by Rosamund Hodge
Book: Stand Alone
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pub Date: January 28, 2014
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling
Format: Print
Source: Bought
Book Links: Goodreads Amazon
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.
My Review: The freaking best book of the year! Hands down! This is the second best book I have ever read! Best one goes to Daylighters by Rachel Caine.
Nyx is off to marry the Demon Lord. Because of a bargain made by her dad. He wanted his wife to have more kids. So she died having Nyx and her dad never loved her like he does Nyx's sister. The sister annoys the heck out of me. She is kind one moment and a pain the next. She is putting up all these smiles because that is what Nyx wanted and when Nyx doesn't kill the lord fast enough, she gets on her to kill him. Uh what happened here?
When it came to the wedding day, I was hoping something crazy would happen. The crazy part was getting ready for the wedding. Once she was in the castle, she was screaming that she was there. Uh, no one was waiting for her. So after a nap she wakes up with the Lord sleeping on her. Well that was something. After a quick chat she goes to her room and then heads to dinner. The lord gives her to rules, which wasn't as bad as I thought. She can guess his name, if right they are both free, if wrong, she dies. Then he gives her a key and lets her roam the house and she can do what she wants basically. Just don't try doing anything stupid. Days go by and Nyx is getting comfortable and she starts to fall for the Lord.
Lord and his shadow Shade are the same person. When you hear the story of how that happened, you will feel for the Lord. A deal gone bad and it really shows that the Kindly Ones are a pain to deal with. Plus while you are reading, you will learn different stories of other deals gone wrong and stories of other gods.
I really loved the Lord and Nyx. They are amazing together and fall in love so perfectly. Nyx is smart and strong and the way she acted toward the Lord showed she had some guts! Now the Lord is scared of the dark, and Nyx goes and takes care of him, right after she left him there to get worse.
My favorite part of the book was the ending!!!!! She ran to the castle found her Lord again and would not leave until she could spend the rest of her life with him. You may be wondering about what I just said, but you will read everything and learn to love the ending just as much!
This is the first novel by Rosamund! I'm so happy about it and can not wait for her next great hit!
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.
My Review: The freaking best book of the year! Hands down! This is the second best book I have ever read! Best one goes to Daylighters by Rachel Caine.
Nyx is off to marry the Demon Lord. Because of a bargain made by her dad. He wanted his wife to have more kids. So she died having Nyx and her dad never loved her like he does Nyx's sister. The sister annoys the heck out of me. She is kind one moment and a pain the next. She is putting up all these smiles because that is what Nyx wanted and when Nyx doesn't kill the lord fast enough, she gets on her to kill him. Uh what happened here?
When it came to the wedding day, I was hoping something crazy would happen. The crazy part was getting ready for the wedding. Once she was in the castle, she was screaming that she was there. Uh, no one was waiting for her. So after a nap she wakes up with the Lord sleeping on her. Well that was something. After a quick chat she goes to her room and then heads to dinner. The lord gives her to rules, which wasn't as bad as I thought. She can guess his name, if right they are both free, if wrong, she dies. Then he gives her a key and lets her roam the house and she can do what she wants basically. Just don't try doing anything stupid. Days go by and Nyx is getting comfortable and she starts to fall for the Lord.
Lord and his shadow Shade are the same person. When you hear the story of how that happened, you will feel for the Lord. A deal gone bad and it really shows that the Kindly Ones are a pain to deal with. Plus while you are reading, you will learn different stories of other deals gone wrong and stories of other gods.
I really loved the Lord and Nyx. They are amazing together and fall in love so perfectly. Nyx is smart and strong and the way she acted toward the Lord showed she had some guts! Now the Lord is scared of the dark, and Nyx goes and takes care of him, right after she left him there to get worse.
My favorite part of the book was the ending!!!!! She ran to the castle found her Lord again and would not leave until she could spend the rest of her life with him. You may be wondering about what I just said, but you will read everything and learn to love the ending just as much!
This is the first novel by Rosamund! I'm so happy about it and can not wait for her next great hit!
My Rating:
✪✪✪✪✪
