Once upon a time Elle made a mistake. A small miscalculation sends her through the roof of an enchanted chateau. Stranded until her broken leg mends, Elle is unwillingly forced to rely on the good will of the sour chateau owner —the cursed Prince Severin.Prince Severin—the commanding general and staunch supporter of his brother the crown prince—is cursed to look like a beast until a maiden falls … maiden falls in love with him. He has given up all hope of shattering the curse, and has only disdain for Elle.
Unfortunately, the pair can’t seem to avoid each other thanks to the meddling of the chateau’s cursed servants. Eventually Elle’s playful manners and Severin’s hidden gentleness draw the pair together.
But not all love stories can end that easily. After all, Elle is not what she seems, and Severin’s life is placed in danger when hostilities flare between his brother and the monarchs of a neighboring country. When Elle risks everything to save Severin, will he be able to forgive her for her lies?
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is a retelling of the traditional French fairy tale. It is a story of adventure and prejudice set in a fantasy land lush with magic, assassins, princes, castles, and curses. Filled with humor, deception, and clean romance, it belongs to the series TIMELESS FAIRY TALES. The books in this series take place in the same world and can be read all together, or as individual, stand-alone books.
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This is a fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast retold. Obviously, I know. I love Beauty and the Beast. It is my favorite all-time fairy tale.
This one was a bit different. Elle (Beauty) falls through a glass skylight of Prince Severin’s (Beast) castle. Elle survives the fall but with a broken leg and many cuts to her arms. The servants who are not furniture but are cursed to wear masks and have no voice plead with Severin to let her stay and heal up. Elle is then taken care of by Emele who was a lady in waiting. Emele begs Elle to give Prince Severin a chance. Elle agrees only because she will do it for Emele.
I liked this. It wasn’t a bad retelling. I liked how the servants part of the curse. They all talked through hand gestures and slates. The beast was a mixture between cat and dog but mostly cat. I wish there was a little more telling of why the Prince was cursed.
The banter between Elle and Prince Severin was comical. The falling in love was cute. Emele was a drama queen but the funny kind. The kind that over exaggerates not the kind that makes drama. I loved the characters. It was a light read. I will continue on with the series and see how well the other fairy tales are told.
I loved this story! It made me cry and laugh! It’s an awesome origanal re-telling of the tale. It’s a page turner that you just can’t put down. I can’t wait to read more!
This is an entertaining twist on the fairy tale with nods to Disney and others but a much tougher beauty in Elle, who begins the book by falling through a skylight in the chateau of the enchanted beast (Severin) and breaking her leg.
From there on there is humor, romance (and of course much misunderstanding), and derring do before the happy ending. An enjoyable time. And apparently the first of many retold fairy tales by K M Shea.
The book starts off slow, and as a result, I almost quit reading it. I’m glad that I didn’t. The main characters (Elle and “the Beast”) are likeable and so are the supporting characters (servants). The story is mostly romance with a bit of action and humor thrown in. All in all it’s a good book and worth reading until the end.
good writing. Excellent re-telling of this fairy tale.
At first, I really struggled to get into the story. He was reclusive and she was surly; not exactly the sweet Belle of more familiar tellings of Beauty and the Beast. The standard elements of the story were present, but I really came to appreciate the author’s take on one of my favorite stories. I’d be happy to read other stories by this author.
No where near what I was expecting! I was worried this book would be a bit tongue in cheek but it was definitely a happy surprise!
Love, love, loved it 😉
Book 1 in a series, easiest one to read stand-alone.
A retelling of Beauty and the Beast (what, the title didn’t give that away?), where, like the original fairy tale, the servants are silent, yet the characters are delightfully acerbic and witty. Not a case of Stockholm syndrome, this is a slow-building friendship and trust between two hurt people who don’t let their pain hold them down. The humor and joy is found on every page, while still tackling the tough situations of life and things out of our control.
Love this book, love this author, love the sweet and happy nature that invites me to see the joy to be had in every situation!
I can’t get over how much I appreciate this book. I had no expectations other than anticipating same-old, same-old. However, this Beauty and the Beast retelling is humorous and refreshing. There are some unique changes but the basics are just right.
I don’t love the dynamic between Lucien and Severin. For being the crown prince, Lucien is indecisive and hints at easily manipulated. Severin, on the other hand, is capable and brooding and all that I want out of “the Beast”. Elle is no damsel in distress, with a kick-butt-take-names attitude.
