Curse of the Beast

Curse of the Beast #1

By: Ashley Lavering

Narrated by: Ali Cheff

***Special Curse of the Beast song at the end of audiobook: "Fallen Star"!***

A dark shadow stalks the night, watching her--waiting to claim what is his.

Seventeen-year-old Tayla Jonas longs for a simple life, but after a traumatizing family loss she is forced to be both mother and sister to her cousins while caring for her mentally unstable aunt. Moving to her grandma's quiet town of Cody, Wyoming, Tayla finds some normalcy with her quirky green-activist friend, Chel, who wastes no time converting her to vegetarianism.

After a few weeks at her new school, Tayla catches the eye of Kyle Harrington, the high school quarterback and resident millionaire who can seduce any girl with his charismatic charm, including Tayla. But Kyle is anything but what he seems.

An ancient curse has her in its crosshairs, and a powerful werewolf claims her. Dismayed by the prospect of a werewolf for a shadow, Tayla fears for the safety of her friends and family. How will she keep the werewolf's insatiable hunger in check? Her plans for a vegetarian lifestyle quickly dwindle away, and Tayla wrestles to fit her frazzled life back together piece by piece. But what she didn't expect was her attraction to the werewolf or the power of the full moon.

Will Tayla be strong enough to survive the curse of the beast? Or will it consume her like so many before? Find out in the first installment of this unique retelling of Beauty and the Beast. A clean young-adult paranormal romance.

©2012 Ashley Lavering (P)2015 Ashley Lavering

A WELL WRITTEN MODERN A TALE TWIST

THIS WELL WRITTEN MODERN FAIRY TALE TWIST OFF OF BEAUTY AND THE BEAST IS ABSOLUTELY GREAT. EXTREMELY WELL WRITTEN PARANORMAL FANTASY.
ACCEPTABLE FOR SLIGHTLY MORE MATURE AUDIENCE
THE STORYLINE IS WELL WRITTEN AND EASY TO FOLLOW
THE NARRATOR ALI CHEFF IS ALSO GREAT AND EASY TO FOLLOW

Enticing twist on a classic tale!

I really enjoyed this story! It kept me engaged and entertained throughout. I look forward to reading the next book to see how the story ends!!!

Great PG rated Beauty and the Beast retelling

Any additional comments?

I love fairy tale retellings, but I am a VERY picky reader. That said, this book went beyond my expectations. I would never have thought to put Beauty and the Beast in a paranormal setting--with werewolves. It makes sense when you stop to consider the possibilities, but the author has not only woven werewolf legends into the story, but has also brought them into the foreground in a way that the reader can appreciate the depth and complexity of the plot. This novel opens with a prologue--a werewolf legend (in 3rd person) as it is happening in the past. This legend becomes key to the rest of the book. It then jumps back to fist person with Tayla, at a high school football game, but Tayla is no cheerleader, although she is pursued by the football star and small town millionaire--Kyle--throughout much of the book. I loved that Tayla was a vegetarian, especially when she ended up hanging out with a werewolf. Much of the humor came from this character's quirk. Her best friend, Chel, was raised as a green rights activist with her parents and is responsible for Tayla's vegetarian change of heart. This brings an interesting twist into the story when Tayla has to hide her new double life from her best friend.

I appreciated the quick pace of the story. There were no long, drawn-out descriptions or wordy monologues. The setting is in Wyoming, near Yellowstone National Park. I LOVED this element of the book. I've been to the area she describes, and she stayed true to the setting. I appreciate when an author takes the time to bring the real world into their story.

There were several moments where my heart jumped in fright, I had no idea where the plot was heading, and several moments where I burst out laughing. The love triangles in this story keep you on your toes while still maintaining a PG rating, though, I'll admit that I'm somewhat in love with Beast. Why can't men in real life be like that? Oh, and if any men are wondering if this is only chick-friendly, there's plenty of action with the wolves to keep any heart pounding.

While this is only book one of this series, the plot has a satisfactory ending of its own as Tayla finds her own personal empowerment and the courage to let go of her past. The family dynamics of this story are also unique. I won't give them away, but I liked how the author created a nontraditional/blended family while weaving in the mystery of what happened to Tayla's real parents.

If you like romance, suspense, paranormal, werewolves, fairy tales, and even ghost stories, DON'T miss this one.

Curse of the beast

I really hate it when the book I am reading ends suddenly in a cliffhanger ending at a really emotionally charged moment.

High school girl and wolf in the woods

The book was okay, it was just a tad boring. Honestly, the writing was subpar to the other retellings I have read in this genre. Mostly, it lacked an emotional pull for me. I wanted to like Beast as an anti-hero but I wasn't sure if he was supposed to be her man or her dad because it got a little weird during the unraveling of her family tree. for a beauty and the beast retelling, I wasn't feeling the love at all. They weren't enemies, but they didn't connect for most of the book either. I will read book 2 before I decide about the series.

BTW, I liked the song at the end of the audio that the author wrote.