Astrid Yrigollen

This is a tough book to review. There were parts of it that I absolutely loved, and then there were things about it that made me want to chuck it out the window. I'm rating it right down the middle as a three but with some editing this could be rated much higher.

This is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. After an attempted rape at the hands of the mayor's son, Claren must flee her home and try to live on her own. She finds employment with a Mr. Brighton who eventually invites her to his home in the country hoping she will befriend his disfigured son.

The Good:
I loved the setting. The book is set sometime in the far future after a "Great War." There is lots of technological advance, but at the same time, dress and social norms have reverted to those of Victorian society. This was a really interesting mashup of steampunk and dystopia. Although this book is mainly about Claren, there's enough material here for the author to write prequels with even more of a dystopian slant.

I also loved the characters. They were each unique and did develop throughout the story. I especially loved the interplay between Horace and Dekker. Their begrudging friendship and competition was fun to read.

The story was really interesting and held my attention despite the other failings of the book. I never quite knew what to expect and always wanted to know what would happen next.

The Bad:
The point of view changes continually throughout the story and I do not believe it was done intentionally. Within the same paragraph the point of view changes from third person to first. This is jarring, confusing and generally annoying. I would give examples but this happens most often during main plot points and I don't want to give anything away.

I also did not find the dialogue completely believable. While I appreciate the Victorian speech, the interplay between the characters was sometimes corny.

About three-quarters of the way through the book there are two or three chapters of back-story. This caused a major pacing issue for me. Just when the book was working up to its climax, we take a break from the plot to learn about the history of a couple of the characters. While this information is necessary to the resolution of the plot, I think it could have been interwoven throughout the book instead of dumped on the reader all at once.

Overall, I really did enjoy this story. I read it quickly and was entertained throughout. If you are willing to overlook the faults in the point of view and pacing I think you will be pleasantly surprised at the original settings and plot.

Note: I received a copy of this book for free from the author through YA Novel Reader tours in exchange for my review. All opinions are 100% honest and my own.

… (meer)

The first thing that caught my attention was of course the cover. I am a huge fan of the anime and manga genre so this was enough to make me want to read "His black wings". Then of course was this mention: `"Beauty and The Beast" meets "Jane Eyre..."'. There is this trend lately, re-creations of classical stories or fairytales and I am always curious to see what an author could create. Unfortunately I haven't got the chance to read "Jane Eyre", but I could definitely see the influence of the "Beauty and the Beast" in anime style and I simply loved it, from the beginning `till the end.

Claren was a pleasant character to follow. She was not totally helpless and she could make some smart decisions when needed. The thing that I loved the most was the loved story, more exactly the slow evolution of the relationship. Shortly said, this book was not rushed, it took time to show the natural evolution of the relationships between characters. I am sorry, but I am sick of instant love stories and this was a breath of fresh air.

The world was incredible detailed described and thanks to the writing style, it was easy to imagine myself in the middle of the landscapes.… (meer)

It's not often that I am pleasantly surprised. I read the first couple of chapters in a book and I usually know what tempo the rest of it is going to take.While the first few pages were detailed,laying ground work and what not, I thought that perhaps the rest of the book was going to be wordy, Victorian, flowery speech up the hoohoo. Now at the end of this book I have one things to say. Astrid Yrigollen has left me lusting for more.Set in the future sometimes yet drawing upon the past with a revival of Victorian dress,manner and speech I was in heaven.Cast aside the cover or the few editing errors and let yourself fall in love with the world, people and story that Yrigollen has created.Awesome effort for a self pubbed and not a moment was wasted reading it.I can easily see this book being made into a movie with some hunky babe as Etrigan.… (meer)