Carole's Monday: As old as time

Author: Liz Braswell

Title: As Old as Time (Twisted Tales #3)

Genre: YA, fantasy, Romance, Retellings

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 484

Published: September 6th, 2016

Where I Got It: My shelf (Xmas gift from a friend)

Summary: 

What if Belle's mother cursed the Beast?

When Belle touches the Beast's enchanted rose, memories flood through Belle's mind — memories of a mother she thought she would never see again. And, stranger still, she sees that her mother is none other than the beautiful enchantress who cursed the castle and all its inhabitants.

Shocked and confused, Belle and the Beast will have to unravel a dark mystery about their families that is 21 years in the making.

Review:

This has been sitting on my bookshelf for a while. A late friend of mine had given this to me as a Xmas gift a while back. Finally decided to dust this off and read it. This is technically book #3, but all the books can be read standalone and in any order you want. 

In this retelling, Belle and her father barely remember Belle's mother. After saving her father from the Beast, Rose touches the Beast's enchanted rose and memories flood through Belle's mind. Memories of her mother...and the fact that her mother was the Enchanctress who cursed the Beast and his kingdom. Shocked and confused, Belle and the Beast will have to unravel a dark mystery about their families and how to break the curse. 

I simply adored the twists and changes they did to the original story. We got some explanations on why an 11-year-old was cursed. And why he was an adult with an adult painting of himself. Very Dorian Grey! Love it!

I also really adore the scenes showing Belle's mother's story at the same time. I'm honestly on her side....maybe not such a crazy curse on the little Prince BUT it all worked out I guess lol. 

Ooh! It is SO hard not to give away spoilers for sure. This would be a good book to have a discussion about. Certainly a good book club book ;)

Now, I will say the beginning seemed to drag on and had me worried. It seemed like a copy-paste from the movie and I was bored. However, as soon as we were able to see more and more (especially from Madame Enchantress' POV) the more I became intrigued and the more I could not stop reading. So yes...a slow burn indeed.

I do wish we had more of an epilogue. I want more! I feel like there is WAY more story to share. 

In the end, I enjoyed this quite a bit. It was a slow burn and I wish I had more, but I enjoyed what I had. Yes, this was a fun retelling and I loved the backstory and all the twists and turns. I for recommend it if you love the original. 4 stars from me. 

Challenge(s):

- TBR Reading Challenge (#3)