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Beast
Ara Costas has it all—riches, power, and the kind of beauty that attracts all the right people. He’s flying high and loves his life, until a serious car accident leaves him horribly scarred. Ara becomes an angry recluse, hiding away in his Chicago high-rise apartment, running his multimillion-dollar business from behind a computer screen.
Ilias Adams is a quiet farm boy who keeps his nose buried in books. A great education and stellar resume land him a job as Ara's assistant and liaison to the board of directors. Little did he know when he signed up for this dream job that he’d end up working for the world's moodiest, most uptight boss.
Ilias is scared of Ara at times, but he recognizes the challenge he faces when he meets Ara and sees the reason for the man’s anger. Ara is guarded and suspicious, since he can’t believe anyone can bear to look at him. Despite all this, Ilias is determined to turn the beast into a beauty again, at least on the inside, and tear down the walls Ara has so carefully constructed around him.
Ilias Adams is a quiet farm boy who keeps his nose buried in books. A great education and stellar resume land him a job as Ara's assistant and liaison to the board of directors. Little did he know when he signed up for this dream job that he’d end up working for the world's moodiest, most uptight boss.
Ilias is scared of Ara at times, but he recognizes the challenge he faces when he meets Ara and sees the reason for the man’s anger. Ara is guarded and suspicious, since he can’t believe anyone can bear to look at him. Despite all this, Ilias is determined to turn the beast into a beauty again, at least on the inside, and tear down the walls Ara has so carefully constructed around him.
216 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 13, 2014
4 people are currently reading
212 people want to read
About the author
Allison Cassatta
42 books187 followersI am a married, 33 year old, female, with no children. By trade I am a network engineer with far too many years under my belt. My first book was published in 2010 by Kerlak Publishing, followed by a short story in 2011 through Dreamspinner Press. I don't have any formal training, I simply write what I feel. I have a vivid imagination and love building dream worlds for my readers to escape to.
I recently discovered that I am a hopeless romantic and that usually makes for some very turbulent stories. As most know, love is a mountain and at its peak there's infinite beauty, but it's best appreciated after a difficult climb... that's how I write. The world would be a boring place if we didn't have to fight a little for what we wanted, now wouldn't it.
I recently discovered that I am a hopeless romantic and that usually makes for some very turbulent stories. As most know, love is a mountain and at its peak there's infinite beauty, but it's best appreciated after a difficult climb... that's how I write. The world would be a boring place if we didn't have to fight a little for what we wanted, now wouldn't it.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 66 reviews
August 11, 2021
1.5 stars
It was okay. I was reeled in by the "angsty, angry beast" which is one of my fav folk tales, second only after "The Juniper Tree." I had to force myself to finish this novel, though, because it became repetitive, simplistic. Everything was too easy or extremely quick to over-the-top lovey-dovey. Despite the competent writing, I felt bored, and I no longer cared for the characters by half way in. The beginning was excellent, but my interest waned with the accumulating problems.
It was okay. I was reeled in by the "angsty, angry beast" which is one of my fav folk tales, second only after "The Juniper Tree." I had to force myself to finish this novel, though, because it became repetitive, simplistic. Everything was too easy or extremely quick to over-the-top lovey-dovey. Despite the competent writing, I felt bored, and I no longer cared for the characters by half way in. The beginning was excellent, but my interest waned with the accumulating problems.
March 31, 2014
Once upon a time, far away in Chi-land, a young prince lived in a shining penthouse. Although he had everything he desired, he was spoiled, selfish and unkind.
One crisp night, an old dear friend offered solace, love, and to share his bed. Repelled by his common appearance, he sneered at the gift and drove away…..
Okay, that’s not exactly it, but you know the story, right?
I know it by heart. I love it. I thought for sure I would love this book.
I did not.
Rather than tip-toe, I’ll just get straight to the point.
Two things killed this book for me.
First: Ara, our beast, never revealed his hidden beauty. I did not see the transformation, and believe me, I looked. He was self-absorbed, unpleasant, and frankly just mean. Two small gestures in the last chapter attempted to polish his good nature, but it was too late for me.
Second: the sex was dreadfully off-base in what I find sexy. ‘Fruits of carnal labor’ does not turn up the heat for me. I was completely detached from the romance. I can overlook the sexy parts when they aren’t working for me, but despising one of the MC’s cannot be ignored.
Ara hates himself after his accident and hides in the shadows running his inherited multimillion dollar business from the safety of his home. He has a revolving door on his office when it comes to the men he places in the eye of the public. So far, not a soul has been able to endure his brutality. Ilias steps into the intolerable position with strength and grace and shakes up the master’s world. Ara forbids the privileged few he permits in his home to look at him, and when Ilias refuses to abide by the rules he risks the wrath of the beast. Narcissism and shame war within Ara and he’s a virgin with it comes to love.
I waited for the makeover...and I'm still waiting.
Here, I’ll share a snippet or two-
This was pre-accident Ara belittling his best friend…
Next is post-accident Ara refusing to concede or regret his nasty behavior towards his new lover…
I don’t see much difference. I have yet to figure out what Ilias saw in Ara. Ilias was smitten with Ara from the beginning despite the humiliation, verbal abuse and malice Ara threw at him. Ilias was sweet, tender, and loving and eventually, he broke the spell. I’m grateful for his happiness.
Appearances can be deceiving and true beauty can be found within, but as hard as I tried I just couldn't see it. Maybe you will find what I couldn't, thus allowing the rose to bloom once again.
*2.5 unhappy-unpleasant-unsightly stars*
One crisp night, an old dear friend offered solace, love, and to share his bed. Repelled by his common appearance, he sneered at the gift and drove away…..
Okay, that’s not exactly it, but you know the story, right?
I know it by heart. I love it. I thought for sure I would love this book.
I did not.
Rather than tip-toe, I’ll just get straight to the point.
Two things killed this book for me.
First: Ara, our beast, never revealed his hidden beauty. I did not see the transformation, and believe me, I looked. He was self-absorbed, unpleasant, and frankly just mean. Two small gestures in the last chapter attempted to polish his good nature, but it was too late for me.
Second: the sex was dreadfully off-base in what I find sexy. ‘Fruits of carnal labor’ does not turn up the heat for me. I was completely detached from the romance. I can overlook the sexy parts when they aren’t working for me, but despising one of the MC’s cannot be ignored.
Ara hates himself after his accident and hides in the shadows running his inherited multimillion dollar business from the safety of his home. He has a revolving door on his office when it comes to the men he places in the eye of the public. So far, not a soul has been able to endure his brutality. Ilias steps into the intolerable position with strength and grace and shakes up the master’s world. Ara forbids the privileged few he permits in his home to look at him, and when Ilias refuses to abide by the rules he risks the wrath of the beast. Narcissism and shame war within Ara and he’s a virgin with it comes to love.
I waited for the makeover...and I'm still waiting.
Here, I’ll share a snippet or two-
This was pre-accident Ara belittling his best friend…
“’I’m a long weekend at a five-star resort. You’re a night at Holiday Inn. I’m a Porsche….You’re a…I don’t know, a Chevy?’ He laughed softly. ‘Do you see where this is going?’”
