Cruel Beauty
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-13 10:55:27
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Rosamund Hodge
- ISBN：0062224735
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Since birth， Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father。 And since birth， she has been in training to kill him。
With no choice but to fulfill her duty， Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate。 Still， on her seventeenth birthday， Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful， immortal Ignifex。 Her plan？ Seduce him， destroy his enchanted castle， and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people。
But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected。 The strangely charming lord beguiles her， and his castle—a shifting maze of magical rooms—enthralls her。
As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets， she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him。 Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy， how can she refuse her duty to kill him？ With time running out， Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom， or the man she was never supposed to love。
With no choice but to fulfill her duty， Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate。 Still， on her seventeenth birthday， Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful， immortal Ignifex。 Her plan？ Seduce him， destroy his enchanted castle， and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people。
But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected。 The strangely charming lord beguiles her， and his castle—a shifting maze of magical rooms—enthralls her。
As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets， she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him。 Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy， how can she refuse her duty to kill him？ With time running out， Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom， or the man she was never supposed to love。
Reviews
Ivana
，
3。65/5 ⭐Mis sentimientos hacia este libro son raros， me gustó pero hubo una parte que me molestó mucho pero luego se redimió por lo que pasó luego （？ En fin， fue una lectura entretenida y antes de que apareciera la parte que no me gustaba， no podía parar de leer。 No fue una lectura que me cambió la vida pero si fue buena。 （le pongo 4 estrellas aunque sean 3。65 sólo pq goodreads no tiene para poner estrellas a la mitad lol）
Asia
，
Well， I survived。 I have to admit that I find Rosamund Hodge's books frustrating。 This woman knows how to write a captivating beginning and a good conclusion。 But the middle section suffers from lack of story and purpose。 I must admit while it's not a bad book（better than Crimson Bound）， I really didn't want to read five chapters of the main character leaping and frolicking down the halls。 Why？ Cause she was in love。 The book could use some refinement， especially the middle section。 In this one Well， I survived。 I have to admit that I find Rosamund Hodge's books frustrating。 This woman knows how to write a captivating beginning and a good conclusion。 But the middle section suffers from lack of story and purpose。 I must admit while it's not a bad book（better than Crimson Bound）， I really didn't want to read five chapters of the main character leaping and frolicking down the halls。 Why？ Cause she was in love。 The book could use some refinement， especially the middle section。 In this one （which was not in Crimson Bound） I swear it had like 20 different theologies going on。 Kind of like she didn't know which one she wanted to use so she went with them all。 The book is fine。 It makes some really clever choices in how it retells some fairy tales。 I just wish I didn't read so many frivolous chapters。 。。。more
Rawan
，
At the beginning the main character bothered me a little。 She was too “self righteous”， for lack of a better word。 It’s like she refused to see humans as anything but just or innocent and Ignifex， because he’s a demon， is the absolute villain。 She’s not particularly naive， she has a strong sense of justice， but it felt self righteous to me。 She also jumps to conclusions like the usual heroines in these kinds of books which was also a tad annoying。 The ending though was so sweet。 “A handful of ki At the beginning the main character bothered me a little。 She was too “self righteous”， for lack of a better word。 It’s like she refused to see humans as anything but just or innocent and Ignifex， because he’s a demon， is the absolute villain。 She’s not particularly naive， she has a strong sense of justice， but it felt self righteous to me。 She also jumps to conclusions like the usual heroines in these kinds of books which was also a tad annoying。 The ending though was so sweet。 “A handful of kindness。” I’m always a sucker for that kind of ending。 。。。more
Alice Kim
，
This book deserves a higher rating than it got。。。
Fatima
，
