Blog post: http://sonichreads.tumblr.com/post/16... 
 Review: Cruel Beauty had been one of those books that sat on my shelf for a while and I didn't get the chance to pick it up because all the new releases were flowing in. I bought the book, picked it up, and I was... okay with it. It's not the best retelling I've read nor the best romance nor the best fantasy. 
 Cruel Beauty is a retelling of The Beauty and the Beast that follows the story of a girl named Nyx, who is forced to marry the Great Lord for the bargain her mother promised in order to murder the Lord. She then becomes very occupied with the task Ignifex set for her and she slowly falls in love with him. 
 The writing wasn't the strength in this book. I was confused, I was distracted. The structure was different and it wasn't very entertained or hooked from what I read. Although, I think that it still did a great job with blending The Beauty and the Beast and Greek mythology together. 
 The plot was very interesting and dark. I was so freaked out by everything I saw behind the doors that Nyx opened. The house itself was very confusing and complicated, but with its connection to the Great Lord, I got to see the root of what is he was carrying on his back and all the pressure. I think I was in enough concentration to understand the ending, yet again, it was confusing. It wasn't anything crazy, but it sure was weird and somewhat strange. 
 This is the part where I don't know how I feel. Nyx was witty, brave, and loyal. She has the good quality in a female character in a book, but despite her greatness, I overall don't really know if I liked her or not. She is very intriguing because of her two sides; one being the good, the other being the evil, which was very controversial to her action. Ignifex... urgh. I was supposed to love him, but I didn't. He is sarcastic and incredible and all, but I was done loving the Lords since Sarah J. Maas books. Not my thing, not anymore. In contrast, what I especially like was the two of them together in the same room. Very humorous. They were hating each other every time, but they ended up falling in love and how Nyx was so honest to confess that she was going to find the way to kill Ignifex was a sign of one hell of a relationship. 
 Overall: I enjoyed this book, but I wish I could have liked it more. I couldn't focus on what I was reading, but this is still enough for me to continue to the second book.