Review: Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Title: Cruel Beauty
Author: Rosamund Hodge
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Acquired Via: Publisher
Release Date: January 28, 2014
Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom—all because of a reckless bargain her father struck. And since birth, she has been training to kill him.

Betrayed by her family yet bound to obey, Nyx rails against her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, she abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, disarm him, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle—a shifting maze of magical rooms—enthralls her. As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. But even if she can bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him?

Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

My Review

In my family, nobody’s love had given anything but cruelty and sorrow, and nobody’s love had ever stopped giving.
- p. 35, ARC

I am so glad that this was a stand alone. That, in itself, is refreshing - a young adult fantasy novel that is a stand alone!

The story itself kept me captivated. I was so caught up in the story, the mysteries, and Nyx that I read this all within a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. The mysteries in the house about Ignifex and the mystery of the house itself were intriguing and kept me guessing. Who was Ignifex really? However, the story lost a little of itself and got a little murky with some unbelievable parts toward the end. Also, while there was a wonderful love story, there wasn’t a lot of other plot. Nyx is married to Ignifex due to a bargain, but her father also has an assassination plot. This plot and the world building along with the reasoning for the plot are strong in the beginning but sort of peeter off and take a back seat to the love story. This didn’t bother me as I was expecting a Disney Beauty and the Beast story and not an epic fantasy full of great plots and world building. But I can see that a lot of readers will probably have issues with the story that strays away from the assassin story to a love story.

Top Ten Tuesday: 2014 Debuts I'm Excited For

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten 2014 Debuts Amber is Excited For



1. A Mad, Wicked Folly by Sharon Biggs Waller
January 23, 2014
Welcome to the world of the fabulously wealthy in London, 1909, where dresses and houses are overwhelmingly opulent, social class means everything, and women are taught to be nothing more than wives and mothers. Into this world comes seventeen-year-old Victoria Darling, who wants only to be an artist—a nearly impossible dream for a girl.

After Vicky poses nude for her illicit art class, she is expelled from her French finishing school. Shamed and scandalized, her parents try to marry her off to the wealthy Edmund Carrick-Humphrey. But Vicky has other things on her mind: her clandestine application to the Royal College of Art; her participation in the suffragette movement; and her growing attraction to a working-class boy who may be her muse—or may be the love of her life. As the world of debutante balls, corsets, and high society obligations closes in around her, Vicky must figure out: just how much is she willing to sacrifice to pursue her dreams?

I love historical fiction set in London. I don't think I have read anything set in London as late as the 1900's, but this looks extremely interesting.





2. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
January 28, 2014
Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.

As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love.

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale, and I hope this retelling lives up to its greatness!

Waiting on Wednesday (36): Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge and Shattered by Kevin Hearne

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.
Amber's Pick



Title: Cruel Beauty
Author: Rosamund Hodge
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (HarperCollins)
Release Date: January 28, 2014
Graceling meets Beauty and the Beast in this sweeping fantasy about one girl's journey to fulfill her destiny and the monster who gets in her way-by stealing her heart.

Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.

As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love.


Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale and Disney movie, so of course I want to read this! Also, how awesomely pretty is that cover!? And, it comes out the day after my birthday! Birthday gift to myself? I do believe so. :)

Kayla's Pick