DNF 37%This book had so much potential。 Totally not what i expected。 I went into this thinking it would be filled with banter and tension。 But the main character and the love interest had like three interactions total。 And all these interactions lasted for about 2 pages。 If you want to read this book for the same reasons i did， i don’t recommend
Alex
，
Draws you in and gets right into the story。 Well written。 I think I finished it that night。。。 and yes， I'm aware I have a reading problem。 Highly recommend。 Strong characters， not wishy-washy。 I've already started on another of Hodge's books。 Draws you in and gets right into the story。 Well written。 I think I finished it that night。。。 and yes， I'm aware I have a reading problem。 Highly recommend。 Strong characters， not wishy-washy。 I've already started on another of Hodge's books。 。。。more
Khushi Patel
，
This book was so interesting and captivating。 Rosamund Hodge is definitely an extremely intelligent and talented author， you can tell by how amazing the execution of this book is。 One of the BEST Beauty and The Beast re-tellings ever。 I loved how Hodge also incorporated Greek Mythology in the novel and created complex characters。 I just could not put the book down and recommend everyone to give this novel a try。
Katie
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Quick read。 Interesting retelling of Beauty and the Beast and enjoyed the characters。 Wish there had been a bit more romance， but I think that was hampered by it being YA。
Olivia
，
Cruel Beauty throws together classic fairy tales with Greek mythology to make a weird but interesting romantic fantasy novel。In this book， teenage maiden Nyx is sent to the castle of her nation's enemy， a demon prince named Ignifex， whom she has been training to defeat and save her people。 However， there are many riddles and revelations to come along the way， and Ignifex is not all he seems。Nyx is a strong but emotional character， which makes her easy to root for as she tries to find all of the Cruel Beauty throws together classic fairy tales with Greek mythology to make a weird but interesting romantic fantasy novel。In this book， teenage maiden Nyx is sent to the castle of her nation's enemy， a demon prince named Ignifex， whom she has been training to defeat and save her people。 However， there are many riddles and revelations to come along the way， and Ignifex is not all he seems。Nyx is a strong but emotional character， which makes her easy to root for as she tries to find all of the things she needs to defeat Ignifex。 She is definitely kind of wishy-washy at times， but considering everything she's been through and her young age， it's usually understandable。I wasn't a huge fan of Ignifex in general， or of his ever-volatile relationship with Nyx。 They did have some chemistry， but I didn't fully buy into their feelings for each other。 Their romance seemed too fast and to be built on not much more than mutual spite。The ending was also 。 。 。 odd？ Because （view spoiler）[ we had some time traveling？ （hide spoiler）] But it was a fun read overall。 。。。more
Yasmin S。
，
This was a great book but like what was the ending。 Im so confused。
aubrey
，
you could’ve done so much more if you only had time
isabella_wm
，
3。5 it was confusing in a strangely good way
Liv Nikolis
，
3。9 stars 🌟
Isabela Antunes
，
I thought that it was alright。 I think that it was incredibly written and Rosamund Hodge has such a natural and effortless sounding writing style that is so exciting to read！ However， I think that the storyline overall felt a little confusing and at some points， I felt a tiny perplexed。 The storyline's background and history were fascinating， though there was a lot to consume， and I found myself having to pause and process the information being given。 If you enjoy a strong background story and p I thought that it was alright。 I think that it was incredibly written and Rosamund Hodge has such a natural and effortless sounding writing style that is so exciting to read！ However， I think that the storyline overall felt a little confusing and at some points， I felt a tiny perplexed。 The storyline's background and history were fascinating， though there was a lot to consume， and I found myself having to pause and process the information being given。 If you enjoy a strong background story and predictable plot twists， this is definitely the book for you！ 。。。more
Sofia Samu
，
2。5 I'd been actually pretty into the story for the first like 6 chapters。 I could see the potential: a MC who is bitter and full of hate （my type of MCs）， the promise of an enemies-to-lovers kind of relationship， the interesting cultural stuff woven into the story （I know there was a mashup of different things，but it wasn't bad）。 Unfortunately， the characterization was inconsistent， the relationship had no build-up whatsoever （it went from 0 to 1000 too fast for me） and the plot became nonsensi 2。5 I'd been actually pretty into the story for the first like 6 chapters。 I could see the potential: a MC who is bitter and full of hate （my type of MCs）， the promise of an enemies-to-lovers kind of relationship， the interesting cultural stuff woven into the story （I know there was a mashup of different things，but it wasn't bad）。 Unfortunately， the characterization was inconsistent， the relationship had no build-up whatsoever （it went from 0 to 1000 too fast for me） and the plot became nonsensical after the middle。 。。。more
