I don’t read a lot of historical romance with fantastical elements. I picked this up because it’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling. I’m doing a project on that for my YouTube channel.
Generally I liked it-hence the 3-star rating-and I would read more in this series at some point. However, it was a little weak. Maybe this is because it’s a debut. I’ve read Ms. Callihan’s New Adult books and really enjoyed them.
My biggest issue is the level of withholding. There is a lot of not talking to each other. It was particularly annoying when Miranda and Archer would be mad at eachother for the lies. You’re both lying! Neither of you are the better person! What really bothered me was the lack of information provided to the reader. I still don’t fully understand what happened and how-especially since the reveals were right at the end. Maybe things make more sense as the series continues.
I did like the characters, but never fully connected to either of them. I also was often confused about the relationships with all the side characters. There was just a lot of confusion with this one.
The romance was pretty average. There is chemistry between Miranda and Archer, but it isn’t very steamy. It’s kind of a slow burn because Archer doesn’t want to give in and, of course, he has to protect her (from himself!).
I did think this was a fairly good Beauty and the Beast retelling. You could see the inspiration, but Ms. Callihan made it her own.
Thanks for reading!
Holly