Sarah Boucher | Authors

Becoming Beauty by Sarah Boucher Blog Tour and Review

25 Nov, 2014 by Heather in blog tour, fairytale retelling, sweetwater books Leave a comment

I received this book for free from Sweetwater Press in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Becoming Beauty

by Sarah Boucher
Published by Sweetwater on November 11, 2014
Genres: Adult, Fairytale
Pages: 256
Format: Paperback
three-half-stars

Source: Sweetwater Press
Goodreads

Claws. Long, filthy, and dangerously sharp.

They’re the first thing Bella sees after what’s been the worst day of her life. If Bella were the quintessential Beauty—gorgeous, kindhearted, and self-sacrificing—she might have a chance at transforming this monster into a man, but she’s never been the toad-kissing kind. Obsessed with landing a wealthy nobleman and escaping her humdrum life, Bella will stop at nothing to achieve her goals. Which is precisely what landed her here, at the mercy of the Beast.

In this imaginative retelling of Beauty and the Beast, Bella's sense of entitlement strains both her family's finances and patience. As punishment for her selfishness, she's sent into the Beast's service where she must choose whether to follow the path she's always dreamed of—or risk it all for something even greater.

I have really mixed feelings about Becoming Beauty. The book was well written and it’s a great twist in a fairytale we all know. The cover is gorgeous! However, I just couldn’t relate to or fully fall in love with the main characters. There were three of them, and I just kept holding out, hoping I could connect– but it never happened. Belle is incredibly self- centered and selfish for quite a bit of the opening scenes, and then at times she is overly pushy and dramatic. Beast has his control freak, grumpy, “slight” anger managements issues going boiling beneath the surface. And, Jack–well, he seems a bit to self sacrificing and codependent for my liking. I wanted to see more relationship development between Belle and the man she gives her heart to, it seemed rushed. While I didn’t fully connect with any of them, I will say I enjoyed the story.

The author adds plot twists, shows transformation of characters and weaves in a lot of magic with a cursed, or maybe enchanted ruby pendant. There is romantic tension and a great lesson at the end about family. It’s a clean read, and a creative re-working of Beauty and the Beast. Well done and I’m interested in reading any more fairy tale twists Sarah Boucher comes up with! And a request to Sweetwater Books…more covers like this one please!

About the Author

Mild-mannered kindergarten teacher by day and self-proclaimed scribbler by night, Sarah’s inner fairytale junkie takes center stage with the release of her premier novel Becoming Beauty.

The discovery of a mystery about pants (penned in the second grade) reveals both her lifelong love of storytelling and cute clothes. With countless stories about makeovers cluttering up her hard drive and a walk-in closet bursting with sassy high heels and handbags, Sarah’s obsession with dressing up is unmatched. That, paired with her interest in fairytales, led to the birth of Bella, the heroine of Becoming Beauty.

When she’s not embroiled in either teaching or penning a new tale, cheesy music, movies that cause her to snort while laughing, baking (especially if chocolate is involved), and more British television than anyone this side of the Atlantic has any business watching, keep Sarah entertained.

A native Utahn, Sarah graduated from Snow College and Brigham Young University. She currently lives and teaches in Ogden, Utah.

Contact Sarah on her website SarahEBoucher.com, or find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, or Goodreads.