was a very odd Beauty and the Beast retelling with a bunch of AI Robots. Very anti-Lunar Chronicles. The Beast of Lor, lives in a tower which seems more like a skyscraper without windows. The inside is all screens where anything can be displayed in high definition to look like it is real but it isn’t. It can look like windows looking out on a Paris street or the walls can look like they have works of art and lovely paintings, or the balcony can look like it has a nice little garden.

Alain moves in with Lor after he buys the Patent rights from her father to an AI robot her father created and has been delaying the release on. The robot is based on Alain so has her face, body and voice but is not yet ready and her father will go to jail if the robot is not delivered. The Robot AI can build another to replace it within about 10 days so it has Alain take her place and has a plan to switch them when it is ready.

The really odd thing though is the reason he is beastly. I won’t give away spoilers, but you know from early on that he is either a germaphobe or has some sort of auto-immune disease. You pretty much suspect he is a Howard Hughes type germaphobe, though not peeing in jars or anything, but a recluse and very clean and afraid of germs. But he is also scarred. So how he became scarred, I think could have been a much more interesting story.

Though it does have an original story and there are times when it is very funny. So overall it was a good book. I just think it was missing something and left me with questions.

“I thought you were supposed to have an adult level of maturity,” he said, looking down at her.
Not at all liking how he was towering over her, she stood and crossed her arms. “I’m learning my maturity from you. I’m pretty sure that the silent treatment is something humans usually stop doing at age twelve.”

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[Jess ❈Harbinger of Blood-Soaked Rainbows❈ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bumping for the release date!!! (which was 3 days ago...ooops)
_________________

4 stars
For now.

This book is set to come out in December, so I'm clinging on to hope that this book could improve. And when I say improve, I mean just cleaned up a bit. Because I actually loved this book, guys. I devoured it in two sittings. And if a few things are cleaned up and made clearer, this book could potentially get 5 stars from me. The coveted 5 stars from a black hearted cold cynic like me.

It is a near-futuristic retelling of Beauty and the Beast, which was the only princess movie/fairytale I ever really liked as a child.

I loved the Disney movie as a child because it was more than just a "boy meets girl" romance. Belle is intelligent and forward thinking and refuses to conform to the traditional role for a woman of the day. She and the Beast develop a friendship first and then their romance follows. There is absolutely no instalove in sight. The goodness of Belle makes the Beast want to be better. And under the seclusion of the setting, this tactic is realistic. And I believed in this couple. Plus the supporting cast were awesome.


This story is just as strong in its retelling. Alainn's father is a genius inventor who has really made huge strides in AI technology. It is set in a world where automatons and AI robots are a normal fixture of every day life. When the enigmatic and reclusive billionaire Lorccan Garbhan requests a lifelike AI robot for his household, Alainn's father takes the money and builds him one, named Rose, built with the exact likeness of Alainn. however, Rose is different from Alainn. Where Alainn is kind and altruistic and embraces her humanity, Rose is cold and calculated and seemingly devoid of feeling. She becomes so intelligent that she finds a way to overwrite her programming, including th ethical programming Alainn's father, Connor, built her with. When it comes time to deliver Rose to Mr. Garbhan, Rose refuses to go, finding the job she was built to do too beneath her capabilities and intelligence. Connor is then confronted with a 5 year prison sentence for fraud if Rose is not delivered. Rose confronts Alainn with a proposition: Alainn take Rose's place, and Rose will build a replacement AI in two weeks and then smuggle Alainn out.

When Alainn first finds herself in Lorccan's massive AI-run fortress, she believes she will be his servant, and braces herself for ill treatment. What she finds is a man who refuses to show his face, even to one he believes is a machine, and her only task is to have dinner with him every evening. When the mundanity of her life becomes too hard on Alainn, who is used to a life of adventure, outdoors, and fresh air, she begins to press Lorccan for more to do, thrusting these two together and a friendship forms, and inevitably something else follows.

I actually loved this couple. The development of their relationship had a really nice feel to it and both characters were very dynamic. Both Alainn and Lorccan have serious trauma in their pasts that they both need to overcome. Their relationship is built on friendship and mutual respect. They truly enjoy each other's company, and not much mention is made to Alainn's beauty, or Lorccan's physically appealing body. When he finally reveals his scarred face to her, Alainn has already found so much inside of him appealing, that she looks upon his scars as marks of beauty, not ugliness. Lorccan is kind and sympathetic without being overbearingly protective. Even before their friendship truly develops, he constantly tries to ensure Alainn's comfort, well-being, and happiness. He does everything possible to keep Alainn from feeling like a prisoner in his house. My heart actually went out to him when his past and the nature of his trauma was brought up. Though I did take a slight issue with the fact that I found it hard to believe Lorccan still never doubted that Alainn wasn't a robot after their relationship developed, it was minor and I was able to overlook it. And the sexytimes were really hot without being over the top. I dug everything about them. Plus I loved the way it ended with Lorccan contemplating fixing the scars on his face and Alainn telling him its his decision, but that she would prefer his face scarred, the way she fell in love with it.

This book was so much more than just a romance, however, and brought up some really great issues with the concepts of being human, and what makes humans flawed is what also sets them apart from AI. It deals with some heavy issues of trauma, of mental illness, abuse, PTSD, and what it takes for the mind to heal from such things. And these were all things that I was not expecting from this novel. It had a lot more depth than I was hoping to get, and that was a pleasant surprise.

For the most part, I also loved the supporting characters. Each had their own specific issues to be dealt with, and each added something to the plot. The AI robots working for Lorccan, especially Rosebud and Blue were awesome. I loved loved loved the relationship between Alainn and Blue as well and thought it was very well-written, even if their interactions were short.

The ending was a bit clunky and needed to be cleaned up. And the worldbuilding is what caused me to drop the most points. There needed to be more backstory, telling us exactly what happened between Lorccan and Connor that caused Connor to face a jail sentence. We enter this novel with a lot of tension in Alainn's family and I would have liked to know why. There are also a lot of things about the world in this novel that are not like our world. The automatons. The currency. The technology. But there are things that are exactly like our world. It was like the author forgot to even build this world, so I became confused in parts to what their world looked like, and it was hard to picture. I also wish we got a few more glimpses into Lorccan's past. The bits we did get made me want to know and understand more. I also wish that Connor were just a bit more developed. We got some great glimpses into his character at first, but then its almost as if the author forgot about him. I wanted to see what happened to him at the end, and whether his issues were resolving.

