Cruel Beauty
by Rosamund Hodge
Read: January 17-18, 2016
Published: April 17, 2015
Genre: Fantasy
For fans of bestselling An Ember in the Ashes and A Court of Thorns and Roses, this gorgeously written debut infuses the classic fairy tale with glittering magic, a feisty heroine, and a romance sure to take your breath away.
Betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom, Nyx has always known that her fate was to marry him, kill him, and free her people from his tyranny. But on her seventeenth birthday when she moves into his castle high on the kingdom's mountaintop, nothing is what she expected—particularly her charming and beguiling new husband. Nyx knows she must save her homeland at all costs, yet she can't resist the pull of her sworn enemy—who's gotten in her way by stealing her heart. (Amazon.com)
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Why did you read this book?
My friend read it and said it was pretty good. Also, I've been in a fairy tale mood because I've been watching a lot of Once Upon a Time. So, when I went on a library run and saw this on the shelf, I picked it up. And I just really needed a new book.
What did you like about this book?
I really enjoyed the premise of it. Hodge combined the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale with Greek mythology. It was a retelling that I had never encountered before, so it was refreshing. The way that the Greek mythology was intertwined with the fairy tale worked very well, in my opinion. As far as characters go, I'd have to say Ignifex was my favorite. He was honest with who he was the whole time and he was so incredibly patient with Nyx (I couldn't have been that patient). I also loved the way that things were resolved in the end. It was close to what I guessed would happen, but not exactly. Which was good. I like surprises.
What didn't you like about this book?
Oh boy. I wanted to like this book. I really, really did. And yes, it did have some strong points...just not enough for me to want to add the book to my shelf. First off, I didn't like Nyx. She didn't make sense to me and she was angry all the time. Yes, she had the right to be angry. Her family was horrible. Especially her twin sister (who was supposed to be precious and lovable, but I hated her). And then there was the love story between Nyx, Ignifex, and Shade (which was sort of a love triangle, but not really...that's resolved at the end of the book). It wasn't believable to me. Perhaps once it started it felt right, but I'm not sure how Nyx got from hating Ignifex to loving him. There wasn't really an in between. There was also too much description of Nyx exploring the house. I understand that it was important to the plot, but the descriptions got too lengthy and it was difficult to stay interested in the number of doors were down the long hallway.
Food for Thought:
For those of you who have watched the ABC series, Once Upon a Time, you'll find that Ignifex is reminiscent of Rumplestiltskin (who is also the beast in the series). There are shady deals and unforeseen prices that are too steep for those that made the deals with him. Just in case you were interested.
Bottom-Line:
I kind of liked it. I don't know if I'd recommend it. Altogether, I'm left feeling torn about the book. It has its good points and plenty of bad ones. I might have to re-read it myself just to get a better hold on what I thought of it. I suppose if this has made you curious enough to read it, by all means go ahead. It wasn't a horrible book and maybe you'll like it more than I did. I just won't give it my highest recommendation.
"You fought and fought to keep all the cruelty locked up in your head, and for what? None of them ever loved you, because none of them ever knew you." --Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
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