Beastly (Kendra Chronicles #1)

Alex Flinn really brought me back to childhood with Beastly. I really enjoyed her modernized version of my Disney favorite Beauty and the Beast. It was a very captivating retelling. There is nothing I love more than a romantic happily ever after.

Kyle Kingsbury had it all, the fame, the looks, and the fortune. The only thing missing, his lack of compassion. I was drawn to Kyle’s character. He was stuck in a world that drains us of sensitivities. We all grow up to mimic an environment we were raised in. Kyle was just too blind to notice that looks and money are not everything. Cruelty blackens a soul, and for Kyle, his cruelty and insensitivities lead to the desecration of his handsomely good looks. I was upset to see his reaction to his curse. He just took it as another situation to talk or buy your way out. Although, I was extremely excited to see him turn a 360, and in the end, I hoped for his success.

Lindy was a unknown for me. There was not much to learn about her which made it hard to relate to her character. She was also slightly childish in the book to me. I did sympathize with her character. I also had an addicted father in my life early on. If you have ever had an addict in your life, you know you do not ever really have much, shelter nor money wise. I was glad to see her attempts to rise above it all, though. Lindy also shared a love of books with me. This boosted her up ever so slightly on my likable character list. I just wish her character was more developed during the story.

If you have ever seen Beauty and the Beast, then you pretty much have a decent idea how this story goes. It does have its differentiations, though. This is a more modern and mature version. There is also a movie based on this book. I watched that movie also, and let me say, it was nothing like this book! I was extremely disappointed. This book, though, was pretty great.

There were a couple of things I liked about this book that stood out the most for me. The chat room messages throughout the book were extremely interesting. It was really fascinating watching the “fairy tale” creatures communicating. I was eager to read more about their struggles in their “transformations”. The second part that stood out to me was Will’s character. He was the savior that Kyle needed. It was refreshing to see so much ambition and determination in a character. He too suffered with an abnormality. The last thing that really stood out for me about this book was the symbolism of the roses in this story. To me, they symbolized Kyle’s growing as an individual. Although there are many sizes, shapes, colors, and types, a rose is still a rose.

This was an enjoyable read. I couldn't put it down. What a page turner. I've always loved Beauty and the Beast and must say this is my favourite retelling of the tale. Great characters. The only reason I didn't give it a five was because the ending got a little cheesy, but that's my only gripe. Everything else was brilliant.

In this modern retelling of the well-known fairy-tale called The Beauty and the Beast, Flinn takes use to New York City, in the present. The book itself is amazing. While reading the book, I was so concentrated on it; only thinking about when I could read it next.

I've seen the movie before the book *slaps herself because should have read the book first* and so the book was spoiled. At least, they were really different except for the 'I turn in a beast, fall in love, then happily ever after'.

Here's something I haven't yet talked about in my book reviews: the cover of the book. The cover when looked at closely, can sometimes tell the reader some little thing about the book; which is now the case. In the book, Kyle (Adrian) gives Linda a white rose (See cover) ; which saves him from being a beast until he dies.

The writing is fun, and dark; which seems to be my favorite combination.

Kyle (Adrian) and Linda seemed to me as an amazing combination for a couple.

Alex Flinn's writing got me wanting for more, and so Cloaked, another book of hers, is in my To-Read List (TRL).

I enjoyed this modern twist on the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. I despised the hero at the beginning (he was truly a beast inside!), but really liked him by the end. And I liked the heroine very much. The prose is clean and flows well, the story set-up worked for me, and despite a few believability issues (such as the perfect girl for him being able to stay away from her home for so long w/o raising concerns etc), I remained interested the entire book. I didn't fall madly in love with this story, but I'm glad I read it, and I think it's worth the read.

Reader reviewed by Nikki (sng2098)

Beastly is a modern spin on Beauty and the Beast. 

I honestly read this book because I saw the previews for the movie that comes out next year. I have to say I really liked this book. It put a really good spin on an old fairytale.

Kyle is the main character and he is a general "mean" guy, he's really good looking, has money, his father is a anchor man, but he's very mean to other people. A witch turns him into a beast and tells him he has to find love in two years or he's doomed to stay like that forever.
This book was written very well and the ending was kind of surprising.

Reader reviewed by Sarima89

Reader reviewed by Crimin

One of those retellings thats all the hype these days, this one being about the Beasts point of view in a modern <I>Beauty and the Beast</i>.   Its the first retelling Ive ever read.

And it was fascinating.  

Im always for other characters p.o.vs, so this book easily found its way into my shopping basket and joined me in my journey home.   I never expected to read it in a single day, but, hey, the worlds full of surprises.

The only problem I have with this cherished book was the way Kyle acted at the beginning.  He was such a jerk and so unbelievably pompous that I almost threw the book across the room and left it there to rot.  But I didnt.   I gritted my teeth and trekked on.

And it ended lovingly -- I cried out with joy, clutching the book to my chest in a hug.  ;)  Im not going to tell you what went down.   But, if you want to know (which you do~) you should pick up this book and give it a home on your shelves (and in your mind).  You wont be sorry.

Reader reviewed by danielle

Title: Beastly
Author: Alex Flinn
Reviewer: Danielle of http://readingwatchingliving.blogspot.com
Tagline: Ever wonder what it was like for the beast?
Pages: 300
Summary (from back):

I AM A BEAST

A beast. Not quite a wolf or a bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright--a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.
You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll stay this way forever--ruined--unless I can break the spell.
Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly...beastly.

Kyle Kingsbury is, let's face it, a dick.

He rides through life on his TV anchorman father coattales (and wallet) while silently swooning every girl that comes within an inch of him. He never ceases to remind everyone who will listen how amazingly attractive he really is. He remains happily ignorant of the lives outside his own, including the 'ugly' peoples--those who don't meet his standards of perfection.

