Ratings62
Average rating3.2
I super love this book! Since, I've watched the movie, I've been too in-love with its story! It's a modern day story of Beauty and The Beast. And it gives you the lesson that you shouldn't judge a person by his/her looks. I know this lesson is super old and pretty much everyone may know it, but let's face it, not everyone believes in this, they still hate or don't like a person because they're ugly, poor and everything. And once you've read this book, you'll realize everything. Maybe most people knows the story of Beauty and the Beast and maybe watched it too, but believe me, you'll fall in-love with the story all over again. And HIGHLY RECOMMEND everyone to read it and watch the movie too!! :))
I didn't think I would like this but I was pleasantly surprised. It's a fun modern retelling of beauty and the beast.
I would've like this book if the characters aren't so young. I've watched the movie. Somehow the movie makes more sense than the book (even though Vanessa Hudgens plays Lindy). I like Kyle Kingsbury's character in the book more than the movie, though. A lot more dimension to his character in the book.
I fell asleep at some part of the book. I feel like puking at some of the dialogues. It's a young adult fiction, so I thought it should be more... I don't know... more fun, less gag?
But having said all that, I love Kendra the witch's character, both in the movie and the book. She sure kicks ass.
Beauty and The Beast is one of my favourite fairy tales and so when I heard of this modren retelling I was very keen on reading it and you know what I really enjoyed it. It was a nice,short and cute retelling of this timeless classic and I think Alex Finn does an excellent job of trying to moderenize this classic fairytale.
so a few weeks ago I watched the movie version of this book and that in turn made me curious about the book. I actually adored this book. Given that it had it's total cheesy moments, it was still a lovely little, quick read. There are some changes with characters, but that's to be expected when dealing with a “novel-to-film” work. There were moments in this story when I just wanted to snuggle the characters with love. My only thing with this book (and it's not major or anything) is the “chat room” experience. I've seen some reviews saying that they don't like it, or that it's distracting and whatnot, but I actually became more curious as to the whereabouts of those characters once the story was over. I'm still trying to find out who the bear was though. And what happened to the mermaid (Ariel)? Is her story based on the original book where she turns to foam (I know it's mentioned, but did it HAPPEN?) or was she able to swoon her prince in the last minute and have happily ever after (like in the animated film - though I seriously doubt it). Cute, modern day twist on one of my favorite Disney movies. I will be continuing the story.
Rereading this I feel like it's more of a 3.5. I wish there were more details about them getting to know each other.
It's a good thing this was short. And that those annoying web chats ended. They didn't add anything to the story other than make me think the author is considering retelling more fairy tales.
I usually find fairy tale retells interesting. And this one was being told from the opposite point of view (the Beast instead of Belle) Add in the ya genre and I thought it had possibility. Unfortunately that possibility never evolved into anything but sugary sweetness and cheese. I found the author's style, especially the dialogue to be juvenile. The characters were extremely stereotypical - the pretty, popular kids were all vapid and shallow and more concerned with the next party than anything else while the poor/scholarship kids were smart and homely looking all while being naive. And that's pretty much where the character development stopped, even for the main characters. I did like Will - he made Kyle/Adrian slightly more tolerable. Probably because in being more adult and less stilted, Kyle also became that way.
The end was what finally did me in. Everything in a nice neat bow. From Kyle instantly becoming human again without any pain or confusion unlike the initial transformation and Lindy didn't see a thing to Will getting his sight back and a spiffy new job to Kendra being all accepted back in her family that the reader didn't even know existed (terrible plot point) to Kyle and Lindy going back to Tuttle (why? is it the only school in NYC now?)
It's been a long time since I read Robin McKinley's Beauty (it's now on my re-read list), but from what I remember, I'd most definitely recommend it over Beastly.
Short review: This is an ok young adult retelling of the Beauty and the Beast. But it feels a bit more like a retelling of the Disney story than the original. The book got better as it went on and the characters developed a bit more. But overall it felt a bit two dimensional.
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/beastly-alex-flinn/
Well this was pure fun for me. I love Beauty and the Beast. This version is perfectly teenage angsty and while it made me cringe at times, was overall enjoyable. I think it captures the spirit of change and hope well. Definitely one for fans of fairy tale retellings. The narrator does a great job too. I have a hard time with audiobooks of the YA genre sometimes but this was easy to listen to.
I enjoyed this book a lot. With that said, there always felt like there was something missing, something off.
It really reminded me of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, but set in modern New York City. It felt a bit forced at times, and pretty much stuck exactly to the story.
While it was interesting to see the story unfold through the Beast's eyes, I didn't always feel like his character was a realistic male character. You could argue that it was because of the change and the circumstances, but I don't know. I stand by my beliefs.
The romance was okay but not great. Overall, I thought it was a good, easy read. Nothing too special or terrible in my opinion.