Fei Fei
，
3。5。 I wish the romance clicked with me more。。。it wasn't slowburn enough， or at least not in a way that was satisfying。 All of the twists were predictable， and sometimes that's a good thing - means the author set them up in a satisfying way， right？ Just wish the hints had been a little more concealed so I didn't feel like I was constantly waiting for the characters to catch up。 I had fun with the book overall， though。 The characters felt real and complex and their interactions were mostly enjoya 3。5。 I wish the romance clicked with me more。。。it wasn't slowburn enough， or at least not in a way that was satisfying。 All of the twists were predictable， and sometimes that's a good thing - means the author set them up in a satisfying way， right？ Just wish the hints had been a little more concealed so I didn't feel like I was constantly waiting for the characters to catch up。 I had fun with the book overall， though。 The characters felt real and complex and their interactions were mostly enjoyable。 The wordbuilding was to my liking too， and I had no issues with the prose。 If the romance wasn't so 0-100， it prob would've been a new YA favorite。 。。。more
Stephanie
，
A great dark and twisty Beauty and the Beast retelling with mythology thrown into the mix！
Cori
，
2。5 stars。。。meh
Phillippa
，
Too many folk tales going on that didn’t need too。 Easy read。 Meh finish
Brandi
，
"You don't do anything by halves， do you？" He said。 "I didn't even get halfway with killing you， but give me the knife and i'll fix that。"It was predictable。 About three quarters of the way through， i figured out some things， which isn't necessarily a bad thing， but the writing lacked quite a lot。Again， i'm reading this for the first time in 2021。 I've had this book on my tbr shelf since i bought it in 2014。 So it could just be that it didn't age well。 The writing felt lacking， there wasn't real "You don't do anything by halves， do you？" He said。 "I didn't even get halfway with killing you， but give me the knife and i'll fix that。"It was predictable。 About three quarters of the way through， i figured out some things， which isn't necessarily a bad thing， but the writing lacked quite a lot。Again， i'm reading this for the first time in 2021。 I've had this book on my tbr shelf since i bought it in 2014。 So it could just be that it didn't age well。 The writing felt lacking， there wasn't really any description at all about anything - the castle， the main character's appearance （even though she's a twin）。 Nyx's sister was much more entertaining than Nyx。 I felt like she was manipulative and conniving。 Although， Nyx was pretty amazing in her own way， too。 She was dangerous and hardheaded- especially in her situation。 She never bowed to Ignifex。 She pushed him。 But the insta-love， despite the fact that she was destined and trained to kill him， was unconvincing to me。"You wouldn't be my sister if you didn't have a little poison on your tongue。" I met her in the mirror。 "And you wouldn't be my sister if you didn't have a little poison hidden in your heart。"I don't know。 I didn't like the first quarter of the book， but something still drew me to keep reading despite wanting to put the book down several times。 "If you desired someone， if he comforted you， if you thought he might leech the poison out of your heart， was that love？ Or only desperation？" 。。。more
Maddie
，
4-4。5 starsSo， I really wasn't so sure about this one at first and it's definitely slower-paced than what I normally like but I ended up really loving it by the end。 Super atmospheric and great banter。 My one thing is that I just personally thought it could have been a bit。。。more。 Darker， creepier， etc。 But despite that， I did enjoy this a ton and the last 10-20% was really beautiful and emotional and tied things together so nicely for a standalone fantasy， which are so hard to find decent ones 4-4。5 starsSo， I really wasn't so sure about this one at first and it's definitely slower-paced than what I normally like but I ended up really loving it by the end。 Super atmospheric and great banter。 My one thing is that I just personally thought it could have been a bit。。。more。 Darker， creepier， etc。 But despite that， I did enjoy this a ton and the last 10-20% was really beautiful and emotional and tied things together so nicely for a standalone fantasy， which are so hard to find decent ones of。 The writing style was also super readable。 Overall， definitely glad I read this！ 。。。more
Ana Letícia
，