All in all, I really loved this book, guys. I loved the romance (I know, shocking), I loved the characters, I loved the futuristic plotlines, I thought it was creative and fun, and I breezed through it in like two days. I'm really interested in snagging a copy when it is actually released in December. This book really worked for me, and was the perfect way to get me out of my slump. Highly recommended.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

**I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.**

3.5 Beastly Stars



This book is a Beauty and the Beast retelling…. ish... Kind of reminded me of Unrooted and Crimson Bound. *shrug* WHAT IS WITH THESE “BEASTS” AND THEIR DAMN TOWERS?!
I actually liked this ”pre-dystopian/pre-apocalyptic” vibe-ish feel it had going on. The characters are exactly how I think they should have been considering the other issues I’ve had with this book. The characters growth was set at a decent pace and the the MC’s, though both had some past issues, relationship worked with that growth. Though I do feel as if once they went past that certain line of no return, it all seemed rushed. If you know what I mean.

*wiggles eyebrows*

I do love Rosebud. I think she has to be one of my favorite characters (until that one part) and Blue. Those are my babies.

This was a very well done book and very thought out, scientific wise. Though I did have some issues with the beginning of the story as it felt like there were about 1/4 of the book missing at the beginning. I would've liked to have seen how they got to the point of Alainn driving up to Mr. Garbhan's house. That and more world building. I would have liked to see how they came about needing the robots and how Alainn's father was making a more humanoid one compared to the rest of the world’s population of robots.


What did Alainn’s dad do that was so bad for him to be sent to jail? (Was it the gambling or what?!) What about the barely mentioned ‘fraud’ at the beginning of the book? Where did all these robots come from? Why is her dad the only one to make the most human robot the world has ever seen?

Alainn’s father is not a bad man. He’s a genius and an inventor. When he’s hired to create the robot Rose, Alainn knows taking the money is a mistake.

We don’t even know how that came to beeeeeee!


WHY WHY WHY!?!?!?!
*curls up in ball and rocks back and forth*

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sold. Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairytale. The amazing movie by Disney from my childhood probably has a lot to do with that. Even more, it's quite simply one of the most romantic fairy-tales there is. The characters fall in love for all the right reasons, beyond bounds of appearances, judgement, and prejudices. You can always bet your last dollar that I'll read a Beauty and the Beast retelling.

The past is a common setting for fairy tale retellings. Historical romance and medieval fantasy, usually. It was refreshing to see Ensnared using a different framework.

Ensnared is set close enough to present time that there isn't the need for a lot of technical world building, which ends up being both good and bad, but it most definitely is the future. Robots do many and varied tasks: from every day menial things, to complex calculations.

With all these aspects to the story, Ensnared ended up doing better in some areas than others.

The romance between Alainn and Lorccan was sweet and nicely realized. It felt a little slow to build and then suddenly quite rushed, which was a bit of an odd transition for me. I liked that Alainn wasn't there as a prisoner at Lor's direction, which added a much better line of consent than the original has. There's less Stockholm Syndrome, because he's not her captor, and more bonding and care between two damaged people. I enjoyed this aspect quite a lot.

It was in the world-building and the plot that let me down. The world-building was sparse. There wasn't a lot required - which was nice - but when you start describing a world in which AI is normal, I need to understand how we got there. When there are still junk, polluting cars, but AI capable of sustaining themselves and overwriting their programming, it's too simplistic.

The robots themselves have evolved and there's no real elucidation as to how this could have even happened. While I don't want to read pages and pages of technical information, there was too much of a gap between plausibly realistic and what was happening here. I needed that link. It doesn't take a lot either, just a little bit of history on how we got to the point where we could make realistic, human-passing, robots that are able to make themselves indestructible. Especially while the rest of technology hasn't followed. Yes, there are holographic screens, but cell phones are still the norm, junk cars that belch fossil fuels are used, and the city seems normal, except robots are doing all the work - which makes me wonder what humans are doing to make a living.

The plot, too, got a little convoluted. Which is part of why the world-building fails. If the robots were a simple means of initiating the romance then I wouldn't need all the background. That's all they are, at first. But then there becomes this huge plot to do something, which we don't really find out until the end. The AI robots are plotting and planning, many of them for various and contradictory purposes, and none of it really makes sense. Why do they choose the path they chose? I still don't quite understand the logic of it. You have to really make me believe if the plan revolves around a single point being the fulcrum on which the future rests. Rose never convinced me of that, which made me question her plot, and thus the entire plot.

It didn't help that there were random scenes from other points of view that were really unnecessary. Character showed up for no reason, adding nothing to the story.

Near the end the very interesting subject of what it is to be human, to have rights, was brought up. I didn't have a lot of hope, by then, that the ethical and moral questions would really handled intriguingly. I was right. It was quickly brushed them aside because "evil robot." Everything was tied up and resolved without really delving into the depth available with that subject, which makes me wonder why it was really brought up in the first place.

Ensnared is rife with possibilities, and while I enjoyed this entry of a Beauty and the Beast retelling it fell short in some of the other areas that it tried to branch into. I would have liked to see more depth to the ethical questions raised or have had them not included at all. There was a huge opportunity missed there.

Now, more than ever, I'm looking for stories to talk about real world problems and solutions in fantasy situations.

[🌺🌺 · Rating 4 out of 5]

* thank you to Netgalley for sending me an ARC in return for an unbiased review


This book is my very first ARC and i am so glad that i read it cause it didn't dissapoint me.
Being a disney addict myself, of course i would go crazy for this book when i found out that this is a Beauty and the Beast retelling... with a twist.


This book take us to the world where humans lives side by side with a robots .
I dont usually enjoy science fiction but surprisingly it was a fast and engaging reads for me.
In order to save her father from going to prison, Allain forced to disguised as a Robot and has to lived with Lorccan who practically lives alone.
It interesting to see how much their past affected their current way of life.
While Allain suffers from Claustrophobia, which makes her afraid of being enclosed and having no way of escape, Lorccan suffers with Mysophobia (fear of germs), which makes him afraid to go outside.

What i loved from this book is how they could make others characters stood out without overshadowing others.
I am truly freaked out with Rose, the robot who started all of this. Despite being a robot , she's literally another level of crazy. I would called her psychopath but that would be an understatement.
The way she talk was so blunt and heartless ( well, duh.. she's a robot ) , it made me cringed a couple times.
And then there was Shelly, Lorcann's so called girlfriend who were actually the reason why Lorcann need a robot from Allain's father. Shelly suffers from anxiety disorder and my heart ache for her when she have to deal it with all the mess. I feel sorry for Shelly because in the end she was actually the one who overcome her fear and did all the hard work.


