Beautiful! 
 Beauty & the Beast retellings are some of my favorites. This is definitely up there. I am so thrilled this was my uppercase box book for March. It arrived the day the live action movie was released in theaters (pretty perfect timing). 
 The middle bit lagged a bit but I still enjoyed it. Then suddenly, I couldn't put it down! I longed to know where Yeva's journey would take her. I longed to know where this book would ME. I relate so much to Yeva. I feel her restlessness and her wanting. I understand. 
 The writing was beautiful and immediately drew me in. 
 I loved what Spooner did with the tale. Her take on Beastie is gorgeous and I'm kinda stunned with how simple but perfect it is. It slightly bothers me that the main character has two names; Yeva and Beauty. But at the same time, it totally fits because of how she laid everything else out. 
 I loved that it was set in Russia and I enjoyed the references to other Russian folk tales that I know. 
 I know I'll be recommending this book.