My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Summary from GoodReads
Fall in love, break the curse.
It once seemed so easy to Prince Rhen, the heir to Emberfall. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, he knew he could be saved if a girl fell for him. But that was before he learned that at the end of each autumn, he would turn into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. That was before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.
Nothing has ever been easy for Harper Lacy. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother barely holding their family together while constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, she learned to be tough enough to survive. But when she tries to save someone else on the streets of Washington, DC, she’s instead somehow sucked into Rhen’s cursed world.
Break the curse, save the kingdom.
A prince? A monster? A curse? Harper doesn’t know where she is or what to believe. But as she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what’s at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.
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REVIEW
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Bloomsbury for the early copy.
I rarely review books which are going to be published NEXT YEAR but in this case, I needed to make an exception. Because...hello? A Beauty and the Beast fantasy with an extra twist? Sign me up for the long haul with this book!
Harper and her brother Jack live a hard life with her mother being sick with the c-disease and Jack having to work as a shark-loan's enforcer. When Harper witnesses a young man abducting a fainted young woman she will rush to the rescue...and find herself in the world of Emberfall.
Where a prince lives in a shining castle, cursed to repeat his 18th birthday.
Rhen has one more chance before turning into a Beast and devouring everyone, losing himself. With Grey his Commander as the only ally and subordinate, he must make a young woman fall in love with him before time's out. When Harper arrives, they will both set new plans in motion which will become bigger than themselves.
What I enjoyed here was the constant action. Some said that the book is big, but for me, this e-ARC was a delight to read. Harper also has cerebral palsy, and she is described by Rhen with a stumbling gait, but that doesn't stop her from learning more about defensive fighting, riding horses and becoming a warrior. I enjoyed the dialogue between everyone and also the side characters which were introduced.
How Harper found out quickly that there is a curse and didn't succumb to the whole plot 'you abducted me to make me fall in love with you'.
The romance is slow-burning and the general plot follows lightly in the steps of Beauty and the Beast. Another fact which was new to me was how the curse worked and the extra addition to the characters which I will not spoil.
The ending was a surprise, making me realize that I will probably read the next book of this tie-in series in 2020... *gasps*
But I am not regretting the early reading. When it comes to Beauty and the Beast retellings, you have found my kryptonite!
Read the book, if you get the chance to have an early copy! You will not regret it!
About the author:
Brigid Kemmerer is the author of dark, contemporary Young Adult romances like MORE THAN WE CAN TELL and LETTERS TO THE LOST (Bloomsbury), as well as paranormal YA novels like THE ELEMENTAL SERIES and THICKER THAN WATER (Kensington). Her next book will be her first foray into YA Fantasy, with A CURSE SO DARK AND LONELY, available January 2019 wherever books are sold. Brigid lives in the Baltimore area with her husband and four sons.
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