I’ve read so many re tellings and I am always apprehensive when starting a new one. This is the reason. I just found it really boring and didn’t connect to the characters at all. Took me far too long to finish it too.

I haven't finished this book yet but I am thoroughly enjoying it.

I like the story of Beauty and the Beast and have read several versions of the story but I hadn't come across one from the Beast's perspective. I like that he isn't a horrible beast but has glimpses of humanity and kindness in him.

Isabeau is a lovely, brave character, sacrificing herself to save her father and sisters. I like her quiet sense of confidence and how she is beginning to learn more about the Beast.

I will continue to enjoy this one and will post again once I have finished. I have high hopes for the ending!

This was also well written that I certainly cannot fault it on: but despite this, I at times felt a real disconnect within the narrative: I just did not feel emotionally connected to the characters at all.
This was also a trifle longwinded and took ages to get to the point I do think this would be better served compacted down slightly, I do feel this story could have been told with a smaller page count. Don't get me wrong: I love a long book, but not when it's not adding much to the story besides needless page filler.
I got bored with the slow pace and there just seemed pages when the Beast and Isabeau were not really doing anything interesting: just reading and walking, playing music, then it all looped back around and just repeated It was these times that I found myself skimming slightly.

If you don’t like reviews that are considered negative then please avert your eyes now.

I’ll give you this sentence to make the decision as to whether you want to read on. Ready?

I started this book on the 30th January and twelve days later (today on the 10th February) when I looked to see how far through the book I had gotten I almost sobbed to see I was only 45% of the way through.

How had it taken me twelve days to not even reach half way through??

Simply put, the reason is this: The Beast’s Heart was one of the most boring books that I’ve read.

There were multitudes of things that I ended up doing instead of returning to read this book. I grouted the bathroom. Guys listen…. I grouted my bathroom. That should have been the screaming red signal I needed to just put this one gracefully aside.

But as I didn’t want to mark this as a DNF I finished the rest of it today. I say ‘read’ but I skimmed over a lot. Still, I managed to follow the story as what was skimmed over was a whole lot of descriptions of nothing.
I’m afraid I’m going to be blunt.

This is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast and what appealed to me about it was that it was telling the original story through the eyes of the beast.

What I wanted was a tense portrayal of someone trapped inside a twisted version of his body and existing in a life filled with such crippling loneliness and longing that it drives him to behave in desperate ways.

What I got was an emo version of the beast who just moped, whinged and moped some more. First he moped over his loneliness and then over a woman who wouldn’t love him romantically.

Even when this version of beauty (Isabeau) told him she loved him as a friend he would sulk in his room that he didn’t want to be her ‘friend’ because ‘friends’ didn’t spend that much time together talking and bonding.

Nice Guy tendencies do not a personality make.

That’s ok because at least Isabeau had a shining, spirited personality, right? WRONG.

If the beast had no personality than I’m at a loss to describe Isabeau. Her time was spend gasping, going for walks, playing the virginal, gasping, drifting around aimlessly, gasping, sulking and gasping.

To say I didn’t care for either of the main characters is an understatement and that’s a huge problem for a book like this because the success of the story hinges on the fact that we are invested in them and their budding romantic relationship.

At least there was a riveting, terse plot though, right? WRONG.

The story is set within the beasts castle which is gorgeously described (oh don’t worry, I’m coming to that in a second). The main characters go on a lot of walks and eat a lot of dinners together (except when Isabeau is sulking), read and play music.

That’s it. The only saving grace to the story is when the beast spies on Isabeau’s fam with a magic mirror and watches as her significantly more interesting sisters begin their own romantic stories. But even then there was three pages dedicated to a suitor providing a sister with oranges in exchange for her washing his handkerchief.

I just….

I don’t know.

I mean I do know. The writer tried to adapt the original fairy tale in full faithfulness but what works for a fairy tale doesn’t work for 400+ pages of novel. There needs to be something more.

Sadly, the writing style also put me off. Because the writer was trying to be faithful to the original it meant that the prose was written to be very 1700’s esque (this is not an easy or flowing style).

Also, because of this faithfulness the writer then had to stretch out a short fairy tale into 400+ pages and so this meant everything had to be described in grandiose ways. Even the most straightforward act i.e. walking from one room to the next, had to be protracted. I don’t need three paragraphs of someone walking down a staircase (no matter how grand the wrought iron banisters are) – I just don’t.

The repetition of sentences also occurred, not just in theme, but using the exact language. If I was told the beast ‘eschewed the company and advances of women’ once I was told a million times.

It’s strange that this is pitched as YA because I don’t see it. If this was pitched as a literaryesque version of Beauty and the Beast I could have squinted and seen it.

I’m sure the author is lovely and this review doesn’t reflect on her as a person. Her bio says she won the 2016 Aurealis Award for Best YA Short Story and as The Beasts Heart is her debut novel I wonder if its a case of just ensuring that there is enough original material at an appropriate length.