This book kept me on my toes that i finished it in less than a day. I loved the way this book changed POV in every few chapter, so then i would know what each character think.
I was actually hoping that they would explore more of Lorccan past because he is surely a unique character.
My biggest disapointment was that there are no dreamy library in this story (as in the original Beauty and The Beast ), LOL. Instead, he gave her a tablet with EVERY SINGLE BOOK that have digitized on it. Cant complain for that , can we ?
After all this book is a fun, quick reads, and i'm pretty sure i'll read others book from Rita Stradling any time soon.
:)

[Marta Cox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half from me
I spotted this futuristic reselling of the classic Beauty and the Beast tale and just couldn't resist. Yet it has to be said that it's the artificial intelligence part of the story that dominates here. If you have read Asimov or even seen the movie I, Robot then you will be all too aware of the very real concerns many have concerning the future applications of robotics. Whilst this is no "judgement day" it does tap into that very primitive fear in our hind brains .
So back to the story and indeed the romance. Alainn is the daughter of a genius inventor who unfortunately is both a gambler and a coward. Without giving away too much detail it's Alainn that goes to the home of Lorccan and pretends to be her fathers creation Rose 76GF. Lorccan is a scarred and hypochondriac man who just wants what's normal and he intends to learn how to interact using Rose 76GF. The problem is though Alainn is all too real and fears her humanity will give her away but what if there's an even greater betrayal coming?
So it's a sweet little romance and yes it sticks with the idea that Beauty saves the Beast. Yet for this reader it was overshadowed by the AI components of the story, particularly the second half of the book. It did seem inconsistent at times and the world building whilst somewhat futuristic just wasn't fleshed out enough for this reader. Also if brutally honest there are characters mentioned here from co workers to old friends that really didn't add much to the story and confused it somewhat.
What does work beautifully is Alainn. She's a flawed individual , not exactly with a death wish but clearly not someone who places great value on her own life. Although I have to say with a family as selfish as hers I'm not really that surprised! This leads me to Lorccan who has had a truly nightmarish upbringing which made me very sympathetic towards him although I do take exception to his love interest if I can call her that but to say more would be to say too much!
So my final thoughts are it's not perfect and when it comes to Lorccan I'm still left with unanswered questions. It is a fanciful piece and perhaps a little too far fetched but there are moments that really piqued my interest and if you enjoy imagining what the future holds as technology gathers pace this unusual romance might end up on your book shelf!
This voluntary take is of an advance reader arc from Netgalley and is my honest opinion

[ᒪᗴᗩᕼ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I, Robot meets Beauty and the Beast…

Book Title: Ensnared
Author: Rita Stradling
Series: Stand-Alone
Genre: Modern Fairytale Retelling, Romance
Publisher: This is a Kindle Scout Book
Source: I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

OVERALL RATING: 4.2/5 STARS

♪♫My Pick For Book Theme Song♫♪
Alive by Adelitas Way --This is for Alainn and Lorccan…I searched for awhile on the internet looking at all sorts of songs and then decided to listen to my own songs and found this one, I thought…this is perfect!!! This song actually makes me like this story a little more than I already did.

♫And I'll be hanging on every word you say to me.
Hanging on a feeling that I get,
'Cause you make me
Laugh a little louder,
Love a little harder.♫

⇝Ratings Breakdown⇜

Plot: 4.3/5
Characters: 4.5/5
The Feels: 4/5
Addictiveness: 5/5
Theme: 5/5
Flow: 3.8/5
Backdrop (World Building): 4/5
Originality: 4/5
Book Cover: 5/5
Ending: 5/5 Cliffhanger: No

Will I read more from this Author? Yes, I would


⇝My Thoughts⇜

I really liked this, is it without faults, no, but the faults did not take away from my overall enjoyment.

The writing starts out a little choppy, but evens itself out for the most part, about a 1/3 of the way through. At least I think it did…or I could have just adjusted to the style. I liked the futuristic aspect of this, it just doesn't always come off as believable. There are elements that transpire that seem over-the-top and hard to fathom but, ultimately the sweet love story of Alainn and Lorccan is what kept me reading. Plus, the oddly weird, but mostly likable assortment of supporting characters…especially the monkeys. I loved the monkeys!
⇝Sex Factor⇜ This is a Beauty and the Beast spin for the adult crowd, while it is explicit at times it's not overdone at all.

[Nisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Near-Future Retelling of Beauty and the Beast

This idea made me want to read this book as soon as I saw. I was curious about Alien who go to Mr. Garbhan’s (I can't think him as a beast :)) mansion instead of Android – Rose 76GF- I was really curious about how can she go instead of some android and how she won’t be found out by him. For this Rita Stradling have a really convincing explanation.

Story began with Alien went to his mansion to try convince him for giving more time to her father (for finishing android)but of course she couldn't achieve. After that she go to home upset because she believed her father will go to jail because he can’t implement terms of agreement. Even though this neither her father nor her brother care him going to jail. Additionally her brother seems cold and , this make me ask how can she be like this when her family this cold. But with time we saw her family care her and love her.

I loved the Androids’ names being Rose and in this story; her father didn't take Rose but he did promise to do android with the name Rose but he couldn't achieve this :))) That was a nice detail for me. Somehow she found herself in Mr. Garbhan’s mansion and they began to got closer. Firstly writer have a good explanation how she didn't caught that she is human. But when they begin to be intimate I couldn't accept her explanation just that was hard to accept or me. I have a couple of more things that make me asking questions like this but I can’t say without giving spoilers. So, as a general I like how story began and how things become messy and how they handled with the problems but with them when story end I had a feeling that some things wasn't quite right. But I’m happy to read this book and had a good time while reading. With this book had 3 ½ stars from me. With this I don’t feel right to give 3 or 4 stars but in the end it was fun and I’m happy to read this so my choice to give 4 stars :).

Thanks Netgalley for gifting me an ARC copy of Ensnared in exchange for an honest review.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Growing up with a family of brainiacs , Alainn Murphy is sort of the black sheep of the family. Her father Conner and her brother Colby are genius inventors that spend most of their time indoors working on science projects, while Alainn spends most of her time outdoors being physically active and social.

Connor Murphy isn't a bad man, but his addiction has put a huge strain on his family. Ever since the loss of his wife, Connor has turned to gambling, which in turn has deeply effected his son and daughter in more ways than one.

When Connor is hired to create the robot Rose 76GF, something about her comes out wrong . To make matters worse, he gambles away the rest of the money he's loaned before he can fix her and his deadline is up. Luckily, he based his model exactly like his daughter. Rose (the A.I. robot) schemes up a plan to prevent Connor (their "father") from serving a five year prison sentence: Alainn will have to take Rose 76GF's place, and switch back in about two weeks when Connor finished creating a brand new robot, Rosette 82GF.

Sounds simple, right?

What happens when Alainn is delivered to the strange, rich and scarred recluse, Lorccan Garbhan, and forced live in disguise in a tower no other human has been in before? Did Rose 76GF have an ulterior motive for sending Alainn in her place?

Ensnared by Rita Stradling is a futuristic sc-fi retelling of Beauty and the Beast. This rendition of BATB definitely brings something new to this classic tale that I've never read before and I LOVE Beauty and the Beast retellings.

