Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Beastly (Beastly, Bk 1)

Beastly (Beastly, Bk 1)
nantuckerin avatar reviewed on + 158 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4


I loved fairy tales as a child, and would spend hours pouring through the original Hans Christian Anderson and Brothers Grimm I found in my mom's study. These stories were very dark and years too old and mature for me, but I didn't care. Now, as an adult, I'm still hooked on the growing genre of novels that seek to recreate and pay homage to these childhood tales. Beastly is a great example -- a modernization of Beauty and the Beast told from the perspective of the Beast, a 15-year-old boy that's been turned into a monster by an enchantress because of his ugly-on-the-inside behavior and his focus on physical beauty.

The book follows Kyle Kingsley through his transformation over the course of two years, which he spends in solitude reading and becoming a real person. In the course of this, the story recreates the key plot points of the original fairy tale. The best needs to find a girl to love him and share a kiss of true love within two years -- a tall task when you're covered in fur. One night, a drug addict crashes into the Beast's brownstone to rob him, and when he's caught, offers to give his 16-year-old daughter to the Beast as a companion. The girl turns out to be a shy scholarship student at Kyle's former school, and of course, they do eventually fall in love and get their happy ever after.

This is a fun and fast read that fairy tale lovers of any age will enjoy. My favorite modern element added to the story was chat transcripts with other mythological beings -- funny stuff.