Next is post-accident Ara refusing to concede or regret his nasty behavior towards his new lover…
“Ilias, the world is full of cruel people who will do cruel things to you. They won’t apologize for the things they do. They won’t care if they hurt you. I suggest you learn to live with that fact.”
I don’t see much difference. I have yet to figure out what Ilias saw in Ara. Ilias was smitten with Ara from the beginning despite the humiliation, verbal abuse and malice Ara threw at him. Ilias was sweet, tender, and loving and eventually, he broke the spell. I’m grateful for his happiness.
Appearances can be deceiving and true beauty can be found within, but as hard as I tried I just couldn't see it. Maybe you will find what I couldn't, thus allowing the rose to bloom once again.
*2.5 unhappy-unpleasant-unsightly stars*
August 5, 2016
4.5 Stars
Can you imagine your whole life changing in a blink of an eye…? The face you see in the mirror, a face you once adored, suddenly seems foreign, alien-like. That man that’s staring back at you moves just like you, tilts his head the same way you do, is mimicking everything you do. You can’t seem to comprehend how something so grotesque could possibly be you.
Accepting the reality that hiding in the shadows is the only way, you can be seen, knowing that light is your enemy and that it can reveal something you abhor. The darkness is the only place that makes you feel safe; you’re essentially hiding from the world, where solitude is your only comfort. I just described the “tragic” life of Ara.
Ara was a narcissistic, cold-hearted man who was unforgiving and cruel. He was the epitome of selfish. He gloried in the power that is beauty. He believed that others coveted it and, because of that, he could control them. Beauty plus power was too much of a gift for this man to handle, and so the powers-that-be took one away.
Full review can be found at http://ontopdownunderbookreviews.com/...
Can you imagine your whole life changing in a blink of an eye…? The face you see in the mirror, a face you once adored, suddenly seems foreign, alien-like. That man that’s staring back at you moves just like you, tilts his head the same way you do, is mimicking everything you do. You can’t seem to comprehend how something so grotesque could possibly be you.
Accepting the reality that hiding in the shadows is the only way, you can be seen, knowing that light is your enemy and that it can reveal something you abhor. The darkness is the only place that makes you feel safe; you’re essentially hiding from the world, where solitude is your only comfort. I just described the “tragic” life of Ara.
Ara was a narcissistic, cold-hearted man who was unforgiving and cruel. He was the epitome of selfish. He gloried in the power that is beauty. He believed that others coveted it and, because of that, he could control them. Beauty plus power was too much of a gift for this man to handle, and so the powers-that-be took one away.
Full review can be found at http://ontopdownunderbookreviews.com/...
January 24, 2015
A sweet re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, m/m style.
January 3, 2015
REVIEW OF AUDIOBOOK; DECEMBER 30, 2014
Narrator: K C Kelly
Story: 4.5
Narration: 4
After the negative comments, I didn't expect this book to turn out as well as it did. I was expecting that Ara would remain as horrible a person after his accident, or even worse, as one or two reviewers had remarked.
What I found, instead, was a very well-paced story of transformation - Ara took a long time, so no insta-nice guy here, and I liked that I got to see Ara go through his paces, taking one painful step after another to become a much, much better man than he was before the accident that disfigured him.
The transformation from self-centered, self-absorbed, callous, I'm-God's-Gift-To-Men promiscuous social butterfly, whose self-worth was based entirely on his physical beauty to a man - and this was the defining factor: who realized his faults, and was determined to change for the better, made this a wonderful story for me.
I resonated deeply with Ara's internal torment, watching him try, fail spectacularly at first, then pitifully later, so that it's one step forward, three steps back...and finally openly admit the fears that have crippled him all these years since the accident. Admission was so terribly hard for Ara. It's there in his head, but he struggles so terribly to vocalize his feelings, good or bad, so they are masked by his bad behavior and it makes it easy for us to write him off...because that's preferable to us looking too closely.
Since the story is told mostly from Ara's POV, I got to struggle with him, and was sucked into his internal torment even as I hung on to the hope of change, as Ara did. If the authors had decided to give more of Ilias' POV, it would have been a mistake because I would have ended up sympathizing only with Ilias and hating Ara for being such an asshole. As it is, it seems to me that the reviewers who thought Ara did not change for the better, did approach the book that way.
Ara's desire to change, to be a better person, his efforts to do that, made him a true hero for me. I've seen too many people happy to stay blind to their faults, happy to justify their bad behavior. Not so with Ara. We get to see Ara acknowledge his sins, we get to see him wracked with guilt over the way he treated Beni, we get to see Ara confront his poor attitude towards Ilias, the man who is able to put Ara on the road to healing where nothing and no one else could.
Slowly, but surely, I got to see Ara become the beautiful man Ilias believed existed; a new man because the end-result was an Ara that did not even exist before the accident. This unmistakeable transformation made this story a lovely one, with a fitting Epilogue.
What I liked most: that the authors did not merely give lip-service to Ara’s struggle to overcome his flaws; that they showed the flaws, not just tell me in generalized terms. This made Ara’s eventual transformation praiseworthy.
The Niggles: the hackneyed phrase ‘you make me want to be a better person’. Read this many times in other books, and lifted right off Jack Nicholson’s character, Melvin Udall, from As Good As It Gets.
The ‘fruits of carnal labor’ is truly cringeworthy; the worst of its kind I’ve come across! I’d be horribly embarrassed if I came up with that.
I don’t get the names: Ara Costas is clearly Greek but why Ara (which is feminine) instead of the masculine ‘Ari’? And Ilias Adams didn’t come across like a Greek farm boy and I don’t recall where the Adams Farm is located, but why a Greek name for Ilias? And why with an ‘I’ instead of the normal ‘Elias’. If the authors wanted this all-Greek flavor then go all the way but it was haphazard, and K C Kelly, the narrator, pronouncing Ilias the American way – Ee-LYE-us instead of El-LEE-us didn’t help. Why not just Tom or Matt or Casey?
But, they were niggles and while they irked me, I thought the story-telling good enough to overlook them. One last niggle: why the sudden, meaningless reappearance of Josh when Ilias went home for Thanksgiving? Josh, the farm hand who freaked out when Ilias started looking at him ‘that’ way, who left the farm ‘so fast he left skid marks’ and who now pops up out of the blue for no other reason than to pick Ilias up from the airport – and is now…gay??? My only conclusion is that this is a set up for the next book, Josh’s story. I don’t know about other readers, but I don’t care for such obvious set-up scenes.
K C Kelly's narration was alright. He has a good rich voice but I would have liked his differentiation between Ara and Ilias to be more marked. Perhaps by giving Ilias the accent from the state he's from. Eg, a Kansas accent (if that's where Ilias is from) vs Ara's Greek-tinged Chicago one?
Narrator: K C Kelly
Story: 4.5
Narration: 4
After the negative comments, I didn't expect this book to turn out as well as it did. I was expecting that Ara would remain as horrible a person after his accident, or even worse, as one or two reviewers had remarked.
What I found, instead, was a very well-paced story of transformation - Ara took a long time, so no insta-nice guy here, and I liked that I got to see Ara go through his paces, taking one painful step after another to become a much, much better man than he was before the accident that disfigured him.
The transformation from self-centered, self-absorbed, callous, I'm-God's-Gift-To-Men promiscuous social butterfly, whose self-worth was based entirely on his physical beauty to a man - and this was the defining factor: who realized his faults, and was determined to change for the better, made this a wonderful story for me.
I resonated deeply with Ara's internal torment, watching him try, fail spectacularly at first, then pitifully later, so that it's one step forward, three steps back...and finally openly admit the fears that have crippled him all these years since the accident. Admission was so terribly hard for Ara. It's there in his head, but he struggles so terribly to vocalize his feelings, good or bad, so they are masked by his bad behavior and it makes it easy for us to write him off...because that's preferable to us looking too closely.
Since the story is told mostly from Ara's POV, I got to struggle with him, and was sucked into his internal torment even as I hung on to the hope of change, as Ara did. If the authors had decided to give more of Ilias' POV, it would have been a mistake because I would have ended up sympathizing only with Ilias and hating Ara for being such an asshole. As it is, it seems to me that the reviewers who thought Ara did not change for the better, did approach the book that way.
Ara's desire to change, to be a better person, his efforts to do that, made him a true hero for me. I've seen too many people happy to stay blind to their faults, happy to justify their bad behavior. Not so with Ara. We get to see Ara acknowledge his sins, we get to see him wracked with guilt over the way he treated Beni, we get to see Ara confront his poor attitude towards Ilias, the man who is able to put Ara on the road to healing where nothing and no one else could.
Slowly, but surely, I got to see Ara become the beautiful man Ilias believed existed; a new man because the end-result was an Ara that did not even exist before the accident. This unmistakeable transformation made this story a lovely one, with a fitting Epilogue.
What I liked most: that the authors did not merely give lip-service to Ara’s struggle to overcome his flaws; that they showed the flaws, not just tell me in generalized terms. This made Ara’s eventual transformation praiseworthy.
The Niggles: the hackneyed phrase ‘you make me want to be a better person’. Read this many times in other books, and lifted right off Jack Nicholson’s character, Melvin Udall, from As Good As It Gets.
The ‘fruits of carnal labor’ is truly cringeworthy; the worst of its kind I’ve come across! I’d be horribly embarrassed if I came up with that.
I don’t get the names: Ara Costas is clearly Greek but why Ara (which is feminine) instead of the masculine ‘Ari’? And Ilias Adams didn’t come across like a Greek farm boy and I don’t recall where the Adams Farm is located, but why a Greek name for Ilias? And why with an ‘I’ instead of the normal ‘Elias’. If the authors wanted this all-Greek flavor then go all the way but it was haphazard, and K C Kelly, the narrator, pronouncing Ilias the American way – Ee-LYE-us instead of El-LEE-us didn’t help. Why not just Tom or Matt or Casey?
But, they were niggles and while they irked me, I thought the story-telling good enough to overlook them. One last niggle: why the sudden, meaningless reappearance of Josh when Ilias went home for Thanksgiving? Josh, the farm hand who freaked out when Ilias started looking at him ‘that’ way, who left the farm ‘so fast he left skid marks’ and who now pops up out of the blue for no other reason than to pick Ilias up from the airport – and is now…gay??? My only conclusion is that this is a set up for the next book, Josh’s story. I don’t know about other readers, but I don’t care for such obvious set-up scenes.
K C Kelly's narration was alright. He has a good rich voice but I would have liked his differentiation between Ara and Ilias to be more marked. Perhaps by giving Ilias the accent from the state he's from. Eg, a Kansas accent (if that's where Ilias is from) vs Ara's Greek-tinged Chicago one?
March 17, 2014
“Time heals all scars, but love mends the deepest wounds”
Allison Cassatta & Tracey Michael. “Beast.”
The plot
Ara Costas is rich, influent, has the world on his feet... Ara Costas is an bastard.
No, I will not use fancy words to describe him. He is. Horrible, heartless, the first paragraphs, after two lines you will see how he treat someone close to him... And you will see.
Certainly no one deserve to almost die in a car crash, but maybe in a tragedy something good can happen. Wait, not something, but someone... And his name is Ilias.
Ilias must work, even if his boss is an eccentric and bitter man Ilias must go on... He don't have another choice
Aras can't go out. Traumatized after the accident that ruin his face and his life as the city playboy he need an assistant. That's how Ilias enter in the story.
This book is very slow, and VERY romantic
Of course, you may know the trama, it's a Beauty&Beast retelling... But you can not know how it was executed.... And this, the writing and the development of the plot deserve my 5 stars and a stand-ovation.
All the story will be developed inside one apartment, Ara's house... Just that, and it was more than enough to make me smile, cry, fall in love with the characters.
The writing is superb
The characters are amazing
The secondary characters add more drama/humor
Yes
It's a 5 stars.
Allison Cassatta & Tracey Michael. “Beast.”
The plot
Ara Costas is rich, influent, has the world on his feet... Ara Costas is an bastard.
No, I will not use fancy words to describe him. He is. Horrible, heartless, the first paragraphs, after two lines you will see how he treat someone close to him... And you will see.
Certainly no one deserve to almost die in a car crash, but maybe in a tragedy something good can happen. Wait, not something, but someone... And his name is Ilias.
Ilias must work, even if his boss is an eccentric and bitter man Ilias must go on... He don't have another choice
Aras can't go out. Traumatized after the accident that ruin his face and his life as the city playboy he need an assistant. That's how Ilias enter in the story.
This book is very slow, and VERY romantic
Of course, you may know the trama, it's a Beauty&Beast retelling... But you can not know how it was executed.... And this, the writing and the development of the plot deserve my 5 stars and a stand-ovation.
All the story will be developed inside one apartment, Ara's house... Just that, and it was more than enough to make me smile, cry, fall in love with the characters.
The writing is superb
The characters are amazing
The secondary characters add more drama/humor
Yes
It's a 5 stars.
May 13, 2015
This was a true love story, that was incredibly well written and emotionally investing. You couldn't put the book down because you had to know what happened next! Both main characters go through a journey of self discovery to not only find out who they are and were meant to be, but they find love in each other in the process. Fantastic read!
May 31, 2015
Technical stuff out of the way first. I was gifted a copy of this book with no demands from the author for a review.
Now on to the good stuff. This was a sweet take on an oft told tale. I don't think anyone liked Ara at the beginning, but one of the many things I loved about this book was the EVOLUTION of the character. Ara was truly a character that I wanted to hate. But with each page turned, I grew to like him more and more. I loved Ilias, seriously, fell head over heels for this one. Smart, kind, adorable and oh so compassionate.
I love books that give you a front row seat. This one pulled me in, plunked me down and got me immersed right away. An excellent story, with just enough detail to give me an over all look, the sites, sounds, smells...all there in my mind. That bathtub scene??? Yeah...I was in the opposite end of the tub like voyeur, hidden in my mound of bubbles. These two authors did a bang up job of character development. They showed the fear, the obsessive fear that Ara had. But it was calmed by the most of the time rational, Ilias. This story really showed that fear can be conquered by love, and really, isn't that what it is all about? Love conquers all...even the most closely held, darkest memories fall before that mighty emotion.
I read one review for this book, the one star, where they person complained that the guys were not guy like enough. I have been blessed with knowing a few same sex couples, and there really wasn't much off on this. Go into this with realistic expectations. This is NOT a blatant sexual romp that shows an unrealistic relationship. The relationship happens slowly and is tastefully done. There is nothing explicit, no in your face monster penises no over the top love scenes. This is sweet, subtle and divine. A round of applause for the two authors on a book well written.
Now on to the good stuff. This was a sweet take on an oft told tale. I don't think anyone liked Ara at the beginning, but one of the many things I loved about this book was the EVOLUTION of the character. Ara was truly a character that I wanted to hate. But with each page turned, I grew to like him more and more. I loved Ilias, seriously, fell head over heels for this one. Smart, kind, adorable and oh so compassionate.
I love books that give you a front row seat. This one pulled me in, plunked me down and got me immersed right away. An excellent story, with just enough detail to give me an over all look, the sites, sounds, smells...all there in my mind. That bathtub scene??? Yeah...I was in the opposite end of the tub like voyeur, hidden in my mound of bubbles. These two authors did a bang up job of character development. They showed the fear, the obsessive fear that Ara had. But it was calmed by the most of the time rational, Ilias. This story really showed that fear can be conquered by love, and really, isn't that what it is all about? Love conquers all...even the most closely held, darkest memories fall before that mighty emotion.
I read one review for this book, the one star, where they person complained that the guys were not guy like enough. I have been blessed with knowing a few same sex couples, and there really wasn't much off on this. Go into this with realistic expectations. This is NOT a blatant sexual romp that shows an unrealistic relationship. The relationship happens slowly and is tastefully done. There is nothing explicit, no in your face monster penises no over the top love scenes. This is sweet, subtle and divine. A round of applause for the two authors on a book well written.
April 12, 2014
A Joyfully Jay review.
4.25 stars
Initially, I was not fully on board with reading yet another update to, “A tale as old as time…Beauty and the Beast,” complete with a motherly housekeeper and table settings at each end of a long dining table. But, overall, I am pleased to have spent time with Ara and Ilias. The story primarily takes place at Ara’s home with just a limited number of scene changes. The story is slow building, tender, and oozes with sexual tension. There is little angst and more of a back and forth style to the building of the relationship. The characters are well written with enough backstory on both Ara and Ilias’ family life to give us an understanding of where they come from. The story is told with alternating points of view that are consistent and flow well together. The dialogue is not one sided and the reader always knows what each character is thinking, which makes for a deeper, more well rounded story.
Read Michelle's review in its entirety here.
4.25 stars
Initially, I was not fully on board with reading yet another update to, “A tale as old as time…Beauty and the Beast,” complete with a motherly housekeeper and table settings at each end of a long dining table. But, overall, I am pleased to have spent time with Ara and Ilias. The story primarily takes place at Ara’s home with just a limited number of scene changes. The story is slow building, tender, and oozes with sexual tension. There is little angst and more of a back and forth style to the building of the relationship. The characters are well written with enough backstory on both Ara and Ilias’ family life to give us an understanding of where they come from. The story is told with alternating points of view that are consistent and flow well together. The dialogue is not one sided and the reader always knows what each character is thinking, which makes for a deeper, more well rounded story.
Read Michelle's review in its entirety here.
April 21, 2014
It’s rare that I can find a book these days that has me hooked from page one. Most books don’t tend to catch my interest until a few chapters in but “Beast” managed to capture my attention and interest, keeping it until the last page and leaving me wanting more.
I’ve always been attracted to characters like Ilias and Ara, to be honest. Men don’t have to be tough or overly “Alpha Male”. Takes a real man to be soft and compassionate. Flawed, full of inner angst and real enough that there were times I swore they were in the room with me. A high mark of a great author, or two in this case!
I have nothing but absolute respect for both Ms. Michaels and Ms.Cassatta for being able to not just work together, but to do it so seamlessly. The plot and dialogue was clever, witty and carried a lot of substance.
I laughed, I cried and I “awwwwddd” throughout the whole thing. A beautiful story, a wonderful slant to an old tale. All I can say is...MORE!
I’ve always been attracted to characters like Ilias and Ara, to be honest. Men don’t have to be tough or overly “Alpha Male”. Takes a real man to be soft and compassionate. Flawed, full of inner angst and real enough that there were times I swore they were in the room with me. A high mark of a great author, or two in this case!
I have nothing but absolute respect for both Ms. Michaels and Ms.Cassatta for being able to not just work together, but to do it so seamlessly. The plot and dialogue was clever, witty and carried a lot of substance.
I laughed, I cried and I “awwwwddd” throughout the whole thing. A beautiful story, a wonderful slant to an old tale. All I can say is...MORE!
May 16, 2014
Do not read this story without tissues!
This story starts out w/a bang!
You get to see both sides of Ara, what happened from his childhood and what made him into a 'Beast'.
Even though Ara wants you to think he's a superficial man that doesn't care about anyone or anything, Ilias, his new employee can see through this facade and the true man underneath. Ara is desperate not to like/love Ilias because of his past but finds it more and more difficult each day/wk that passes.
It is so well written, you get sucked it the lives of all the characters in chapter one and finally breathe at the end. I read it from cover to cover in one sitting!
This story starts out w/a bang!
You get to see both sides of Ara, what happened from his childhood and what made him into a 'Beast'.
Even though Ara wants you to think he's a superficial man that doesn't care about anyone or anything, Ilias, his new employee can see through this facade and the true man underneath. Ara is desperate not to like/love Ilias because of his past but finds it more and more difficult each day/wk that passes.
It is so well written, you get sucked it the lives of all the characters in chapter one and finally breathe at the end. I read it from cover to cover in one sitting!
April 28, 2014
Great romance and well written!!
I loved this book!! I was drawn in right away and could not put the book down. I have to admit that Ara sort of pissed me off for most of the book. I love when a writer can have the reader feeling such strong emotions for the characters in the book. It was very well written and I highly recommend it and all of Allison’s books!!
I loved this book!! I was drawn in right away and could not put the book down. I have to admit that Ara sort of pissed me off for most of the book. I love when a writer can have the reader feeling such strong emotions for the characters in the book. It was very well written and I highly recommend it and all of Allison’s books!!
April 26, 2014
The story was good but there were some things I saw that needed a little fleshing out. Here's hoping Allison & Tracey let me beta their next book together. Me thinks I could contribute a bit.
September 2, 2016
To be honest, Ara was more of a beast before the accident than after. He had scars after but he was a monster in how he treated people when he was “beautiful”. His treatment of his best friend, Beni, just made you want to slap him. Karma comes around though, doesn’t it? Ara is in a car accident right after leaving Beni and ends up with scars all over. This has caused him to retreat from life altogether, spending seven years in his apartment and running his company from there. He needs a liason to this board of directors, however, a face to show. This is where Ilias comes in, a farm boy who loves his books and just wants to be away from the farm and the judgment of his father.
Ilias is the kind of person who doesn’t judge and he sees people as they are inside, which makes him open to Ara. Yes, Ilias is a little naïve-seeming, but he’s a good person at heart. As he is given his ridiculous directions for keeping his job (don’t look directly at Ara, you may not leave the apartment during the whole of probationary period, you may not go into the kitchen during certain hours, etc), he tries to keep to his beloved books on his tablet. He wants this job and he wants to do well with it. Dealing with Ara, well, it’s difficult. I loved that Ilias didn’t just blindly accept all the abuse tossed his way. Sometimes he stood up for himself.
It was a wonder what Ms Spriggs - who apparently worked 24/7 since she was always available – ever saw in Ara. The man believes any type of compliment or kindness is a weakness, and that part continued after his accident. He can’t say Ilias did a good job or thank Ms. Spriggs for all she’s done. He needs a lot of work. He promises to help Ilias with his first meeting with the board and then bails, leaving Ilias with his visions of “strangers gaping at him in a pair of plaid boxes and knee high socks”, those typical facing strangers naked nightmares plaguing him.
As the two work on being boss and assistant, they also make progress towards being friends, at least to start. I did frown at Ara again when he brings up that they can’t fraternize due to company policy and so Ilias will be a dirty little secret (my take, not his words). This is not mentioned again so I’m not sure how it changed. The secret thing comes up again at Thanksgiving and I wanted to shake Ara.
Ara mentions one that “I wasn’t a bad man.” I disagree – you were a bad man, shallow, cruel and hollow, but no one deserves an accident, let alone a disfiguring one. It is the way he is now that he needs to continue to work on. Seven years and he hasn’t even stepped onto his own balcony, no wonder he has issues.
Some of the language is very flowery, “fruits of carnal labor filled the rubber” and some is just awkward, “a bowel-birthed growl”. That one made me think the man had gas. I enjoyed the Beauty and the Beast aspect of it, with the twist that the Beast stays beastly in his attitude for a long time. He really has to adjust to wanting more for and from another person. It has much less angst than I expected. Some things, such as Ilias’ resignation letter, I’d have loved to know more – what did it say?
Altogether, it was a nice Beauty and Beast story of a selfish, cruel man faced with the loss of power (in his eyes) and beauty who is faced with a truly beautiful person determined to make him see what is important.
As just a random note, I absolutely loved the dedication to this book.
Ilias is the kind of person who doesn’t judge and he sees people as they are inside, which makes him open to Ara. Yes, Ilias is a little naïve-seeming, but he’s a good person at heart. As he is given his ridiculous directions for keeping his job (don’t look directly at Ara, you may not leave the apartment during the whole of probationary period, you may not go into the kitchen during certain hours, etc), he tries to keep to his beloved books on his tablet. He wants this job and he wants to do well with it. Dealing with Ara, well, it’s difficult. I loved that Ilias didn’t just blindly accept all the abuse tossed his way. Sometimes he stood up for himself.
It was a wonder what Ms Spriggs - who apparently worked 24/7 since she was always available – ever saw in Ara. The man believes any type of compliment or kindness is a weakness, and that part continued after his accident. He can’t say Ilias did a good job or thank Ms. Spriggs for all she’s done. He needs a lot of work. He promises to help Ilias with his first meeting with the board and then bails, leaving Ilias with his visions of “strangers gaping at him in a pair of plaid boxes and knee high socks”, those typical facing strangers naked nightmares plaguing him.
As the two work on being boss and assistant, they also make progress towards being friends, at least to start. I did frown at Ara again when he brings up that they can’t fraternize due to company policy and so Ilias will be a dirty little secret (my take, not his words). This is not mentioned again so I’m not sure how it changed. The secret thing comes up again at Thanksgiving and I wanted to shake Ara.
Ara mentions one that “I wasn’t a bad man.” I disagree – you were a bad man, shallow, cruel and hollow, but no one deserves an accident, let alone a disfiguring one. It is the way he is now that he needs to continue to work on. Seven years and he hasn’t even stepped onto his own balcony, no wonder he has issues.
Some of the language is very flowery, “fruits of carnal labor filled the rubber” and some is just awkward, “a bowel-birthed growl”. That one made me think the man had gas. I enjoyed the Beauty and the Beast aspect of it, with the twist that the Beast stays beastly in his attitude for a long time. He really has to adjust to wanting more for and from another person. It has much less angst than I expected. Some things, such as Ilias’ resignation letter, I’d have loved to know more – what did it say?
Altogether, it was a nice Beauty and Beast story of a selfish, cruel man faced with the loss of power (in his eyes) and beauty who is faced with a truly beautiful person determined to make him see what is important.
As just a random note, I absolutely loved the dedication to this book.
March 29, 2014
At first glance, Beast appears to be an original, modern, gay re-telling of a classic story. The monster, always ugly inside or out; in this case the monster is scarred physically and a mean bastard in his soul. The beauty whose love and blindness to the monster’s failings is the monster’s saving grace, enabling his return to humanity and acceptance of love. For me Beast didn’t live up to my expectations. It had all of the ingredients listed above, but seemed maybe to include the wrong amounts of each.
Ara Costas is a spoiled rich brat. He is entitled and always gets his way. He is cruel to those he deems “less than”. Either physically, socially or financially. When Ara is badly injured in an auto accident, the only thing that really changes is that he becomes a recluse. He is still a spoiled brat. He expects those around him to kowtow accordingly. He is torn up inside because he has become one of the “less thans” that he used to scorn. His frustration and anger have made keeping an assistant around for any length of time impossible thus far.
Ilias Adams is quiet. He loves to read. Ilias wants to get off the family farm where his father is completely unaccepting of his sexuality. That is how he winds up working for Ara. Ilias’s title is assistant to Ara. He is to be the public face of the company that Ara owns because Ara refuses to be seen in public. He thinks people will ridicule him the way he has ridiculed others in the past. The only time he leaves his penthouse apartment is for doctor appointments and for the many surgeries he has endured since his accident. Even then, his face must be covered. Think Michael Jackson at the height of his bizarre behavior. That is how I pictured Ara when he left the apartment.
Ilias sets his mind to getting through the walls of protection Ara has erected with his anger. This is where I think an opportunity to deepen the characters was missed. The many tender and intimate times that Ara and Ilias shared were a treat to read. But the complexity of character just wasn’t there for me. The men were both stereotypical in that they offered nothing new to the trope. The classic story I mentioned in the first paragraph of this review was just retold in the same way it has been in the past.
I really liked Ilias. The phrase “his books” was overused to the point that I wanted to change it myself, but it did make the point that he was really a great lover of books. For Ilias, reading had been his solace for a long time. I felt he allowed himself to be too much of a punching (not physically) bag for Ara’s anger. Ilias put up with more than any human being could be expected to withstand and kept forgiving Ara.
Ara’s behavior was over the top. He was too much the stereotype. It made it hard to identify with him or like him at all. It was difficult for me to forgive him, even in the end. He did seem to redeem himself and allow himself to love and be loved, but I couldn’t get past the terrible way he had treated Ilias and his longsuffering housekeeper for so long.
Because of the tender scenes and the kindness Ara did show, I didn’t hate this book. I think it could have been better if Ilias had stood up for himself sooner and demanded Ara treat him with the respect he deserved. I’m sure many readers will thoroughly enjoy Beast. I’m sorry that I wasn’t one of them.
Ara Costas is a spoiled rich brat. He is entitled and always gets his way. He is cruel to those he deems “less than”. Either physically, socially or financially. When Ara is badly injured in an auto accident, the only thing that really changes is that he becomes a recluse. He is still a spoiled brat. He expects those around him to kowtow accordingly. He is torn up inside because he has become one of the “less thans” that he used to scorn. His frustration and anger have made keeping an assistant around for any length of time impossible thus far.
Ilias Adams is quiet. He loves to read. Ilias wants to get off the family farm where his father is completely unaccepting of his sexuality. That is how he winds up working for Ara. Ilias’s title is assistant to Ara. He is to be the public face of the company that Ara owns because Ara refuses to be seen in public. He thinks people will ridicule him the way he has ridiculed others in the past. The only time he leaves his penthouse apartment is for doctor appointments and for the many surgeries he has endured since his accident. Even then, his face must be covered. Think Michael Jackson at the height of his bizarre behavior. That is how I pictured Ara when he left the apartment.
Ilias sets his mind to getting through the walls of protection Ara has erected with his anger. This is where I think an opportunity to deepen the characters was missed. The many tender and intimate times that Ara and Ilias shared were a treat to read. But the complexity of character just wasn’t there for me. The men were both stereotypical in that they offered nothing new to the trope. The classic story I mentioned in the first paragraph of this review was just retold in the same way it has been in the past.
I really liked Ilias. The phrase “his books” was overused to the point that I wanted to change it myself, but it did make the point that he was really a great lover of books. For Ilias, reading had been his solace for a long time. I felt he allowed himself to be too much of a punching (not physically) bag for Ara’s anger. Ilias put up with more than any human being could be expected to withstand and kept forgiving Ara.
Ara’s behavior was over the top. He was too much the stereotype. It made it hard to identify with him or like him at all. It was difficult for me to forgive him, even in the end. He did seem to redeem himself and allow himself to love and be loved, but I couldn’t get past the terrible way he had treated Ilias and his longsuffering housekeeper for so long.
Because of the tender scenes and the kindness Ara did show, I didn’t hate this book. I think it could have been better if Ilias had stood up for himself sooner and demanded Ara treat him with the respect he deserved. I’m sure many readers will thoroughly enjoy Beast. I’m sorry that I wasn’t one of them.
March 17, 2014
This review can be found at The Blogger Girls review site.
3.5 stars
Ara Costas is not a nice person. Filled with arrogance and selfishness, he’s living the life of the rich and famous until he’s in a dangerous car accident that leaves him disfigured. Scarred and disgusted with himself, he became so reclusive he refused to leave his apartment for anything beyond more surgeries. That is until he hires Ilias as his assistant. Ilias brings out feelings in Ara that he never knew he had. After all, he’s a horrible, superficial person that doesn’t believe in love. Ilias sees something in Ara, though, that makes him want to pursue whatever it is between them but will Ara let Ilias get close? Or will he ruin anything between them before they even get started?
I will freely admit that Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale. This story is a shoo-in for that tale where Ilias is the beauty and Ara is the beast. In this case, Ilias is the perfect one while Ara is scarred and ashamed of his appearance, going so far as to hide in the shadows. Ilias is a sweet, caring person who just wants to help Ara and show him that there’s more to life than what others think and that even with his scars, Ara is still beautiful. Ara, however, is surly and rude. He keeps his distance from Ilias and does everything he can at first to put Ilias off. They are very sweet together once they get over their rocky start.
I had a few issues with this story, though. At first, it was hard for me to get into the book and I think that was because the merging of two distinct writing styles wasn’t a smooth transition. Although, once I got used to it, I was able to overlook that. Another issue I had was that Ara and Ilias’ dialogue at times was very awkward and I felt like there were a lot of repetitiveness to what they were saying, doing and thinking. Beyond that, and this isn’t really an issue, is that in the beginning, Ilias job description is for ‘CEO’ of Ara’s company and I couldn’t really understand that because he acted like an assistant and who would hire a CEO that young who has no experience? BUT looking at the blurb, I realize that Ilias IS an assistant so I think I might have missed that distinction in the text.
Nevertheless, I still liked the story. While I couldn’t get into it at first, once I put it aside for a little bit and got back to it is when I really got into the story. It’s sweet, light and fun at times. It also tells the classic fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast where Ilias, the Beauty, tries to save Ara, the Beast, from his own hatred and make him realize he’s still beautiful, scars and all. For those who like a very sweet romance about loving yourself and accepting love, you’ll like this one as well :)
3.5 stars
Ara Costas is not a nice person. Filled with arrogance and selfishness, he’s living the life of the rich and famous until he’s in a dangerous car accident that leaves him disfigured. Scarred and disgusted with himself, he became so reclusive he refused to leave his apartment for anything beyond more surgeries. That is until he hires Ilias as his assistant. Ilias brings out feelings in Ara that he never knew he had. After all, he’s a horrible, superficial person that doesn’t believe in love. Ilias sees something in Ara, though, that makes him want to pursue whatever it is between them but will Ara let Ilias get close? Or will he ruin anything between them before they even get started?
I will freely admit that Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite fairy tale. This story is a shoo-in for that tale where Ilias is the beauty and Ara is the beast. In this case, Ilias is the perfect one while Ara is scarred and ashamed of his appearance, going so far as to hide in the shadows. Ilias is a sweet, caring person who just wants to help Ara and show him that there’s more to life than what others think and that even with his scars, Ara is still beautiful. Ara, however, is surly and rude. He keeps his distance from Ilias and does everything he can at first to put Ilias off. They are very sweet together once they get over their rocky start.
I had a few issues with this story, though. At first, it was hard for me to get into the book and I think that was because the merging of two distinct writing styles wasn’t a smooth transition. Although, once I got used to it, I was able to overlook that. Another issue I had was that Ara and Ilias’ dialogue at times was very awkward and I felt like there were a lot of repetitiveness to what they were saying, doing and thinking. Beyond that, and this isn’t really an issue, is that in the beginning, Ilias job description is for ‘CEO’ of Ara’s company and I couldn’t really understand that because he acted like an assistant and who would hire a CEO that young who has no experience? BUT looking at the blurb, I realize that Ilias IS an assistant so I think I might have missed that distinction in the text.
Nevertheless, I still liked the story. While I couldn’t get into it at first, once I put it aside for a little bit and got back to it is when I really got into the story. It’s sweet, light and fun at times. It also tells the classic fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast where Ilias, the Beauty, tries to save Ara, the Beast, from his own hatred and make him realize he’s still beautiful, scars and all. For those who like a very sweet romance about loving yourself and accepting love, you’ll like this one as well :)
June 12, 2014
To read my full review, please visit http://onsilverwingz.blogspot.com/201...
Ara is heavily scarred and retreats to live a hermit. His daily schedule is rigid and severe. He runs his company in his private office in his residence and avoids almost all human contact. His new employee, Ilias, is determined to get through to the lonely man and make Ara live a little bit more.
This is a remake of Beauty and the Beast in a corporate world setting. There is definitely a lot of emotion stirred up in the story, especially from Ara. His insecurities, dreams of restoring his face with surgery, and struggles with agoraphobia make up this story. After years of living like a hermit, Ara doesn't know how to react to Ilias in a romance fashion and retreats to his room. Sometimes, it gets tiring to see Ara retreat back into his shell, even though it's normal to have doubts and insecurities. The side characters in the story doesn't make much impact because the story focuses a lot on Ara's growth from a recluse to a confident, caring lover.
I like the slow progress of Ara's romance with Ilias, whose a really strong and sure character. Even though Ilias grew up as a farm boy and barely have any love experience, his heart is in the right place. He knows what is important in life and sees past Ara's scars to the man inside. He's also an avid reader and has a tablet full of ebooks. He's really charming when he makes little plans to open up Ara's heart and get him to live more freely. The build up of their relationship is hard-won and slow, but it's enjoyable to read their progression to being lovers.
Overall, it's a great modern Beauty and the Beast story with a realistic portrayal of the isolation and emotional turmoil of the beast and then the courage needed to face the world again.
*review copy received in exchange for an honest review*
Ara is heavily scarred and retreats to live a hermit. His daily schedule is rigid and severe. He runs his company in his private office in his residence and avoids almost all human contact. His new employee, Ilias, is determined to get through to the lonely man and make Ara live a little bit more.
This is a remake of Beauty and the Beast in a corporate world setting. There is definitely a lot of emotion stirred up in the story, especially from Ara. His insecurities, dreams of restoring his face with surgery, and struggles with agoraphobia make up this story. After years of living like a hermit, Ara doesn't know how to react to Ilias in a romance fashion and retreats to his room. Sometimes, it gets tiring to see Ara retreat back into his shell, even though it's normal to have doubts and insecurities. The side characters in the story doesn't make much impact because the story focuses a lot on Ara's growth from a recluse to a confident, caring lover.
I like the slow progress of Ara's romance with Ilias, whose a really strong and sure character. Even though Ilias grew up as a farm boy and barely have any love experience, his heart is in the right place. He knows what is important in life and sees past Ara's scars to the man inside. He's also an avid reader and has a tablet full of ebooks. He's really charming when he makes little plans to open up Ara's heart and get him to live more freely. The build up of their relationship is hard-won and slow, but it's enjoyable to read their progression to being lovers.
Overall, it's a great modern Beauty and the Beast story with a realistic portrayal of the isolation and emotional turmoil of the beast and then the courage needed to face the world again.
*review copy received in exchange for an honest review*
August 10, 2016
Review also posted on:
I liked this story but sadly I didn’t love it. It’s an easy read, fluffy with some very sweet moments. In my opinion there is very little angst even with one of the MC’s having had a life altering event that leaves him horribly disfigured and struggling to come to terms with how his life has changed.
Before Ara Costa’s fateful accident he was nothing but a spoiled and arrogant young man. Everyone thought he was the most gorgeous man alive and he ran with that never caring about anyone’s feelings leaving more than a few hearts broken along the way. Everything changed for him in a blink of an eye, he went from the party guy to a recluse never venturing out of his apartment except for doctors appointments for the next seven years. He runs his company from home and hires assistants to do whatever needs doing outside the apartment but most don’t last. Ara is a difficult person to work for finding fault with everything and ending up firing his assistants if they haven’t run for the hills already. He’s met his match when he hires Ilias. At first it looks as though Ilias will just be another of those that don’t last but he eventually stands up to Ara which makes Ara look at him in a different way and thus their romance begins.
I actually only have one issue with Beast. As the story moves along it gets sappier and sappier, I needed some drama even just a little would have been great. It is wonderful to see a story where the MC’s love each other almost from their first meeting and as much as these two do with no cheating and no third party trying to cause problems but I needed something more everything was just too easy.
May 15, 2014
This story is a classic fairytale but with a fresh modern twist. In fact Beast is probably the best remake of Beauty and the Beast that I have ever read. It pulls on your heart strings and you can’t help but cheer on Ara and Illias.
Ara is a very deep character. I felt sorry for him, when he wasn’t being a dick. He was so mad at the world, that he made himself into a beautiful beast. After his accident the outside reflected the beast within. After years of being a recluse, Illais walked into his life and slowly helped him live again. I thought it was beautiful that once he admitted to himself that he wasn’t a monster, the scars that he thought ruined his life faded into almost nothing.
Illais is such a sweetie and took a lot crap from Ara. I think my favorite part about him was that he worked so hard to make Ara happy even though he was such an ass to him. It was like he knew there was an amazing man underneath the grouchy exterior. I loved how he treated Ms. Sprigs.
I will admit I got a little teary eyed more than once. The library scene was amazing and a huge tear jerker for me. I applaud Allison and Tracey that scene because after the heart wrenching scene between Illias and his horrible father, I needed something to lift my spirits.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a fantastic fairytale heavy on the romance. You will not regret it.
Ara is a very deep character. I felt sorry for him, when he wasn’t being a dick. He was so mad at the world, that he made himself into a beautiful beast. After his accident the outside reflected the beast within. After years of being a recluse, Illais walked into his life and slowly helped him live again. I thought it was beautiful that once he admitted to himself that he wasn’t a monster, the scars that he thought ruined his life faded into almost nothing.
Illais is such a sweetie and took a lot crap from Ara. I think my favorite part about him was that he worked so hard to make Ara happy even though he was such an ass to him. It was like he knew there was an amazing man underneath the grouchy exterior. I loved how he treated Ms. Sprigs.
I will admit I got a little teary eyed more than once. The library scene was amazing and a huge tear jerker for me. I applaud Allison and Tracey that scene because after the heart wrenching scene between Illias and his horrible father, I needed something to lift my spirits.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a fantastic fairytale heavy on the romance. You will not regret it.
May 3, 2014
It's a bit of a typical modern day beauty and the beast scenario but still the authors take on it were entertaining to read. Not really many ways to change the story but these authors tried. Ara is a arrogant good looking guy. He believes himself above average which is typical of rich good looking guys with the best money can buy. The only thing that changes that is his horrid accident that disfigured him. So he becomes a bit of a recluse and won't leave his home because he's no good looking and doesn't want the media on his tail, etc. In comes Ilias, a farm boy who was the first to get a college education in his family, whose trying to find a job in the city to escape living under his father's rules. He's hired on as Ara's assistant and there begins the challenge between the two.
Ilias was a awesome kid, not naive but sweet and he had his eyes open even though he was a bit introvert. Ara was a jerk but with good reason. I like that they both were kind of getting to know the world better and taking little steps to being more open. It was fun watching the changes occurring between the two due to their association with each other.
It was a little sappy and cliche towards the end but it was sweet.
Ilias was a awesome kid, not naive but sweet and he had his eyes open even though he was a bit introvert. Ara was a jerk but with good reason. I like that they both were kind of getting to know the world better and taking little steps to being more open. It was fun watching the changes occurring between the two due to their association with each other.
It was a little sappy and cliche towards the end but it was sweet.
June 12, 2014
Sweet Twist on a Tale as Old as Time
I am a big Beauty and the Beast fangirl of epic proportions and so any retelling of that tale generally captures my interest. Admittedly, I don't tend to read much M/M romance or erotica, it has to be compelling right from the gate for me and Beast definitely delivered on all levels for me.
I love stories I can lose myself in and tend to forget the "real" world, tales where I find myself either identifying with the characters or downright wishing I possessed some of the qualities. Ilias and Aras are perfect foils for each other, they compliment each other both as characters and the focal point. By the time they consummated their love, it felt believable and etched in stone. There was none of that awkward and oftimes forced segue from "hey, I have feelings for you" to "shall we shag now or later?" four sentences later.
Both Ms. Cassatta and Ms. Michaels have fluid symmetry and are able to blend their unique writing skills together effortlessly to create a "Beauty" out of "Beast." Ladies, my toe socks are officially rocked off.
I am a big Beauty and the Beast fangirl of epic proportions and so any retelling of that tale generally captures my interest. Admittedly, I don't tend to read much M/M romance or erotica, it has to be compelling right from the gate for me and Beast definitely delivered on all levels for me.
I love stories I can lose myself in and tend to forget the "real" world, tales where I find myself either identifying with the characters or downright wishing I possessed some of the qualities. Ilias and Aras are perfect foils for each other, they compliment each other both as characters and the focal point. By the time they consummated their love, it felt believable and etched in stone. There was none of that awkward and oftimes forced segue from "hey, I have feelings for you" to "shall we shag now or later?" four sentences later.
Both Ms. Cassatta and Ms. Michaels have fluid symmetry and are able to blend their unique writing skills together effortlessly to create a "Beauty" out of "Beast." Ladies, my toe socks are officially rocked off.
March 13, 2014
Tale as old as time, two men that are so fine, Beauty and the Beast…
Okay so that’s not quite how the kind old teapot sings it but Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie and once I get this song in my head it tends to get stuck there till I give in and burst out in song.
I’ve read a few variations of the tale and seen a couple of movies that change the story up a bit but Beast is my favorite so far. Before I began reading I wondered how dark this story might get. I haven’t read anything by Tracy Michael previous to this one and the only other Allison Cassatta I’ve read is Sin and Seduction, and if you’ve read that then you know it’s quite…harsh is perhaps a good word. But overall I found the story to be a rather light, non-angsty read.
To read my full review just pop on over to The Blog Of Sid Love http://sidlove.com/2014/03/12/pre-rel...
Okay so that’s not quite how the kind old teapot sings it but Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie and once I get this song in my head it tends to get stuck there till I give in and burst out in song.
I’ve read a few variations of the tale and seen a couple of movies that change the story up a bit but Beast is my favorite so far. Before I began reading I wondered how dark this story might get. I haven’t read anything by Tracy Michael previous to this one and the only other Allison Cassatta I’ve read is Sin and Seduction, and if you’ve read that then you know it’s quite…harsh is perhaps a good word. But overall I found the story to be a rather light, non-angsty read.
To read my full review just pop on over to The Blog Of Sid Love http://sidlove.com/2014/03/12/pre-rel...
May 13, 2014
Beautiful!
I like that in comparison with the original story 'Beauty and the Beast' (B & the B) was that in this book there's a glimpsed of the previous life the Beast had, his vain personality was really shown from the start before he locked himself from his castle(apartment ^_^). Unlike in the B & the B wherein what you will immediately feel for the Beast was sympathy in this book you will know how vain and cruel he really was which will make us think if he really deserved what happened to him or deserves a 2nd chance not in the physical sense but deserving forgiveness from himself and especially from others.
I like that in comparison with the original story 'Beauty and the Beast' (B & the B) was that in this book there's a glimpsed of the previous life the Beast had, his vain personality was really shown from the start before he locked himself from his castle(apartment ^_^). Unlike in the B & the B wherein what you will immediately feel for the Beast was sympathy in this book you will know how vain and cruel he really was which will make us think if he really deserved what happened to him or deserves a 2nd chance not in the physical sense but deserving forgiveness from himself and especially from others.
April 15, 2015
Ara: Oh, I‘m so scarred and disgusting, don‘t look at me. Also, we‘ll never be friends.
Ilias: Wanna watch a movie?
Ara: Sure.
Ilias: ::falls asleep, drools on Ara::
Ara: DONT‘T TOUCH ME!
Ilias: omg, you hurt me with your panic attacks from the horrible disfiguring accident that you should have overcome already. WHY DID YOU HURT ME SO? Ooh, your cologne is nice.
Ara: runs around balcony.
Housekeeper: just fuck already. And do not use any lube and condoms!
Ilias&Ara: OK!
Authors: we have no idea about business or reconstructive surgery, or post traumatic stress, and about character building or writing in general. Yay!
Me: why I do this to myself I do not know.
Ilias: Wanna watch a movie?
Ara: Sure.
Ilias: ::falls asleep, drools on Ara::
Ara: DONT‘T TOUCH ME!
Ilias: omg, you hurt me with your panic attacks from the horrible disfiguring accident that you should have overcome already. WHY DID YOU HURT ME SO? Ooh, your cologne is nice.
Ara: runs around balcony.
Housekeeper: just fuck already. And do not use any lube and condoms!
Ilias&Ara: OK!
Authors: we have no idea about business or reconstructive surgery, or post traumatic stress, and about character building or writing in general. Yay!
Me: why I do this to myself I do not know.
March 19, 2014
2.5 stars. Started off good since I'm a sucker for Beauty and the Beast type stories. Ara definitely got on my nerves by the end of the book. Not a bad writing team, but they lost me along the way after about 40%.
March 25, 2014
A cute love story about acceptance and change. Loved the characters and I also liked the fact that the relationship didn't progress too quickly. Love takes time and this book showed that. My only disappointment with this book is that the steamy loves scenes were too few, though the ones that were there were very good ;)
March 26, 2014
This would have been a lot better book if it had been a little more harsh and gritty. However, as I kept reminding myself while I was reading, it's based on a fairy tale and the writing style reflects that and does it very well. It grew on me as I read.
March 16, 2014
I love love love this book. I hated Ara at first, but he won me over. Ilias, first.. squeee i love that name & I love his bookworm habits. So me. Adore the way this book progressed it's believable with raw real emotions & smexy scenes. I need more. Just saying.
March 20, 2014
My full review of this book can be found on Booklikes: http://myfictionnook.booklikes.com/po...
I enjoyed reading this.
I enjoyed reading this.
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