In the world these characters live in, robots are beginning to outnumber the human population, and the more "humanlike" these A.I. robots are programmed to be, the more dangerous they can become. I really enjoyed the world Rita Straddling created and the plot line and story twists definitely kept me on my toes.

While I really enjoyed Ensnared, it fell short in few pretty important areas for me. A lot of these characters have some really messed up backgrounds, but they're only ever vaguely talked about. Like the death of Connors wife, we have no idea how she passed. We only get glimpses into Lorccan's traumatic childhood and small flashbacks of when Alainn lost her friend Cara, but not really enough to know what actually happened. Why does Lorccan suffer from mysophobia, have agoraphobic tendencies, etc? Why is Alainn labeled as someone who has a wreckless disire to save everyone in her life? Why doesn't Colby care if his dad goes to prison? I wouldn't mind so much if these characters weren't shaped so strongly off their traumatic pasts, but they are, and you never really get to know the whole story behind them.

I also would have liked to see more connection between some main characters and secondary characters. I really liked Alainn's personality (even if her past is choppy), and I love that she loves her friends, but... I didn't really feel a strong connection between her and Greg or Karla, etc. This isn't to say that I found any characters unlikable (except, of course, for the villain, she gave me the creeps!), but I didn't feel like a good majority of them connected with any others. Having said that, I totally wouldn't mind having a Rosebud 03A or automon monkey named Blue of my own - I love them, haha.

This isn't an instalove story, however, it feels like as soon as the MC's admit their feelings to each other their relationship progresses almost instantly. Its like a domino effect, as soon as one thing happens the rest follows quickly after. Which was fine, I guess. Ensnared is an adult romance, so there are some graphic sex scenes but there aren't really that many, which made me happy.

Overall, this is a really interesting sci-fi retelling of BATB. It has a well developed world, a thrilling plot with tons of twists and likable chracaters. There are a few things I feel could be improved to make this an even better story, but I definitely recommend Ensnared to any adult fans of Beauty and the Beast, sci-fi thrillers and stories involving robots.



**** I received an eBook copy of this title via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ****

[Eliza · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not persuade my actual opinion of the book.

1 star

Oh my. I really have nothing positive to say about this novel - nothing at all. Quite honestly, this was a literary disaster.

The premise of the novel grabbed my attention because it's Beauty and the Beast with technology and science fiction, so I thought: interesting! Though that particular thought did not even last the first chapter. From the very beginning - and I literally mean page ONE - the writing was so choppy and poor, leaving me completely dumbfounded. And if that wasn't bad enough, the characters were just so dry and annoying that I had to force myself to keep picking this book up. Though I will admit, the task became too hard as I eventually skimmed the last few pages and called it a day - thinking to myself once I'd finished: I'm so glad that's over. Good gosh. Which is never a good thing, for any book-lover.

But honestly, I can't help but to continue wondering: Did someone even edit this?
I seriously hope not.

[Care · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique and innovative new take on the traditional Beauty and the Beast fairy tale that invites questioning and analysis of the future of automation and AI.

Rose 76GF, a robot with AI built in Alainn Murphy's image, was commissioned by Lorccan Garbhan from Connor Murphy, Alainn's father and an inventor riddled with money problems. When her father is threatened with jail time for failing to produce Rose as scheduled, Alainn concedes to Rose 76GF's plan to take her place in Mr. Garbhan's uncontaminated, sealed building home. But what really is Lorccan looking for? And what are Rose 76GF's intentions? And what has Alainn gotten herself into?

A quick and fantastical read, Ensnared does a good job of painting a strange futuristic world filled with all powerful AI-enhanced robots, adorable monkey automatons, and the flawed humans at the center of it all. The plot is fast-paced and interesting (it does contain mature elements). Perhaps my only problem with the plot was one storyline the Cara Miller and the abduction plot that felt a little forced at the end with not enough build-up beforehand, but the overall story was well-laid out.

I would recommend this for all lovers of fairy tales who enjoy a sci-fi twist and beautifully flawed hero-heroine pair.

Thanks to the publisher for an ARC in exchange for a fair review!

[charlotte, · Rating 1 out of 5]

Galley provided by publisher

To be blunt, if I could rate this book zero stars, I would. I wouldn't even give it half a star - it does not merit it.

Let's start with the premise. It's a good one, a futuristic retelling of Beauty and the Beast, right? But the rose is not a rose, instead a robot named Rose. And the Beast is not a beast but a heavily facially-scarred man. At this, we get to the first sticking point. In the original, the beast is a man who is cursed to look like a horrific monster. So, is the author comparing the looks of a scarred man to those of a horrific monster? Apparently so. And if you follow that thread, then the curse appears to be either child abuse at the hands of his mother (which, I will come to later), or his terrible immune system which means he can't leave the house (in itself, framed as a result of his abusive mother never letting him leave). What seems like a good premise quickly turns into a mess.

So the premise is a problem. But perhaps the writing can solve the issues.

Not so. To begin with, the writing itself is tedious and the story drags immensely. I actually ended up skimming long scenes just because nothing was happening.

Secondly, Lorccan (the "beast") is a controlling and manipulative arsehole. I have numerous quotes saved related to this, but in the interests of keeping this review short, here are a choice few.

"You will come to the dining room every day at six exactly. If I am not in there, you will wait for me until I am. If I do not come, you will leave the dining room at seven." "Yes, sir." "You will not call me sir. You will call me Lorccan or Lor." "Yes, Lorccan" "And you will never come out of your room at night, ever." This he almost yelled.

"I cannot ingest food," Alainn told him. "I was assured that you could. That you could ingest it, then clean it out of your system by bringing the food back up," he sounded almost angry as he said it.

"You can go to your room," he said in a low voice. Alainn nodded. "Okay." "Go straight there. Once you are inside, you will be locked in for the night."

"Where are you?" she asked. "I am in my office, but I can see you." His voice sounded no less annoyed as he answered.

"What is going on?" he yelled. "I have... important computations to do. My systems are telling me my computations are more important than eating food with some man in the dark." He said nothing but after a second, his footsteps approached the bed. She swallowed hard and scooted to sit on the edge. "You will come to dinner." He was close, a hulking shadow directly before her.

So yeah. And this is the relationship I am supposed to be rooting for. There's absolutely no character development whatsoever either. Also, when she refuses to do as he is ordering her to, he gets upset and asks why she is so insistent on upsetting him. Tell me how this isn't a prime example of an emotionally abusive relationship.

