Beastly by Alex Flinn Review

Title: Beastly

Author: Alex Flinn

Genre: Young Adult, Fairy Tale Retelling

Page Count: 336 pages

Book Type: Movie-tie-in Paperback

Publisher: HarperTeen

ISBN: 9780061963285

Picture from Amazon

From Goodreads: Love is never ugly

Now a major motion picture starring Vanessa Hudgens and Alex Pettyfer

I am a beast. A beast! Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll,stay this way forever—ruined—unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly . . . beastly.

My Review: I like the cover for this movie-tie-in edition! I usually am not too much of a fan of when they change the covers for movies, but this one is pretty good. I do like the original more, but Bookperk was offering a deal for this one and a cute lipstick that I couldn’t pass up.

This was the first time I have read a fairy tale retelling and I am really excited to read some more. It was fun to see the story I grew up with morphed into the modern world. My favorite part of the book was the chatroom sequences! I loved the glimpse at all of the characters from the fairy tales we know and love. Kyle Kingsbury (aka “Adrian”) was funny as the beast and I found myself starting to like him as a character. I love how we see Kyle’s whole transformation from start to finish.  

This may be a first (and last) for me, but I think I actually enjoyed the movie more than the book! I know, I know, that never happens. I liked the transformation of the beast (looks wise) in the movie more than the book. I enjoyed both of them, but maybe the visual edge of the movie prevailed. Can I also say that Neil Patrick Harris as the tutor was amazing? His role was fantastic. I also loved Miss Olsen as Kendra. No more “Full House” for her!

Have you read this one? Have you seen the movie? Do you prefer the book or the movie? Also, are there any book to movie adaptations where you actually prefer the movie?