Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay

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Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay
Series: N/A
Source: Bought hardcover
Publisher: Delacorte Books
Publication Date: July 23rd, 2013
Age Genre: YA
Challenges: TBR
Challenges: Flight of Fantasy
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In the beginning was the darkness, and in the darkness was a girl, and in the girl was a secret...In the domed city of Yuan, the blind Princess Isra, a Smooth Skin, is raised to be a human sacrifice whose death will ensure her city’s vitality. In the desert outside Yuan, Gem, a mutant beast, fights to save his people, the Monstrous, from starvation. Neither dreams that together, they could return balance to both their worlds.
Isra wants to help the city’s Banished people, second-class citizens despised for possessing Monstrous traits. But after she enlists the aid of her prisoner, Gem, who has been captured while trying to steal Yuan’s enchanted roses, she begins to care for him, and to question everything she has been brought up to believe.
As secrets are revealed and Isra’s sight, which vanished during her childhood, returned, Isra will have to choose between duty to her people and the beast she has come to love.

Oh my. Oh my. I never expected this book to be... this book. I mean, it was on my GR TBR for so long. First, I saw the gorgeous cover, than read the title and found out it was a Beauty and the Beast retelling (duh), and I was sold. But I did not expect this world, which is actually a bit of sci-fi and a lot of magic, or the beautiful writing, or the captivating characters. And I did not expect to feel like calling this a retelling is belittling it.

In Of Beast and Beauty, there is no clear "beast" and no clear "beauty".

Isra is a blind princess doomed to a horrible fate. She is strong, opinionated, kind, but also very much a prisoner in her own city. She thinks herself "tainted" by the mutation her people fears so much, and instead of being Belle enslaved by the beast, she is the one who does the enslaving when she meets Gem, a Monstrous, as he is infiltrating her city and makes him a prisoner.

Gem may be a beast in his appearance, but he is such a good person. He only thinks of the best of his people, can't kill even when his duty tells him he must. He tries to hate and yet he can't. And no matter his motivations, he treats Isra with kindness and attention. The (almost) only person in her life who does.

These two are just... *sigh* I mean, seriously, the shipping is crazy. They just... work! They bring the best in each other, they encourage each other to be better, they open each other's eyes. They're also HAWT like lava and so very delicious. And the best part? It takes time for their relationship to grow. They start as semi enemies, then reluctant partners, then friends, then... more. It's beautiful!

Then there's Gaston--I mean, Bo. Occasionally, we get a glimpse into his pov. That was smart, because Jay lets us see Gaston Bo is not a bad person. He is a product of years of prejudice and false information. He truly believes what he's doing is right, and he does have a heart and a sense of right and wrong. He just can't look past all he's been told to see the truth.

okay, Bo is no monster, but how was I supposed to resist?

Another character worth mentioning is Needle, Isra's maid. I love this girl, and I kind of really really wanted to see her happy with someone. I'm all for Jay writing a sequel for Needle, maybe with Gem's brother? I feel like she could really teach him compassion and love...

The ending of this book was so amazing! And quite different than the Disney ending.

Honestly, I don't have enough words to recommend this book with. Just read it, please. It deserves more love!

   Nitzan★

Flame Moon by K.J Jackson

Flame Moon by K.J Jackson
Series: Flame Moon #1
Source: Free Kindle Copy
Publisher: AWD Publishing
Publication Date: August 3rd, 2012
Age Group: Adult

Skye Walters thought waking up on the side of a river with no memory was her biggest problem. She had no idea that the man who had saved her from drowning, the man she now depended on, Aiden, was more than mere mortal. A warrior of ancient.
No memory, nowhere to go, Skye stays in the mountain town, only to discover she herself, has unexplained powers. Her life, her destiny, are soon out of her control, as are her feelings for Aiden. The deeper Skye gets sucked into Aiden’s hidden world, the more the past, and who she really is, threatens her future, her love, her sanity.

ALL HAIL THE TBR JAR for making me find this hidden gem! I got Flame Moon as a free kindle book at some point of my life. Yeah, not even sure when - could've been last week, could've been last year. I download so many free Kindle books it's hard to follow - which is why I probably would've never read it if I hadn't drawn in out of the TBR jar. Thank god for little miracles, because Flame Moon was surprisingly... great.

Skye wakes up one morning, soaked in a river, with an intimidating man staring at her. She has no idea how she got there or why - she hates water! - but that becomes of little concern when she realizes she's no idea who she is, period.

Skye is a great main character. She is strong and brave, handling all the shit--forgive the language--that gets thrown at her with amazing strength and acceptance. Even though, save for the three friends she makes, she doesn't get much of acceptance herself.

Then there's Aiden. Brooding, silent, tough guy Aiden, who makes Skye his responsibility - as he's the one who took her out to the water and pulled her out when she nearly drowned--sans her memory. Aiden was a tough nut to crack. He could be a bit of an ass (sometimes an overbearing one), but he was actually extremely kind, extremely warm and extremely loyal. All traits I consider positive.

Charlotte and Triaten, the two main supporting characters, were both excellent. They added to the story, and were quite enthralling themselves. Kind of made me wish to read their story too (which seems like I likely would be doing in book 2!)

The romance was really great in my opinion, too. It didn't take that much time to happen, but it felt like they were together all that time before that so it made sense. Besides, physical want and love are not the same thing, and I got the feeling they fell more and more for each other from the time they got together to the finale I-love-yous which I adored.

The writing was great and flowing, and the story-line intriguing and engrossing. I must admit to have been quite surprised with what exactly everyone in this book are.

The only minor issue I had with this book had to do with the Big Betrayal. I felt like there was no build up toward that, no hint of what might be coming prior to the seconds before it did. The complelte change in personality was also jarring. It just seemed like there should've been hints - but there weren't any.

Aside for that, I absolutely loved the book, and can't wait to read the next one!

   Nitzan★