This is a nicely different rendition of the fairy tale. The author added some twists to the basic fairy tale, giving us an original take (with an original HEA) while still leaving the underpinnings of the original tale in place. Beauty as James Bond and the Beast as M, and the Beast not knowing who and what Beauty is – what an interesting situation …..
I’ve read almost this whole series and since I don’t feel like writing a dozen reviews, I’ll just leave this here: KM SHEA WRITES THE BEST FAIRY TALE RETELLINGS OUT THERE. They’re all great, just super cute and feel-good, even the ones I liked the least out of the series were still very enjoyable and I would likely read again. The writing and plot are great, there’s a good smattering of feminism and tough young women getting stuff done, and I can’t count the hours of sleep I lost on this series because I couldn’t stop reading. The ONLY things I can hold against the books is their covers (often not representative of the actual story, especially this one, it’s pretty bland and the story is so much more than that), and that since they’re clean romances (and I mean CLEAN), I never get the satisfaction of reading the characters get it on. But the cuteness and general goodness outweighs this one negative.
So, basically, get your hands on this book and get into this series. Beauty and the beast is possibly my favorite, and I don’t even want to give anything away, but know that this Belle is tough and awesome and will not let you down. This story is such a great twist on the classic. After you read a few of these books, go back and read the snow queen mini series, and then read the Angelique (enchantress) mini series, and then finish off the main series. It’s all wonderful and I’m impatiently awaiting her final installments to Angelique. And you know what, after that, just go ahead and read her King Arthur series, which is totally different but super cute. I read it in record time. Seriously. Like, Harry-Potter-7-style devoured it.
I know I’m gushing, but I really, really like these books (and their author!). If you’re still doubting, know that I am a sucker for a fairytale retelling (especially a beauty and the beast retelling) and I’ve sought out a lot of them. These are my favorite, even with the lack of sex. The stories are that good. I don’t know how Shea churns them out as fast as she does, because they’re really quite polished. This is probably the most glowing review I’ve ever written, so just get on it!
I’ve read this book a bunch of times and I like it each time I read it. Sometimes I even skip through to my favorite parts or the parts I’ve bookmarked on my kindle. Definitely a Beauty & the Beast fan.
This book is simply amazing because despite the fact that only two of the characters we see on a daily basis can talk the conversation amongst all the household residents are beyond wonderful. Even if part of the conversation is in writing (mute servants) and the other half witty banter (spy and prince). Although the conversations between the two talking characters are no slouch either. Despite my love of the world, flow of the book and plot (beauty and the beast retelling automatically means I am there) it was the character interactions in this book that had me laughing and squirming from start to finish. I will now provide an excerpt so you can understand what I mean.
“You spent the afternoon offering me nuts.”
“I was being considerate-you might have experienced a change in tastes after being bitten. Haven’t you heard of werewolves?”
“An angry squirrel is hardly a werewolf.”
“One never knows. Magic is growing unruly.”
Trust me when I say its even better when you read the whole scene (which is pages long and I am not typing all that)!
One of the wittiest, funniest, and most engaging fairytale retellings I have ever read. I will now go buy everything this author has ever written. I am glad I am not a judge a book by its cover kind of person because this was so much more than the cover suggests.
Also, the let’s make sure we are on the same page about marriage happily ever after conversation hilarious. Squrriels, rubbing plant leaves, and arguments and forgiveness. Who wouldn’t want all that in a proposal?
Also best ending ever…stuffed cat toys and poor unsuspecting farmers.
I enjoyed this Beauty and the Beast retelling. It was a little slow at times, but picked up toward the end. I really liked the servants and their not-so-subtle desire for Elle and Severin to fall in love. I’m looking forward to reading more books in the series.
Self published?
Clean retelling of the fairy tale.
It was a good take on the beauty and the beast story.
I discovered K.M. Shea through the Entwined Fairy Tales series that is releasing now. I’m glad that I did! This book is a great twist on the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. Well-written and well paced. I won’t go into any details as those would spoil the story. Suffice to say, it was a good read that kept me guessing until the end. If I had any complaints at all, it would be that the ending was a tad rushed, but overall I loved it and am so glad that the Timeless Fairy Tales series is on Kindle Unlimited. I’m already on to the next book! Check out the Entwined Fairy Tales series too. You may discover new authors that you’ll enjoy, as I did.
Fun reading of an “old” fairy tale!