I wish her well with her next book.

Thank you NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with a copy for review.

This novel is essentially a retelling of Beauty and the Beast from the perspective of the beast. Unlike most modern retellings that completely take the story out of the recognised conventions and settings of the original, this novel retains the fantastical aspects and history of the original story whilst still adding its own twists. 

The writing in this story is very magical and descriptive and almost feels like it has the voice and tone that is associated with classic fairytales. I found it difficult to get into and the writing, though lovely, often felt a little over the top though which is why I only gave it an average rating though. It is a good story with a great concept, but I definitely feel like there was potential for it to be even better.

I love a beauty and the beast retelling so I was looking forward to this so much, but sadly it failed to hit the mark for me. It was slow and although sometimes books can be slow to start this didn’t seem to pick up pace at all. There was no chemistry at all between the two leads. Disappointing as I was hoping for so much more.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

Now I am such a big fan of anything remotely related to the fairy tale "Beauty And The Beast" so when I saw this a narration of my favourite childhood fable but told from the beast POV a totally unique concept and one that I had never encountered before: well I just had to read it.
Sadly this didn't quite live up to my grand expectations which really is a shame as this was one book I was ever so looking forward to indulging myself with.
Now first I just want to say the front cover on this is absolutely gorgeous and for that reason alone I would have given this a try its simply stunning: a real eye-catcher.
So as I mentioned earlier this is told solely from the Beasts POV a real selling point for me as it was just such a unique concept.
The language used here was of such a lyrical quality and the whole story had an old world feel to it, in style and narration: fitting considering the time this was set in.
This at times also came across as charming and had almost a magical ambience about it.
The Beast himself was such a lonely solitary individual imprisoned behind the magical gates of his vast estate for such an age: you could taste his desolation and sense of abandonment at times he seemed almost confused by the hand he had been dealt.
Isabeau though outwardly charmed also didn't seem that enamoured of the Beast despite her turnaround and eventual declaration I thought she came across here as slightly cold and disconnected and if I had to peg her feelings I would say she felt more friendship than any great passion here, the love here felt more one-sided to me.
I actually prefered the Beast myself he just seemed more genuine in his interactions.
Maybe that is because I got to play around in his head whereas Isabeau it was just guesswork.
This was also well written that I certainly cannot fault it on: but despite this, I at times felt a real disconnect within the narrative: I just did not feel emotionally connected to the characters at all.
This was also a trifle longwinded and took ages to get to the point I do think this would be better served compacted down slightly, I do feel this story could have been told with a smaller page count.
Don't get me wrong I love a good long book but not when it's not adding much to the story just needless page filler.
I got bored with the slow pace and there just seemed pages when the Beast and Isabeau were not really doing anything interesting: just reading and walking, playing music, then it all looped back around and just repeated It was these times that I found myself skimming slightly.
I think my favourite part here was having that window from the Beasts magic Mirror into Isabeau's family life now that I did like and thought it was a nice touch.
So yeh positives and negatives for me this in itself is predominantly a romance and a very clean one at that: I am glad I read it as I did enjoy it to a degree it just wasn't completely what I thought it was going to be, I think this would maybe work much better with a younger audience than me.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of The Beasts Heart
All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Received a free copy from NetGalley

This book was not my cup of tea, the plot sounded promising enough and caught my attention but i felt the book didn't deliver

One of my favourite classic fairytail and it was an absolute pleasure to read this novel which I ended up buying from the kindle store to keep.

Coming from the beasts POV, it was a refreshing and thrilling story I enjoyed very much. Beautifully descriptive and imaginative throughout with elements of the disney version. I cared very much for each of the characters in the book. I would say though, the book could have been cut down a little to add in more at the end. I would have liked to have seen more of the beast as a man and how he manages to cope with his personal problems as I found earlier in the book, it got repetitive.

Enjoyable 4 stars.

I loved this, any beauty and the beast retelling is perfect for me, I will read it!

I loved the Beast's POV, I loved the language, the interactions between the characters and the love story! Just so beautiful. For me this ticked all the boxes!

Just excellent :)

This book was not for me, unfortunately. I thought that the language was over the top and really heavy and over the top. I also thought that it ruined the relationship between the Beauty and the Beast for me. Only due to the issue of how creepy the way they met was.

I just wished there had been a little more substance to the story.

Beauty and the Beast retold from the Beast's perspective, great idea and well executed. I really liked his voice, he felt honest, real and visceral.
Thoroughly enjoyable and a really good read.

This is a Beauty and the Beast retelling that sticks very close to the original fairy tale except that it is told from the Beasts point of view.

This novel sticks very close to the original fairy tale however it is told through the point of view of the Beast. In this tale after the Beast is cursed he spends over a century in solitude until one day a lone traveller in need of shelter comes across his castle and the Beast decides to offer him a warm meal and a place to sleep. However, during the night the Beast is given a glance into the traveller’s dreams in which he sees Isabeau, the traveller’s daughter. In his desperate want of company he threatens to harm the traveller if he does not send her to him. He then makes a bargain with Isabeau for her to spend a year with him in his castle.
We spend most of this novel with the Beast and Isabeau in his castle and get to watch as he falls madly in love with her. I am a massive fan of angst romances and I can happily say that this was angst from start to finish.

