Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-10-30 09:51:52
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Soman Chainani
- ISBN：0008224501
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
You think you know these stories， don’t you？
You are wrong。
You don’t know them at all。
Twelve tales， twelve dangerous tales of mystery， magic， and rebellious hearts。 Each twists like a spindle to reveal truths full of warning and triumph， truths that capture hearts long kept tame and set them free， truths that explore life 。 。 。 and death。
A prince has a surprising awakening 。 。 。
A beauty fights like a beast 。 。 。
A boy refuses to become prey 。 。 。
A path to happiness is lost。 。 。 。 then found again。
New York Times bestselling author Soman Chainani respins old stories into fresh fairy tales for a new era and creates a world like no other。 These stories know you。 They understand you。 They reflect you。 They are tales for our times。 So read on， if you dare。
You are wrong。
You don’t know them at all。
Twelve tales， twelve dangerous tales of mystery， magic， and rebellious hearts。 Each twists like a spindle to reveal truths full of warning and triumph， truths that capture hearts long kept tame and set them free， truths that explore life 。 。 。 and death。
A prince has a surprising awakening 。 。 。
A beauty fights like a beast 。 。 。
A boy refuses to become prey 。 。 。
A path to happiness is lost。 。 。 。 then found again。
New York Times bestselling author Soman Chainani respins old stories into fresh fairy tales for a new era and creates a world like no other。 These stories know you。 They understand you。 They reflect you。 They are tales for our times。 So read on， if you dare。
Reviews
Kim Bongiorno
，
Magical， clever， beautiful and SO FUN。
Rebecca
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Dnf'd it。 This is only a rating and review of the Beauty and the Beast retelling。 I skipped ahead to Beauty and the Beast retelling。 This one is based off of the French version。 It is honestly the most problematic version of the Fairytale I have ever read。 Had it been based off of any other version of the tale than the French one I wouldn't have liked it because I didn't care about Mei。 The story doesn't do enough to make me buy that she cares at all so when a Sintel ending happens， I only feel Dnf'd it。 This is only a rating and review of the Beauty and the Beast retelling。 I skipped ahead to Beauty and the Beast retelling。 This one is based off of the French version。 It is honestly the most problematic version of the Fairytale I have ever read。 Had it been based off of any other version of the tale than the French one I wouldn't have liked it because I didn't care about Mei。 The story doesn't do enough to make me buy that she cares at all so when a Sintel ending happens， I only feel anger not heartbreak。 But why is this a problem？ The French version is most likely based off of a real couple Petrus Gonsalvus and Katherine。 Their story isn't a happy one。 Some scholars think the French version of Beauty and the Beast was an attempt to give them the happy ending the French court under Catherine de Medici and a cruel world didn't。 And then a modern author gives us this messed up version？ I doubt the author meant it to trouble readers like this。 I doubt the author knew there was more history to the French version of the tale。 So little has been written about Petrus and Katherine most of you probably don't know their story。 But I do， and it pains me to see， no matter how many issues I have with the French version， the literary attempt at a happier tale for them get taken away to be feminist and edgy。 Let me reiterate， I don't think the author did this on purpose。 。。。more
Nikki
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I loved this book so much。 I’ve always loved fairy tales and I’m a sucker for re-tellings and re-imaginings of them， but this was also a great book
Mystic DreamClouds
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Review to follow soon。。。
Stefy
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The twist in the 12 stories was very intriguing。 I enjoyed them all！ You just never want to put the book down but read the next installment。 The chosen stories were written in a different light which i must say was interesting and enjoyable。 A must read for anyone wanting to read classical stories with a twist。 Have to also include that the illustrations were a beautiful touch to the stories。
Teresa
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Meh。 Not impressed with the retellings。
Lou
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Did not finish。 The narration was way over the top and the stories didn’t catch my interest。 Seems the intention was to subvert tropes but there were wordings and events that just made me uncomfortable。
Sarah Swann