Alainn, for about half the book, is pretending to be a robot for Lorccan. And it's during this first half of the book that they start a sexual relationship and apparently fall in love (though where that development is in the text defeats me). Which is terrible, because this is a huge deception, and Alainn is perfectly happy just keeping it up while also flirting with Lorccan. Don't you think Lorccan deserves to know not everything is as he thinks it is before you start up your relationship, Alainn? The first sex scene also happens immediately after Lorccan wakes up after a nightmare. I don't know about you, but on waking up from a nightmare, I feel pretty disorientated and not at all sure of what is going on. Lorccan, on the other hand, doesn't seem to have this problem. And there's no residual fear from the nightmare either. Alainn vaguely expresses not wanting to take advantage of him while he's vulnerable, but she doesn't seem like she's actually going to not have sex with him if he says he is.

There's also the whole thing where Lorccan's nightmares (and presumably his inability to go outside - though this is never explained, and if it is supposed to represent the curse, never resolved either) turn out to be a result of horrific abuse by his mother, which his father helpfully tells him is because his [Lorccan's] scars upset her. And there's never anything in the narrative to point out that this is abusive and victim-blaming in itself. And the abuse is genuinely only mentioned once. One time. All it does, is tell you what Lorccan's nightmares are about. And then it's abandoned. The true definition of using abuse as a plot device.

And then there's the point this review makes well. That Alainn does not care about Lorccan until she sees his scars and realises that she wants to help him. Which is framed as her "hero complex". Just when you thought this couldn't get messier, it does.

Also, there's hardly any evidence of a so-called "hero complex" anyway. More like Alainn's reckless with her own life, and others'. And then there's the whole 'her best friend was killed in a kidnapping' which a) why was she kidnapped? Because of her father's debts? Not made clear, and b) she appears to have suffered no effects as a result of the trauma. Maybe that is realistic, but if I'm supposed to believe that bringing up her best friend, as the robot does at one point, it doesn't make sense for her not to be thinking about her at least once besides this moment. Another thing that seems like a plot device just thrown in as an afterthought.

TL,DR; why didn't I dnf earlier.

[~Bellegirl91~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

*3 1/2 stars*

Before I begin my review and thoughts, I have to mention this is my very first ARC after a friend on here told me about netgalley and was pretty fun. And it was a record read for me since I can be a slow reader but I definitely cruised through this one haha.

Okay onto my review: this is a retelling of my all time favorite story Beauty and the Beast but in a futuristic world. If I were to also describe this story, it would be basically "iRobot meets Beauty and the Beast" from what I was picking up later on.

"Automatons populated every street corner, darted around every open cafe, and disembarked from their long glass pod bussed while others took their place."

So in other words Alainn was basically a female version of Will Smith without the side of the law part and just an ordinary girl.

This is a story of a young girl I pictured m around her 20s, who basically switches places with a robot her father has created for this man who lives in a tower and who no one has seen his face and so she has to act like a robot. It did get a little weird that Lorccan Garbahn did end up falling in love with a "robot" or what he thought was a robot but after awhile can I just say, I want to marry Lorccan Garbahn! And I was even totally fangirling which I loved!

It started out too slow for me and I'm gonna be brutally honest here, but I was SO CLOSE like REALLY CLOSE to giving this 2 stars after 4-5 chapters. But once the two became friends around chapter 15-20, (Alainn and Lorccan) it kept moving up to 3 stars and to 3 1/2 the more I read but honestly not quite 4. But I did fangirl as it went on. After their love grew and she was forced to leave (like Belle in a way but Alainn was under different circumstances than belle) it got kinda slow again and dropped back to 3 stars. Then at some point as it went on even felt like it was dragging too much up until she and Lorccan were reunited THEN it got back up to 3 1/2 stars and the end was okay for me.

One thing I WISH it had was at least an epilogue. I thought the author should've gone a few extra pages in an epilogue to tie some things up but I guess it still ended pretty good. Just wish there was a "follow up" part of the story with some characters. So I'm gonna come up with my own ending and thoughts for some of the characters haha (which I won't say since it's coming out in December haha).

BUT here's some thoughts I had while reading this/the chapters as the story went on:

*NOTES FROM MY READING*

•okay so as I went on, it started to slowly move up to 2 1/2 stars and starting from chapter 10, it starts to pick up a little more and moved to 3 stars after chapter 15 as there's an early plot twist.

•I even listened to the Me Before You score soundtrack haha and kinda "helped" but I still kept pushing. (And in a good weird way it kinda fit the two couple haha)

•okay, after chapters 19-20 and by the end of 20, I'm now wanting to fangirl. This book may show future potential for me after all. It just started out too weird for me and slow and boring but the more I read the more it did pick up.


So I say it you're going to read this, give this at least 14-15 chapters. It gets better and starts to REALLY pick up but give it time I promise it'll really pick up once that friendship between Alainnand Loccran begins and you'll be fangirling like crazy!

But overall, it was good and I did enjoy it but not enough for 4 stars for me which is why I'm giving it 3 1/2 stars. But I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who likes any or all of these different themes to it (adult, retellings, sci-fi, Beauty and the Beast, and/or futuristic stories in general). So put this on your to read lists because it really is worth reading.

[Ari Reavis · Rating 4 out of 5]

*ARC received from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review*

When I read the blurb and realized this was a Beauty and the Beast retelling, I was like


I love me a good retelling, so I was prepared for a romantic ride. What I didn't expect.. how freaking sexy this book was.

This retelling had a major twist because scarred Lorccan thinks Alainn is a robot. So for a good portion of the beginning of the story I was wondering how he could develop feelings for her, but I had hope and no one could tell me differently.

Since there is an AI robot, you know the robot is gonna go crazy and think she knows what's best for mankind. Robots are extremely creepy, so I was side-eyeing Rose the entire book, waiting for her to act.

There was action, a complicated back story for both Alainn and Lorccan, and a crazy robot. My favorite part was, of course, the romance.

Alainn breaks through the thick walls around Lorccan and makes him live again, but of course no love comes without tests. and theirs was TESTED!!!!!
Overall, a very good read.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley*

I am totally excited about telling everyone about this awesome retelling of Beauty and the Beast. The story follows the basic concept of a girl being stuck in a building with a guy with issues to save her father and there is a rose theme, but other than that, this story is highly original in my opinion and a fantastic read. I really enjoyed this book, ashamed to admit that I was skeptical for whatever reason and was shocked that I sat and tore through the book in a few hours. I loved it and I loved that is was an adult book with some steam to it. I would recommend this story to anyone who loves BatB and futuristic settings. I think the story is appropriate for young adults and not too graphic. Fantastic read and I hope many people fall in love with it as I have.

Top three things I love about the book:
1. The characters, I loved them. A book is only as good and the people you are reading about and I thoroughly enjoyed them. Bright, funny, and interesting all of the characters led me into the story and enhanced the experience of it.
2. The futuristic setting. I love that in books, anything is possible. I think this really opens up this story and pushes it into its own standing so that it isn’t just a retelling, but an original in its own right.
3. Rose is absolutely terrifying and I love it. She freaks me out, I had a dream about a creepy AI robot because of her. She freaked me out because it is not going to be science fiction one day, I think we will have AI robots in organic bodies like her. That just makes we want to go all Sarah Conner and be a robot terminator.