One of the things I loved about this was that while we spend most of the novel in the Beast’s castle with the Beast and Isabeau we also get t see the lives of Isabeau’s sisters and Father and how they are coping without her. I really enjoyed this as not only did it bring a change of scenery to the novel but we also get to see the character development that the sister go through.

I also loved the writing throughout this as the author does a wonderful job of bringing both the book to life.
Trigger warnings for attempted suicide.

Overall, this is by far my favourite Beauty and the Beast retelling and I gave it 5 out of 5 stars.

I absolutely loved this story! I fell in love with the characters and think this is a wonderful retelling. I’d definitely read it again and am recommending it to everyone I know!

Wow!

I have read a lot of Beauty and the Beast retellings, but never from the Beast's perspective, which was very refreshing. I loved his reactions and thoughts to Belle and the plot was beautifully portrayed. I couldn't even put it down- I loved it!

Highly recommend to anyone who is a fan of fairytale retellings! :)

This story was really slow. Not really a retelling as just the original story under a different name and told from the beast’s perspective. I really struggled with the language which felt really over the top and flowery.

The Beast’s Heart is a beautiful retelling of the classic fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. Told from the Beast’s perspective we get a great insight into his past, what led to his curse and his feelings for Isabeau as their relationship develops.

Shallcross creates a rich and dark world with her flowing prose and wonderful world building. Although she sticks very close to the original, her writing style does bring added depth to the emotion and turmoil for the story, drawing you into this well loved tale.

Sadly the main flaw with this book is that it really doesn’t give us a new take on the original. Although there is a greater focus on the lives of Isabeau’s family whilst she’s with the beast, we don’t really see this play out in full which leaves an unfinished feel to the story. I would loved to have seen some unexpected twists thrown in to add something a little unique. That added to the fantastic storytelling and descriptive writing style would have made this a 5 star read for me. Instead I think it’s more a 3.5 to 4 star book.

If you enjoy a classic fairytale retelling that stays true to the original, The Beast’s Heart is a great example.

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher (Hodder & Stoughton) for providing a copy. All opinions are my own and provided willingly.

Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for the Advance Review Copy.

This book is a reimagining of the Beauty and the Beast story from the Beast's perspective. I'm not really sure what is supposed to be reimagined from it as it seemed pretty much like the same story to me. I am a massive Beauty and the Beast fan. As in I have been insanely obsessed with it for my whole life so if there's a retelling, I'm gonna read it.

The book started quite promisingly, and when I read the description of the Fairy that cursed the Prince I thought she sounded awesome. That was maybe as exciting as things got for me. The main issue for me was the overly flowery and descriptive language. It reminded me of when I used to need to reach the word count for an essay so I rambled on and on and included lots of unnecessary words. I found it really distracting and it made some parts really boring. Some things felt a little too similar to the Disney version to me too e.g. the cracked mirror, the destroyed portraits.

Reading the book from the Beast's perspective also just made the story even more weird and creepy than it should be. Deliberately luring Isabeau to the castle and then spying on her and her family. Urgh. We didn't even get any sexy chemistry for our troubles.

For someone who hasn't read as many Beauty and the Beast adaptations as me, it would probably be more enjoyable. As it is, it was inevitable that I would end up comparing this book to those and unfortunately for me it didn't quite measure up.

I have a soft spot for Beauty and the Beast retellings. The Beast's Heart, which is from the Beast's point of view was something which stood out, as so often we follow Beauty.
I found that, of the retellings I have read recently, this one followed the original fairly closely. I have to say that I thought that The Beast was an interesting character, and it was refreshing to read about a male character who felt a whole range of emotions and cried.
The basis for the Beauty and the Beast tale is one, which can often be problematic and The Beast's Heart does not escape that. The repeated proposals on the part of the Beast do become a little much after all we should be teaching that 'no means no'. Though this paled in comparison to the manipulations which Isabeau's father subjected her to, especially his suicide attempt towards the end of the book. Isabeau was caught between the emotional manipulation of both her father and the Beast at the end of the book and that did make me rather uncomfortable.
There were a few interesting additions to the story, which make this tale unique. There was a whole cast of character's which I had fallen in love with by the end of the story, including Isabeau's sisters.
If you like Beauty and the Beast retellings then I would defintely recommend The Beast's Heart as something a little different. It was really refreshing to read the other side of the story.

This is such a fantastic retelling of Beauty and the Beast! It is carefully written to link it to he original French story. It is just a completely magical read! I was in complete awe of the writing, wanting to just crawl into Leife's creative mind! Such a fantastic debut novel, so thankful for the opportunity to read it!