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These tales were interesting。 I enjoyed the majority of them with a few that I didn’t really enjoy。 The Beauty and the Beast story was my favorite。 Very creative and I liked the different takes on them。 I didn’t like that there were no quotation marks for speaking parts。 That always stilts me when I’m reading trying to figure out if it’s speaking or narratives。 And some of the illustrations didn’t match the descriptions。 For example， a boy in the Bluebeard story was described as wearing a bathro These tales were interesting。 I enjoyed the majority of them with a few that I didn’t really enjoy。 The Beauty and the Beast story was my favorite。 Very creative and I liked the different takes on them。 I didn’t like that there were no quotation marks for speaking parts。 That always stilts me when I’m reading trying to figure out if it’s speaking or narratives。 And some of the illustrations didn’t match the descriptions。 For example， a boy in the Bluebeard story was described as wearing a bathrobe and towel in his hair。 But in the illustration for that scene， he was wearing a full outfit with his hair down。 Overall it was good。 。。。more
Cynthia Nicola
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Retellings of classic fairy tales。 Fun read that I enjoyed being able to break down into little bites of each fairy tale。
Melanie
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This is a collection of re-imagined fairy tales。 As with any collection of stories there are good ones and not-so-good ones。 I did enjoy most of the stories and the book ended on a very strong note with the re-telling of Peter Pan。 It is also nice that each story is short so if you haven't really gelled with one there is another coming along very quickly。 Overall， if you want a modern take on your favorite fairy tales you will enjoy this book。 This is a collection of re-imagined fairy tales。 As with any collection of stories there are good ones and not-so-good ones。 I did enjoy most of the stories and the book ended on a very strong note with the re-telling of Peter Pan。 It is also nice that each story is short so if you haven't really gelled with one there is another coming along very quickly。 Overall， if you want a modern take on your favorite fairy tales you will enjoy this book。 。。。more
Fez
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All of the stories have absolutely gorgeous prose and nice twists。 My average rating for each story is 4 stars。 The illustrations are definitely a nice touch。My favourites retellings here are Peter Pan， Rumpelstilskin and Rapunzel。I desperately need to buy a physical copy so I can annotate this！！！ Already did that do my ebook version but doing it on paper just hits different。Red Riding Hood: 4Nice twist on the original。 Little Red and her Grandmother were much more brutal and cunning here。 Didn' All of the stories have absolutely gorgeous prose and nice twists。 My average rating for each story is 4 stars。 The illustrations are definitely a nice touch。My favourites retellings here are Peter Pan， Rumpelstilskin and Rapunzel。I desperately need to buy a physical copy so I can annotate this！！！ Already did that do my ebook version but doing it on paper just hits different。Red Riding Hood: 4Nice twist on the original。 Little Red and her Grandmother were much more brutal and cunning here。 Didn't like the ending that much， but liked the spin on What （big eyes） you have。。。。 To better （see you with） Snow White: 5I love that Snow White is black in this story。 She also has her own agency to the point where I almost drooled at what she did to the Queen。 And perfect ending！！ Love the end of the generational trauma。 Also the end illustration is amazing。 Sleeping Beauty: 2I just didn't like it， for reasons I can't explain。 And no， that reason isn't Homophobia because the gay parts were actually my favourite parts of thus story。 Rapunzel: 5Rapunzel has always been one if my favourite princesses （due to the disney film） but this story and her saying fuck you to men who want to possess her just solidifies her place。 Her refusing to move from one prison to another， from a daughter in a tower to a wife in a castle， was great to read。Also， the slight mention of Jack aka the next story！！ Jack and the Beanstalk: 4。5Escaping toxic relationships and the Found family trope always have a place in my heart。Also， it was so cute that Jack cared so much for his cows！！ Hansel and Gretel: 5Loved the Indian spin！！ Also， good witches！！！ And revenge！！ Beauty and the Beast: 3The pacing was a mess here。 The relationship felt not as developed as I would've liked， compared to the other stories here。Also， I'm just not made for stories without happy endings！！！ I mean， I cry at finding Nemo so don't expect anything from me Bluebeard: 5This was definitely darker than a lot of these。 Loved the ending！！ Cinderella: 3。5Don't have much to say about this， except I liked Lourdes development。 The little Mermaid: 2。5A bit too dialogue heavy and uneventful。 But nice commentary。 The little Mermaid is definitely a spoiled brat but at least she make the right choice at the end Rumpelstilskin: 5I really liked Mathildes character development Peter Pan: 500000000/5At first I didn't like the 1st person narrative in this， but once I got to the ending。。。 Wow。I just love this story and wished I'd gotten more。 I'd read a full length book about all that happened here and another about what hasn't been told yet （What's Peter reaction？ What happened to the b。。。。？ Will they ever be united？）。 God， it just hit me right into the feels。I was going to rate the entire collection 4 stars but this single handedly convinced me to make it five。 。。。more
McKenzie Richardson
