Beastly (Beastly, #1) in And So It Begins Reading Challenge

Jul 21, 2012 Carrie Ardoin rated it really liked it

Shelves: i-own-this, posted-on-blog, magic, retelling

Kyle Kingsbury is the crown prince of his high school--and he knows it. He is unnecessarily cruel and arrogant. But one night he crosses the wrong girl. She turns out to be a witch who curses him to live as a beast. He can only break the curse by finding his true love.

As Kyle passes several months in the dreary, castle-like home where his father has hidden him, he loneliness becomes overwhelming. He is sure his curse will never be broken--until chance brings him Lindy, a girl he never would have ...more

Like · see review

Jun 09, 2010 Nicole rated it it was amazing

Cheesy? Yes. But did I love it? Hell yes!

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie and I've been looking for re-tellings of the story. I've read both of Robin McKinley's versions, but I was reluctant to pick this one up. I'm not sure why. When I heard there was a movie coming out about it I thought I should read it, but I didn't pick it up until yesterday. But it in truth it was an easy read. And I have to say I liked this one a lot better than Flinn's A Kiss in Time. This one seemed more ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Nov 08, 2012 Darlene rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, bought, 2013-dusty-bookshelf-challenge

I love fairytale retellings, and Alex Flinn’s books have been on my TBR list for a long time! I was a little bit worried when I started the book because I just hated the main character, Kyle Kingsbury. What a jerk! I soon learned that he is supposed to come across that way, and his attitude is the reason why he’s been cursed.

Kyle is a 16 year-old teenage boy that every girl swoons over: He’s rich and good-looking. Unfortunately, he feels that this gives him the right to act like a Class A jerk.
I love fairytale retellings, and Alex Flinn’s books have been on my TBR list for a long time! I was a little bit worried when I started the book because I just hated the main character, Kyle Kingsbury. What a jerk! I soon learned that he is supposed to come across that way, and his attitude is the reason why he’s been cursed.

Kyle is a 16 year-old teenage boy that every girl swoons over: He’s rich and good-looking. Unfortunately, he feels that this gives him the right to act like a Class A jerk. The sad news is that he usually gets away with it. This time, however, Kyle has picked the wrong girl to mess with: A goth girl named Kendra Hilferty. He acts as though he likes her and invites her to the dance, telling her that he will buy the tickets and meet her there. All the while, his intention is to take the prettiest snob in the school, Sloane Hagen. News spreads like wildfire all over the school that Kyle is taking Kendra to the dance, and he lets Sloane in on his secret plan.

At the dance, Kendra is waiting for Kyle in the lobby. He sees her, and he kisses Sloane in front of her. Kyle and Sloane laugh at Kendra’s expense, humiliating her. Kendra doesn’t seem shocked, however. That night, Kendra appears in Kyle’s bedroom and morphs into a gorgeous girl. She puts a curse on Kyle, telling him that he will become as ugly on the outside as he is in the inside and that he has two years to break the curse or remain a beast forever. He must fall in love, his beloved must fall in love with him, and their kiss will break the curse.

Kyle’s father, a news anchorman, is too consumed with own looks (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!) to care much about what has happened to Kyle. After taking Kyle to the obligatory meetings with specialists to see if plastic surgery or other treatments can revert him back to the way he looked before, he realizes that any attempt will fail and ultimately dumps him off with a maid and a blind tutor in a five-story brownstone. Talk about cold-hearted!

Wow, I loved this Beauty and the Beast retelling! I really hated Kyle in the beginning and was glad to see his comeuppance. As time went on and his personality began to change, I really started to feel sad for him. This just shows how brilliant Flinn is, when she can make someone first loathe and then love the protagonist! The unconventional romance built slowly with first a foundation of trust and friendship.

This book has turned me into a huge Flinn fan, and I will definitely be reading more of her books! I can’t wait to start on the next book in the series, Beastly: Lindy’s Diary, which was released in 2012. ...more

Like · see review