Until one day, when Kendra, an obese Gothic girl in his class, calls him out for what he truly is: a beast.

As a joke, he asks Kendra out to the upcoming dance, expecting to ditch her there in favor of his real date, Sloan. But when the day of the dance actually comes, and he finds Kendra not hurt but dissapointed by the public humilation he put her through, he is unsettled.

After getting back from the dance, he finds Kendra in his room. She suddenly transforms from a 'fat Goth' to an attractive young women, who turns Kyle into a 'beast'--fangs, fur, the whole package. She shows him one bit of mercy, though: he has two years to find a girl who will love him, despite his appearence, and get her to kiss him, or live as a monster forever.

Distraught, Kyle hides in his room for the entire weekend, until his neglectfull father finally forces him out. After going to the best doctors and plastic surgeons in the country---"no son of mine is going to look this way"---both he and his father all but give up, his father dumping Kyle into an abadoned, five story mansion, with only their maid, Magda, for company. After threatening his father with going public about his condition, he recieves full access to the Kingsbury bank account, plus a tutor, a blind student named Will. Soon, Kyle has become Adrian--to fit his darker persona--a solitary, desolate being who only leaves the confides of the mansion to tend to his newly created garden. He is a prisoner in his own body, with no hope of finding love--until a robber attempts to rob his home. After catching him, the robber offers Adrian his one chance at returning to how he was--his daughter, Linda.

If there is only one notable thing to say about Alex Flinn's writing, it's that she has an innane ability to make you swoon for three hundred pages straight. During the first hundred pages, it's for poor Kyle/Adrian, who is only now realizing the error of his ways, when it's too late. It's when he watches his past classmates through a mirror Kendra gave him, able to watch anyone he wants, everywhere in the world, and how he pines for his old life. It's when he sits in a corner and watches people go to and from work, wishing desperatley for the freedom of life outside his mansion. Then, it's when he tries to win Linda's--or Lindy's--heart, watching him fall for her himself. I was basically "awwww"ing throughout the entire book. You watch Kyle transform from a selfish, self-absorbed rich d-bag to a kind, gentle--I'll say it--sensitive gentleman. (Once more, with feeling--awww)

Though it is a cute, if rather chaste, romance, there is the issue of believability. I mean, yeah, it's already unlikely that a guy would suddenly become a hairy beast, but that doesn't change the fact that they are still modern teenagers, all of them, and modern teenagers do behave a certain way. I understand that living in a mansion for a year straight, reading books like Phantom of the Opera and The Hunchback of Notre Dame could change you, I doubt it would change someones complete speech pattern and convince him to change his name. (quite dramatic about it, might I add) The dialogue is a bit drifty, a bit rushed, though this might be to get the plot along. Adrian's interactions with Lindy are a bit...I don't know. I'd say awkward, but that's putting it mildly. First, he acts like a thirty year old, only in the next breath to switch back to his teenage self. I might be alone on this one, but I found it a bit distracting. No matter how beastly he may be, he's still a kid, and kids don't talk like Victorian shadow-dwellers.

I did like Lindy, though. She came off as very real, to me, with her drug addicted father and love of reading (my people!). She's not described as a traditional 'beauty'--far from it. In fact, when Kyle first meets her as a ticket taker at the dance, he describes her as plain, with Ragedy Ann red hair. But as he gets to know her, he starts...erm...I'll say fantisizing about the girl. Again, in a very PG way, but still. It's a little bit of a "woah, calm down, fella" type of feeling. I get that you've been forced into chastidy over the last year in a half, but seriously. There's a point where it's cute and a point where it's annoying.

The only other gripe I have with this book is that Lindy's reaction to finding out Adrian is her long-time secret crush Kyle Kingsbury is not what I expected. I expected it to be a big deal, seeing has he had basically lied about his entire past. As a girl, I'd be a tad pissed (assuming I had come to terms with the fact that he looks like a monster one minute and a supermodel the next--but I'm rather shallow like that), but hey, it's not my book and it's not my character.

Other then that, Beastly is a highly enjoyable book. I read it in one sitting, and just re-read it a few days ago. Again, if your into the "awww" factor, then you'll be in heaven with Kyle and Lindy.

Also: Alex Flinn has a feature on her website called "Alex's Favorite Books", where she suggest titles you might like if you liked her books. So, if your liked Beastly and looking for something similar to it, that'd be the place.

Reader reviewed by melissa

i honestly had no idea that this was a modern re-telling of 'Beauty and the Beast' until i started picturing the movie in my head. then all the talk of vanity and appearances made sense. I thought that the author did an excellent job of modernizing the story to fit today's teens and I was both laughing and feeling very sad and frustrated with Kyle/Adrian. The instant messaging really broke it up well and gave it that extra fairy tale twist with lots of charm. it was funny becase in my head i'm wondering why belle isn't texting back and realize oh wait disney didn't add cell phones. i found it to be enjoyable for the kid in everyone and shows that some people may think they outgrow disney, but they don't.

Reader reviewed by Adriana M.

I really enjoyed this modern re-telling of 'Beauty and the Beast'. I would have given it five stars be it not for the fact that the ending (like most fairy tales) was a bit too tidy and perfect. I thought that the author did an excellent job of modernizing the story to fit today's teens and I was both laughing and feeling very sad and frustrated with Kyle/Adrian. The instant messaging bits every now and then really broke it up well and gave it that extra fairy tale twist with lots of charm. I thought the lesson of inside beauty was portrayed very well without being preachy and I think teens will enjoy the tale of a modern teen werewolf/beast. (I kept picturing him like Michael J. Fox from the teen werewolf movie)