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Isabelle and the Beast: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast
When Prince John strikes a deal with a witch to save the love of his life, Isabelle, she curses him to live alone in his castle as a beast. He will feel nothing but hatred for the girl he once called his love, and he will kill her. But all hope is not lost, for if Isabelle falls in love with him within a month, the curse will be broken.
Isabelle arrives at the castle and the Beast is kind to her, providing her with food and a place to sleep. But once she informs him that she’s going to marry another man, anger consumes the Beast and he takes her as his prisoner.
What Isabelle doesn’t understand is that there’s a battle waging inside the Beast, with his animal and human sides fighting to reign supreme. As the days pass, an unlikely friendship forms between them and it’s not long before Isabelle no longer feels like his prisoner.
With the witch constantly trying to tear them apart, the Beast loses all hope of ever being a man again. Can Isabelle save him before it’s too late?
Isabelle arrives at the castle and the Beast is kind to her, providing her with food and a place to sleep. But once she informs him that she’s going to marry another man, anger consumes the Beast and he takes her as his prisoner.
What Isabelle doesn’t understand is that there’s a battle waging inside the Beast, with his animal and human sides fighting to reign supreme. As the days pass, an unlikely friendship forms between them and it’s not long before Isabelle no longer feels like his prisoner.
With the witch constantly trying to tear them apart, the Beast loses all hope of ever being a man again. Can Isabelle save him before it’s too late?
224 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 17, 2018
34 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Dee J. Stone
46 books90 followersDee J. Stone is the pseudonym of two sisters who write YA and adult fiction. Their titles include the Keepers of Justice series, the Blue Masked Hero, the Cruiser & Lex series, the Merman's Kiss series, the Genie's Love series, Emily's Curse, and Chasing Sam.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 25, 2018
The premise of this book sounded like a creative twist on the classic tale. I was curious to read a story where Beauty and the Beast were in love before the curse, but she doesn't realize the Beast is her Prince and he can't tell her. Unfortunately, I found the writing style and construction very simplistic. There's not much depth to either story or characters. It is straightforward to the point of being kind of stark.
There was a lot of telling without showing in this book, and sometimes things didn't quite match up. For example we're told (by the narrative, not Isabelle herself) that Isabelle likes living in the village and the people are nice, but then not long afterward we're informed, again by the narrative, that she doesn't have any friends because the other girls are jealous of her beauty. These two statements would seem to contradict each other, but we're never offered any reconciliation or nuance to explain it. The prose was unvaried in style and word choice to the point where it started to bug me. As I got towards the end of the story I was sorely tempted to keep a tally of the sheer number of times William was described as "a good man" and Isabelle as "strong and brave" just to see what the final result might be. The author is in serious need of a good thesaurus.
Isabelle got the most development and she was exactly as strong, brave, good, etc. as advertised. I desperately wanted more development on John (the Beast) and William, her two suitors, especially as Isabelle is forced to choose between them as part of the book's major conflict and we see nothing of William for comparison's sake until very late in the book.
The biggest feeling I was left with was that I wanted so much more in every way from this story and just didn't get it. What we got was competent enough, but not enough to satisfy me.
There was a lot of telling without showing in this book, and sometimes things didn't quite match up. For example we're told (by the narrative, not Isabelle herself) that Isabelle likes living in the village and the people are nice, but then not long afterward we're informed, again by the narrative, that she doesn't have any friends because the other girls are jealous of her beauty. These two statements would seem to contradict each other, but we're never offered any reconciliation or nuance to explain it. The prose was unvaried in style and word choice to the point where it started to bug me. As I got towards the end of the story I was sorely tempted to keep a tally of the sheer number of times William was described as "a good man" and Isabelle as "strong and brave" just to see what the final result might be. The author is in serious need of a good thesaurus.
Isabelle got the most development and she was exactly as strong, brave, good, etc. as advertised. I desperately wanted more development on John (the Beast) and William, her two suitors, especially as Isabelle is forced to choose between them as part of the book's major conflict and we see nothing of William for comparison's sake until very late in the book.
The biggest feeling I was left with was that I wanted so much more in every way from this story and just didn't get it. What we got was competent enough, but not enough to satisfy me.
March 11, 2021
this was a good read. I kind of loved the split personality of the beast aka the prince. the circumstances of the curse was crap. the evil witch was both crafty and stupid because her every interference helped bring the couple closer together. so bad intentions good outcome. which made me laugh my butt off. the ending felt a bit rushed which stopped this book from being a 5 star. everything wrapped up in a nice tight bow, a bit too easily and perfectly honestly. I love that he made her wedding dress in the end. that was cool.
July 27, 2018
Great Twist on a Beloved Tale
What’s not to love? The major characters, Isabelle and John, are dynamic protagonists , I.e. they remain true to their character but gain depth and understanding as they mature into adults of lasting integrity who value inner qualities over outward attributes of beauty and power. The main antagonist, the See-er/witch, is wicked throughout, but cleverly reveals herself as a multifaceted, evil creature, more of a beast than the one she creates.
The author stays true enough to the traditional story to satisfy the staunchest lover of fairytales: however, she weaves a creative tale of intrigue, perseverance, adversity, and best of all—lasting love and devotion.
Who would enjoy such a book? Any lover of a retold fairytale with unexpected twists, a fantastic plot, but believable characters even in a make-believe setting. I rate this book 5-star, a rarity for me, and look with eager anticipation to see if the author stays true to her strong writing skills in her other works!
What’s not to love? The major characters, Isabelle and John, are dynamic protagonists , I.e. they remain true to their character but gain depth and understanding as they mature into adults of lasting integrity who value inner qualities over outward attributes of beauty and power. The main antagonist, the See-er/witch, is wicked throughout, but cleverly reveals herself as a multifaceted, evil creature, more of a beast than the one she creates.
The author stays true enough to the traditional story to satisfy the staunchest lover of fairytales: however, she weaves a creative tale of intrigue, perseverance, adversity, and best of all—lasting love and devotion.
Who would enjoy such a book? Any lover of a retold fairytale with unexpected twists, a fantastic plot, but believable characters even in a make-believe setting. I rate this book 5-star, a rarity for me, and look with eager anticipation to see if the author stays true to her strong writing skills in her other works!
October 20, 2018
Here is another Beauty and the Beast retelling that I found unique even though it follows the original, in some aspects quite closely. The backstory of the curse is different from others I've read. Prince John and Isabelle grew up as friends and at 15 find that they love one another. An evil sorceress wants revenge against his parents so she causes an accident to happen and John has to choose his fate to save Isabelle. Years later, Isabelle, thinking John is dead, is thinking of becoming engaged to another man. She is sent to the castle by a "seer" and the story begins as Beauty tries to escape the castle and the angry Beast. Things aren't going like the sorceress had hoped because of the love that John still has for Isabelle, so she keeps having to interfere!
This is a clean read.
This is a clean read.
December 13, 2024
Immensely enjoyed this story. The Beast, Adam, is more human and character is very realistic. Belle is a compassionate, kind and loving young lady. Author did a great job in description of characters and settings.
I received a free, ARC, copy and am giving my free, honest and voluntary review.
I received a free, ARC, copy and am giving my free, honest and voluntary review.
February 7, 2019
Pretty good but Cinderella version is better
I like reading this book but the revision of Cinderella story kept me on my toes more. This one just had random parts were I was like I'm getting a little bored here. I would recommend to read though
I like reading this book but the revision of Cinderella story kept me on my toes more. This one just had random parts were I was like I'm getting a little bored here. I would recommend to read though
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews