Seeing Beauty

by Eliza Prokopovits

Every year, a girl is chosen from somewhere in the kingdom. No one knows where she is taken.

When she returns a year later, she is unharmed, but she is… different.

Changed. Skittish. Quiet.

And this year?

I am the chosen.


Seeing Beauty is a clean and cozy standalone YA retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Beauty and The Beast, Magic

ebook

Published July 1, 2025

Reviews

[Britt Galbraith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This sweet and wholesome novella is a YA fairytale retelling of Beauty & the Beast. 🌹

Every year a girl is chosen from the kingdom and is gone for a year. No one knows where she is taken and when she comes back, she is unharmed but different. This year, Beauty is chosen. 💕

In this retelling, there are no magically enchanted objects in the castle. 🏰 Rather, there are human servants are terrified of the beast and work behind the scenes. And Beauty has mysterious dreams…

This sweet novella is ideal for very young YA readers in terms of writing, content, and length.

Favorite parts:
🎶 Piano lessons & the music box
📚 Reading together in the library
🌸 Walks in the garden
🧹 Cleaning the castle rooms together (His dust allergy & sneezes)
💕 When Beauty chooses to think about the Beast’s experiences and his point of view
💕 The acts of kindness and selflessness

💋 Intimacy level 1: kisses only

🚫 No profanity

⚔️ Mild PG violence: One fight scene and one dream of war (brief mention of blood but not gore)

Content: mention of famine, flood, and war

🧚🏻Magic: fairies, sorceress, enchanted beast, and enchanted island

[Charissa James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this unique take on the Beauty and the Beast story. It was a quick and relaxing read. A perfect palate-cleanser when you're just in the mood for something different. I especially appreciated the different focus on beauty in this story. Instead of a heroine that is known for being beautiful, this heroine found that she made the things around her beautiful. Whether that was through the cleaning of long unused rooms in the Beast's castle or seeing past an otherwise ugly exterior to a beautiful potential. This story inspired me to think about the beauty around me every day.

[Zeest · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was nicely done! The charaters were relatable, with the right amount of fear and resignation at the beginning. Beauty isn't a pigheaded, irresponsible oath-breaker who stays at home with her sisters for too long, and her sisters are lovely and supportive, too.

Plus, we get to see her actually falling for Beast and wanting his company over that of her sisters', which makes her arc more realistic.

Makes for a nice, light read in a single sitting :)

[Kiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seeing Beauty by Eliza Prokopovits is a wonderful retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

I loved this retelling, it was so different. The slow burn was amazing, and the communication was great. The inner thoughts of the FMC were very nice and thought out. I loved the dedication to the MMC to the female lead. Such a cute story.

[OldBird · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute retelling of BotB you can find on the author's website. Not your usual dark or Disney version, there's original content to be found with Beauty, Beast, and her sisters. A zippy pace and a focus on the characters within the plot make it a quick and cozy read.

[Brian Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story! There are so many Beauty and the Beast retellings, it’s amazing anyone has a fresh take on it. But hers is clever and new, and I was immediately hooked. Thoroughly enjoyable. I would love to read more of her stories, but they aren’t Kindle Unlimited…. 😕

[Hannah Reeves · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! I could not put it down!!!! it was clean and heartwarming and I can't think of a single thing I disliked! Easy 5 stars!! Thank you Book funnel for the free ebook! Now I want to buy this book so I can read it over and over!!

[H J Palmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is highly enjoyable. It is sweet and clean, with good fantasy elements and morals. There are one or two minor plot issues that are common in an author's early works, but nothing major. For fans of Melanie Cellier, Brittany Fitcher, Kenley Davidson.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun retelling of Beauty and the Beast! I absolutely loved every moment of this story!

It's clean, unique, hopeful, heart-warming and so beautiful!

The story is woven with so many beautiful moments that make this story rich and authentic! It's beautiful!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story.

Content: clean

[Shiloh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, clean, light read.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very fun take on the old classic. It is a large part of the reason Eliza Prokopovits is my current favorite living author.

[Melissa Kahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book. Easy to read and so well thought out. Loved the characters.

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beauty and the Beast remains my favorite fairytale, and this is an excellent version.

[aem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice reimagining of Beauty and the Beast.

[Fairy Tale and Fantasy Fan Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always found it interesting when authors write two or more books based on the same fairy. Seeing Beauty is Eliza Prokopovits second retelling of Beauty and the Beast and it is as good as The Beast’s Magician. The books title fits the message of the book perfectly and I liked how Beauty has dreams of a mysterious young man just like in the original. It was also nice that Beauty got along with her sisters who were called Grace and Joy. Their relationship and names reminded me of other retellings by authors Robin McKinley and Cameron Dokey. My only complaint is that the story could be a bit slow at times but given how this book is not very long this is a minor gripe. I look forward to reading more by this author especially her upcoming book which is a retelling of my favorite fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon! Can’t wait!!

4/22/2026
I reread Seeing Beauty in a day and it was just as good as I remembered.