Beastly by Alex Flinn

Beastly is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast in New York City told from the point of view of the beast. The beast in this story is Kyle Kingsbury, the son of a newscaster and probably the most popular boy at his elite school. He was placed under this spell by a witch named Kendra because he couldn’t look beyond people’s outer appearances.

Through the course of the story, Kyle changes his name, kidnaps a girl named Lindy to live with him in his seclusion, and gradually learns to see beyond appearances and love Lindy. And fairytales are never complete without happy endings, so it’s pretty easy to figure out what happens in the end.

I was a little disappointed in this novel. From reading a small excerpt, I had expected a more exciting story, but it turned out to be very predictable. The story took place over the course of two years, and it seemed rushed. It was also unrealistic how Kyle changed his ways to become considerate and giving very quickly after he transformed into a beast. It did make sense that Kyle was desperate for someone to love him so that he could reverse the spell, but it was unrealistic how Kyle just seemed to realize that he loved Lindy. The ending was a little too sweet and perfect for my taste, but I guess all fairytales have to have happy endings.

My favorite parts from this novel were the transcripts of the online chat group Kyle joined once he transformed into a beast. I enjoyed reading about the other creatures in the chat group and figuring out which fairytale they belonged to.

Overall, Beastly did not turn out to be one of my favorites. I would not recommend rushing out and buying it. But if you like retellings of fairytales, then you should check this out.

Rating: 3.25

Review copy from personal collection