I'm very happy and satisfied with the book， I was spitting fire through the end but the last two chapters made me incredibly happy！ I'm very happy and satisfied with the book， I was spitting fire through the end but the last two chapters made me incredibly happy！ 。。。more
Rae
，
To be fair， I don't really like Beauty & The Beast to begin with LOL RTC** To be fair， I don't really like Beauty & The Beast to begin with LOL RTC** 。。。more
Lyra
，
This book was Fine。 Just fine。 I didn’t hate it， but I didn’t love it， either。The concept is intriguing - I love the idea of blending fairytales with greek mythology， and I appreciate an angry female protagonist who isn’t taught that her rage is wrong。 I’m also a sucker for hero x villain romances。 The writing style was pleasant to read and flowed well， and Nix and her love interest（s） had some cute moments。 But that’s all the positives I can really think of。As for the negatives:t•tNyx’s romance This book was Fine。 Just fine。 I didn’t hate it， but I didn’t love it， either。The concept is intriguing - I love the idea of blending fairytales with greek mythology， and I appreciate an angry female protagonist who isn’t taught that her rage is wrong。 I’m also a sucker for hero x villain romances。 The writing style was pleasant to read and flowed well， and Nix and her love interest（s） had some cute moments。 But that’s all the positives I can really think of。As for the negatives:t•tNyx’s romance（s） are held together with a heavy dose of instalove。 I would have greatly preferred a slower， more believable romance。 Seeing as this book is a romance， not being thrilled by the main couple pretty much a dealbreaker on its own。 t•tI guessed the twist almost immediately。 Since this mystery is a key driving force of the plot， this was also kind of a hindrance to my enjoyment of the book。 t•tNyx was deeply inconsistent as a character。 Her emotions were a rollercoaster and a half， rapidly swinging between extremes in a way that was difficult to keep up with。 t•tThe book spent a lot of time on world building that only ever really amounted to set dressing。 The most egregious example of this was the magic system。 One of the first major concepts introduced in the book， its role in the actual plot was minimal。 While I did find myself enjoying moments of the story， I mostly come away from it feeling underwhelmed。 If the premise grabs you， give it a shot， but I can’t see myself recommending it otherwise。 。。。more
Harry Schull
，
This book has me all kinds of worked up。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
cal
，
Wtf did I just read。
Imama
，
（2。5 stars） engrossing in the start and got extremely boring at the end and is little bit confusing。 I felt like the romance between the two was underdeveloped？ I mean how and why she fell for him！ not a bad book tho
SJ
，
Okay， so I read this book a little while ago so I don't remember that much about it， but there are some points I want to touch on in this review real quick。1。 The love interest here was SO PREDICTABLE。 I mean *spoilers* the shadow man （I think his name is Shade but I'm not sure） and Ignifex look the EXACT SAME。 How could they not be the same person？？？ And the fact that they were polar opposites somehow made it MORE obvious。2。 I really liked Nyx as a main character。 I love how she struggled with Okay， so I read this book a little while ago so I don't remember that much about it， but there are some points I want to touch on in this review real quick。1。 The love interest here was SO PREDICTABLE。 I mean *spoilers* the shadow man （I think his name is Shade but I'm not sure） and Ignifex look the EXACT SAME。 How could they not be the same person？？？ And the fact that they were polar opposites somehow made it MORE obvious。2。 I really liked Nyx as a main character。 I love how she struggled with what she was honestly feeling and how she thought she should behave。 I also love that when she first meets Ignifex she can't hide her feelings and is really witty and sarcastic。 There were probably other things I didn't like and did like about this book， but I can't remember them right now。 Thanks for reading！By SJ from sjsbookblog。com 。。。more
Aneta
，
ONE STAR LMAOO I AM SO CONFUSEDDDD！ The romance and the characters COULD have been soooo much better！！！ Like if some other author wrote about these character connections， I would praise that。 The ending was awful， I was literally skimming through the end tbh cause I was just so utterly bored。 So many ups and down in this book and the LOVE TRIANGE， DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED LMAOOO。1/5 stars。。。。
rhianne 。•*:｡✩
，
DNF @33%I tried so hard but I can only read like seven pages at a time before I get bored and have to put the book down。 I’ll give this another go some other time。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Cruel Beauty
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Cruel Beauty&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Cruel Beauty&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0