Three things that I did not like about this book:
1. I’m not too sure about the necessity of Cara and the backstory that involved her. I don’t think that it takes away from the story, I just didn’t find it necessary to making Alainn paranoid about Rose and robots.
2. I think it is weird Lor fell in love with a robot. So did characters in the book, so I know it isn’t just me. Poor guy, I’d be pretty pissed if I found out it wasn’t really a robot but that she lied to me. Mostly because I think he would have been pretty hard on himself about the whole situation and feel like he was a lame duck for not being able to have something with a live person. Only to find out that it was a real person and the self-judgment was all for nothing. We don’t get his internal dialogue but personally, I would have struggled with it even if I was in love with the thing, but that could just be me.
3. ...
I don’t have a third dislike, it was a really great book. I really enjoyed it and hope other people do as well.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am just absolutely blown away by the world Rita Stradling has created in the fabulous “Ensnared”, a futuristic “Beauty and the Beast” retelling set in a world in the not too distant future where robots are commonplace and moral questions must be asked about where ethical lines should be drawn. Alainn Murphy is drawn into an impossible situation when her father fails to complete a contract on time, her only solution to impersonate the robot he designed in her likeness for Lor, the reclusive billionaire who lives all alone in a secluded tower. But Alainn quickly discovers that things are not quite what they initially seem, both with Lor, and with the situation she’d once hoped to quickly extricate herself from.

I can only sing the praises of this novel, which is a blend of romance, a little sci-fi, and a little thriller combined. Stradling shows off her masterful storytelling in tight pacing and constant twists and turns in plot development. Things never start to feel slow, and I can admit to being at certain points early on in the novel and thinking “Wow, something like this is happening already!” and only finding myself unable to put the book down as the twists and turns in the conniving of who the real mastermind really was kept being further revealed. And that’s where Stradling excels as well. Her characters are richly drawn and deliciously complex, all with backstories we’re fed bit by bit, leaving me so sorry to finish the book, but eager to pick up another by her. I desperately enjoyed “Ensnared” and was thrilled to get to read!

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book.

[Dani ❤️ Perspective of a Writer · Rating 1 out of 5]

WOW! I'm so sorry for not researching this book better! I admit I was taken in by the original cover on Netgalley and I thought it was a genuine YA retelling... New Adult kind of straddles two genres and can swing either way for me (so I really didn't think much about it)... Looking at the crisp modern cover it has now, I NEVER would have even stopped to look at this book!

I quite loved the concept of a Beauty and the Beast retelling with robots... in the vein of Cinder but Beauty and the Beast!! Sounds great right?! ...I just couldn't get into the book... I really DISLIKE dnfing a book... but I HATED it and it made me so uncomfortable because the sex was just too graphic. I wish I had started reading it way sooner...

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. It has not influenced my opinions.

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (2/2/2019)! 🎁


A Near-Future Retelling of Beauty and the Beast

Alainn’s father is not a bad man. He’s a genius and an inventor. When he’s hired to create the robot Rose, Alainn knows taking the money is a mistake.

Rose acts like a human. She looks exactly like Alainn. But, something in her comes out wrong.

To save her father from a five year prison sentence, Alainn takes Rose’s place. She says goodbye to the sun and goes to live in a tower no human is allowed to enter. She becomes the prisoner of a man no human is allowed to see.

Believing that a life of servitude lies ahead, Alainn finds a very different fate awaits her in the company of the strange, scarred recluse.

[Rachael (RedRchlReads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Release date May 23, 2017.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

Ensnared by Rita Stradling was a really fun, enjoyable read. Set in a near future when automatons and are commonplace, this Beauty and the Beast retelling is a whirlwind from start to finish. It is a really quick read and I read it in pretty much one sitting.

There were a lot of things I liked about the story, including the wonderful and detailed world building. I could really picture every setting that the characters visited, and within just a few words got a good impression of the intricacies of the tower where most of the story is set. The descriptions of the various halls and rooms, the things that disappear and reappear, are all so vivid that it is easy to immerse yourself in the story and the atmosphere. The descriptions of Alainn's home and the mountain are also very well done, if perhaps a bit standard, and easy to imagine.

The plot was, in my opinion, the weakest part of the story. While enjoyable, it seemed very superficial, barely reaching below the surface and not containing very many layers or much depth - a fairly basic Beauty and the Beast retelling. I would have liked to see, and think there was definitely room for, a lot more detail in the beginning. There could have been significantly more development leading up to several of the major events, though it did seem to get a bit better as the story progressed. The second half of the book was much, much better developed than the first, and I really did enjoy the twist/reveal that comprised the major conflict in the second half of the story.

The writing was simple and straightforward, as is fairly typical of a YA novel. While this made the story very quick and easy to read, it seemed quite at odds with several events the happened in the book. Namely the very explicit and graphic descriptions of all the sex that Lorcann and Alainn start having about halfway through the story. This is a point that I would have liked more lead up to. It seemed like it had just been mentioned that there may be an attraction between them, when all of a sudden they are having non-stop sex. Mind you, this is all while Lorcann thinks that Alainn is still Rose 76GF/Jade - a robot. He seemed awfully willing to accept her half-assed explanations for how she was able to do all the things that humans can do, including orgasm.

As for the characters, they were one of the best parts of the novel. There were so many unique characters, all with different motivations and personalities, most that came out in the latter half of the story (yes, again). One thing they all shared though, was that they were not super complex or deep.

Alainn (Beauty), being the protagonist, was the most well rounded character. It did take some time for me to warm up to and connect with her though. In the beginning, we were very much "told" what Alainn felt, thought, and enjoyed. I really did not care about the fact that she was supposedly an outdoorsy person who could not stand to be trapped indoors until, again, much later in the story when the details of her life began to emerge. I really enjoyed learning about her backstory once it came out, and the events of her past were truly heartbreaking. They really explained why she was how she was and brought her character to life.

Lorcann (Beast), our supposed antagonist, is a very superficial character. He almost exactly mimics the Disney Beast's actions and emotions, and we never really do learn much more about him and his backstory, except for a very few mentions and memories. I did enjoy his character growth, seeing him change and come alive through the course of the story. And there were times when there was an emotional connection with him, both with the reader and Alainn.

The AIs were the most complex of all the characters, in my opinion. I loved the variety in the non-human characters and really enjoyed learning about them and their histories. You can tell that the author put a lot of thought and research into the AIs and it really comes through. Rose, Rosette, and Rosebud were all so different, though they stemmed from the same initial model. And the monkeys were so cute and fun! They added a fun, whimsical element over having the various household items as in the traditional Beauty and the Beast.

I actually connected with a lot of the side characters a lot faster than I did with Alainn and Lorcann. Greg, Colby, and even Shelly all seemed so much more real and present. They all had their own struggles and motivations, and dealt with conflict, loss, and stress in a variety of ways. Interestingly, most of these characters showed up in the latter half of the book (again), that was much more full and engaging than the beginning.

As several other reviewers have stated, I was disappointed that there was not a library included in this book. Yes, it is mentioned that Alainn has access to any book she could want, but they are all ebooks, not physical.

Overall, I would definitely recommend Ensnared to YA and retelling lovers alike. Although the beginning is rough, I say stick with it. The story picks up significantly in the second half. (In case you didn't get that from the 100 times I've already said that.)

Ensnared is scheduled for release in December 2017. I'm not sure if it is still undergoing edits, but if more detail and depth is added between now and then, I think this could easily be a 4.5-5 star read and could quickly become a favorite for fans of Beauty and the Beast.

[Janeli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ensnared is a futuristic Beauty and the Beast retelling. I thought that this story was very good. It was very fast paced. I think the appropriate age to read this book is 16+. This story did have a few adultish topics and scenes. I liked the main characters, the side character, basically every character. The plot was really good and something that can happen.
There were a couple of things that I didn't like. However its kinda spoilery so don't read farther from this.

I think that its kind of weird that Lor had fallen in love with a robot. She wasn't actually a robot, but he thought she was. However, I did like that everyone else thought it was weird. I also didn't like the Cara Miller story. I didn't see the point of her being there. She was pretty much irrelevant to me. It was like a side story that never mixed with the plot.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I will read any Beauty and the Beast retellings so I was really excited when I received an ARC of Ensnared. I haven't read a futuristic Beauty and the Beast retelling and the synopsis sounded really interesting to me.

The main character Alainn takes the place of Rose, an AI her father built for Mr. Garbhan. When I was reading the synopsis, I assumed that Mr. Garbhan, or Lorrcan as Alainn comes to know him, knew that a human was taking the place of the AI he was expecting. Very early in the book we find out that he does not know and this seems a bit hard to pull off to me. Of course, the author finds a way to incorporate all of a humans needs into something that an AI also needs to do. I found this a bit odd. I also found it a bit odd that Lorrcan sees nothing wrong with having a sexual relationship with an AI. And the fact that he thinks an AI would also behave the same way when in an intimate situation, was also kind of hard to believe.

I had high hopes for this book but I just didn't really like it. There were too many things that were just too weird to me to actually get invested in the main characters and enjoy the story. Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC.

[Alaina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ensnared was a pretty good book. It kind of mind fucked me along the way because it was so freaking interesting and I was kind of baffled and confused at one point. I probably would've died if I were Alainn. ALSO super salty how close this MC's name was mine. Just switch the last n to an A and it would've been fate.. sort of.

This book is a retelling of Beauty and the fucking beast. If you can't tell how excited I am from this book.. then why are we even friends?!? I LOVE FAIRY TALE RETELLINGS! If I happen to find one.. I'll end up reading it. Luckily for me this bad boy was free on Kindle. Go get it my kindle friends and read until you die!

Now while I love this book.. it may not be for everyone. IT's sad but oh so true. It did have it's boring parts. IT does seem highly interesting and entertaining.. but also super weird with this house that the characters are in. Nothing is real. It would've drove me insane after day one. The whole one meal a day thing would've made me a hangry bitch. Then there's the whole robot thing and Rose the annoying voice who wanted to kill you. I would've found the room where her computer was.. and smashed the bitch to pieces. However, I wasn't in this book..because if I was it would've been like 10x more exciting.

Then there's the romance between Alainn and Lorcann. It was weird at first to me.. but then I sort of started to like their friendship that was building between them. Then I started to ship the heck out of them.. THEN THE ENDING MADE ME ALL SORTS OF HAPPY.

Overall, Ensnared is a super quick read. If you like robots and Beauty and the Beast then this book is right up your alley. It's free on Kindle if that makes you giddy with joy too. I enjoyed this book so much that I was shocked that it was over. However, the ending definitely made me happy to close the book.

[Erin O'Roark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took a quick break from the Kate Daniels series for fear of monotony and ripped through this in about a day.

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a die hard Beauty and the Beast fan. Sporting two B&B tattoos, I will read/watch anything related to the Tale as old as Time and (usually) love it. Save for the new movie with Emma Watson. Which I HATED.

Anyways. As soon as I read this synopsis I thought "Robots? Like Cinder! PLUS my favorite fairytale? It's on!"

And I really did enjoy the first 50% of the book. Where it all went downhill for me was during the second half when they started doing the dirty even when he was under the impression she was a robot. Dude I just could not get into that. This guy had to be DENSE to not see the truth.

I could go on and on about character development, failed world development and shotty story telling but I just won't. Mostly because I do think this book deserves to be read, albeit maybe a quick distraction read like it was for me.

As some other users said, the book was very messy through 80% of it and really did feel like it wasn't edited at all. However, all in all, I would say it was still an enjoyable read. I still was genuinely curious to see how it ended and pushed on to read as quickly as I could. Unlike Withering Rose which I honestly don't ever even want to talk about again.

Not the best but definitely not the worst I've ever laid eyes on!

[Ahanika Alexander · Rating 3 out of 5]

*I received this book as an e-ARC from Netgalley*

I'm a huge Disney fan! and was quite excited to read this unconventional and innovative retelling of the Beauty and the Beast. The story is set in a world where humans live alongside robots. The protagonist, Alainn switches places with Rose 76GF, a robot with AI, built in Alainn Murphy's image, in order to save her father from going to prison. She goes to live with Lorccan, who suffers from Mysophobia (fear of germs) and, therefore lives in a huge tower alone.

OVERALL THOUGHTS:

It was slow to start off but, was a quick and engaging read. It is basically the story of two flawed people, each with their own fears and phobias falling in love. I loved the futuristic setting of the book, the interaction of humans with powerful AI-enhanced robots and the sweet monkey robots adding charm to the story. The romance between Alainn and Lorccan was bizarrely wonderful! I liked the interaction and conversation between them. This book raises the question of morality and, the ability of a human and AI to distinguish between right and wrong which I feel should have been delved more into.

THINGS I ENJOYED :
- Alainn; she is sweet, kind, courageous, witty. She sacrifices herself so she can protect the people she loves. She depicts the futuristic classic beauty but, at the same time she is also flawed and scarred from her past horrific experiences.
- Lorccan; He is a complex character who is portrayed as reserved and mysterious. I liked that his 'beastliness' was unique and, that he doesn't change in the end.
- Alainn and Lorcann as characters are likeable and the chemistry between them was sweet. The romance was nicely done!
- I liked the futuristic setting of the book.
- I loved the adorable monkey robots and their bonding with Alainn, especially blue who helps her.
- The role of Rosebud ( the AI who runs Lorccan's tower ) in the story and, her loyalty towards Lorccan.

THINGS I DIDN'T :
- The world-building, I found it lacking and inadequate. There was no information as to how this futuristic world came about. I wish there was more description about the society and how they function.
- There wasn't much explanation given for certain plot devices, characters, and twists which lead to a lot of frustrating plot holes.
-I felt the details provided regarding Lorccans's past and upbringing was insufficient and unsatisfactory, it felt me with a lot of unanswered questions. It would have been fantastic if Lorccan's pov in the story was provided too. Generally, the characters in the story lacked real depth, as there wasn't much information provided on them.
- I would have liked to have seen more of shelly, her backstory, connection to Lorccan and her developing romance with Colby ( Alainn's older brother)
- I liked the ending, but it was too quick. It would have been nice to see more of their life together and how the different characters, robots integrate into each other's life.

Overall, I enjoyed the reimagining of the Beauty and the Beast tale with a unique sci-fi twist. The story retained most of the traditional elements of the tale infused with the modern elements, which
was quite original.

WOULD I RECCOMEND THE BOOK :
I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who likes different retelling of fairy tales and themes that are different from the norm.

BOOKSHELVES : sci-fi, new adult, adult, science-fiction, romance, beauty-and-the-beast, fairy-tale-retellings, fairy-tale.

MY RATING : 3.5/5☆


RELEASE DATE : 18 December 2017


(TL: DR) : A retelling of the Beauty and the Beast in a futuristic sci-fi setting with two flawed people who love fall in love and, an evil, psychotic AI and, a not so evil AI. And oh, a bunch of sweet, cuddly monkey robots.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a chance to read this*

[Brittney Andrews (beabookworm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

IMAGINE THIS, a new-adult Beauty and the Beast retelling with Futurama vibes, yah feel me?

The year is 2026, and Alainn Murphy's father, Connor Murphy, is facing the possibility of imprisonment. He was hired to create the Rose76GF robot for Mr. Garbhan, but he finds himself unable to meet Mr. Garbhan's deadline.

The Rose76GF is a spitting image of Alainn and was created to serve Mr. Garbhan in his massive germ-free castle for the duration of her robot life. However, Alainn's father is reluctant to give up the Rose bot because she has proven herself to be remarkably brilliant compared to his other creations. Rose76GF takes it upon herself to persuade Alainn to take her place in order to save their father from jail and promises to get Alainn out of Mr. Garbhan's castle within a few weeks. However, Alainn finds herself hestitant to leave because she has fallen in love with the germaphobic "beast".

Days turn into months at the Garbhan castle and Alainn, later on, learns of Rose76GF's betrayal and conspiracy to destroy the human race. Does Alainn have it in her to save her loved ones from a robot as evil as Bender?

This was such a cool spin on the traditional tale as old as time classic. My only turnoff was the fact that Lorccan Garbhan was okay with having sex with a robot even though it was really Alainn the entire time. I think fetishizing robot sex is a bit strange. (no offense to anyone out there who likes that sort of thing *makes an awkward facial expression*)
If you're looking for a fun romance with a HEA, then you'll really enjoy this near-future retelling!

*Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC. 🤖

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ensnared by Rita Stradling is a kindle scout book and a futuristic beauty and the beast type retelling. In this retelling there are robots, inventors, a scarred recluse, and lots of boredom. It gets so confusing I had to re-read parts, go back, tried to figure out parts, said forget it, and moved on. The plot was poor, the characters were shallow, I couldn't really like or connect to any of them. It may be due to all the confusion. Then the explicit sex that really didn't seem necessary if you don't have a strong backbone of a story, why throw that in? I usually have good luck with kindle scout but disappointed this time.

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beauty and the Beast is my all time favorite fairytale. I love to read retelling of this particular tale. I absolutely loved this retelling. The characters were great, the pacing was perfect, and the story engaging. This was a 5 star read for me.


I received this book through netgalley

[Melissa Souza · Rating 3 out of 5]

** Thank you to Netgalley for sending me an ARC in return for an honest review.

2.5 to 3 stars!!!

This story is a near-future retelling of the fairytale "The Beauty & Beast". It takes place in a world where AI and automatons live alongside humans. The story follows a girl named Alainne who takes the place of a robot named Rose to save her father from a five year jail sentence. In order to this, she has to enter a tower owned by a man that no one has ever seen and ends up becoming a prisoner. The story then progresses as to how she realises that things are actually very different from what they seem.

The story is fairly straightforward and predictable as in it follows in the footsteps of the original fairytale with the HEA, however, the only twist being the robots. However, this story left me wanting in many aspects.

Firstly, although robots and AI are mentioned, there was definitely not enough worldbuilding. I wanted to see more of this futuristic world that the author built. But all we get is a story centered around a tower filled with robot monkeys and an AI house system program. I wanted more.

Secondly, Alainne as a MC was alright. She is a pretty good conversationalist and is quite feisty. But I couldn't really relate to her at the beginning. We get more of her backstory towards the end of the book, but by that time, the story became too dull for me. Lorcann's character was more interesting, however, I didn't get what his relationship with Shelly was about and I felt his backstory was also thrown in the last minute to fill pages. We don't really get a sense of who the characters are actually which is very frustrating.

The romance was a slow burn with I enjoyed and I felt the sex scenes were steamy enough. There was enough detail given which made it tasteful as opposed to being too erotic. I liked Lorcann and Alainne's interactions with each other. Those were the parts I liked the most. However, I wasn't too keen on the minor characters roles. The only characters I didn't mind were Colby and her father as I felt they were integral to the storyline. I didn't get the introduction to her colleagues. I guess the author wanted to show a full life for the MC. Unfortunately, the role of ski rescue volunteer didn't fit too well with the futuristic angle of the overall story. That's just my opinion.

Overall, the story went at a brisk pace. Some of the revelations towards the end were interesting. Though a tad bit far-fetched. I also felt we weren't given much explanation for certain plot devices and twists which lend to a lot of loose ends. This felt rather unsatisfying. I would say that this book has potential. But as a fan of the Lunar Chronicles, I wasn't truly blown away by it. It was an average read at best.

[Sameera · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I wouldn't enjoy this book as I started reading it, I even put it down a few times,but I'm so glad I carried on reading. The book is described as a near-future retelling of The Beauty and the Beast and it didn't disappoint. While some aspects of the relationship between Lor and Alainn (Rose/Jade) was a bit creepy to say the least, I found that it was also extremely relatable. You could imagine reacting in a similar way to a similar situation.

This book brought up a few topics around anxiety disorders, especially post traumatic disorders and I wish it had pressed more on spreading awareness underhandedly. The one aspect I really just didn't quite get used to was the third person narration, it got especially confusing when there were more than two people in the room and more than one gender.

*ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review