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For more reviews， check out my blog: Craft-Cycle Aesthetically， this books is absolutely gorgeous。 Julia Iredale knocked it out of the park with those illustrations and， let's be real， that cover is perfection。 Overall， the stories were good。 What Chainani did well， he did very well。 The diversity of the characters is splendid。 Loved the cultural elements woven in。 Not just giving us Hansel and Gretel as people of color but setting the story in India and updating details such as the sweets feat For more reviews， check out my blog: Craft-Cycle Aesthetically， this books is absolutely gorgeous。 Julia Iredale knocked it out of the park with those illustrations and， let's be real， that cover is perfection。 Overall， the stories were good。 What Chainani did well， he did very well。 The diversity of the characters is splendid。 Loved the cultural elements woven in。 Not just giving us Hansel and Gretel as people of color but setting the story in India and updating details such as the sweets featured （nankhatais， ladoos， mitai）。 Also enjoyed the exploration of various relationships， not just between a prince and a princess as has so often been the case， but also two men falling in love， female friendship， parents and children， and the relationship with one's self。He also works in some great descriptions and phrases that really add to the hauntingly beautiful aesthetic of the book as a whole。However， for me many of the stories dragged on too long。 They captured the essence of fairy tale style while offering their own retelling or twist on the original tale， but for most I felt I liked the idea of the story more than the story itself。 Some spend too much time on details we all know， giving the story a slower pace and causing me to lose interest。 Then the twist ending would come and I'd like the idea but there wasn't really enjoyment in the writing。 Cinderella， Rumpelstiltskin， and Beauty and the Beast all had details I really enjoyed， but the overall story was just okay。Some of my favorite stories in the collection were Rapunzel， Hansel and Gretel， and Bluebeard。As someone who lives for fairy tale retellings， I'll admit my standards are pretty high at this point。 This is a good collection overall， especially for the YA audience。 Beautiful in its physical manifestation and in many of the concepts it works in。 。。。more
Ella
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I liked this book a lot， but felt it didn't entirely live up to it's subtitle of 'Dangerous Tales'。 Some of the stories were barely changed， like Rumpelstiltskin， and some were so drastically different it was hard to tell what they were based on， like Sleeping Beauty。 My favorites were the ones that were obviously based still the same story， but with enough things changed that they felt new while reading， like Snow White and Hansel and Gretel。 The connections to the SGE universe was amazing， and I liked this book a lot， but felt it didn't entirely live up to it's subtitle of 'Dangerous Tales'。 Some of the stories were barely changed， like Rumpelstiltskin， and some were so drastically different it was hard to tell what they were based on， like Sleeping Beauty。 My favorites were the ones that were obviously based still the same story， but with enough things changed that they felt new while reading， like Snow White and Hansel and Gretel。 The connections to the SGE universe was amazing， and I loved Peter Pan。 I think that if Sleeping Beauty were more in line with the original， I would have rated this 5 stars; I was very confused at the end and it spoiled my experience a little bit。 。。。more
Me， My Shelf， & I
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Very meh。 More effort was put into being subversive of tropes than into being interesting and engaging。 （Also the fixation on beauty/fatness/etc made me uncomfortable。）
Nicki
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It was an interesting take on fairy tales。 Beauty may truly be the beast。
Mike
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It was fine， but unremarkable。 By hewing so closely to the original intent of each story， it didn't leave much to do with building in a new spin or take on a classic。 In terms of the best stories， The Little Mermaid and （maybe） Beauty and the Beast stuck with me。 Better as a pick and choose collection rather than a solid readthrough。 It was fine， but unremarkable。 By hewing so closely to the original intent of each story， it didn't leave much to do with building in a new spin or take on a classic。 In terms of the best stories， The Little Mermaid and （maybe） Beauty and the Beast stuck with me。 Better as a pick and choose collection rather than a solid readthrough。 。。。more
Krys
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Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review。***Beasts and Beauty by Soman Chainani takes the fairy tales you know and love and took them back to their darker origins but with a spin。 The princess doesn’t always need saving， the girl doesn’t always need to fall in love， sometimes there are better loves than romantic， etc。Twelve tales， some pretty dark， some that put a spin on who is the victim and who is the monster， and some much more enjoy Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review。***Beasts and Beauty by Soman Chainani takes the fairy tales you know and love and took them back to their darker origins but with a spin。 The princess doesn’t always need saving， the girl doesn’t always need to fall in love， sometimes there are better loves than romantic， etc。Twelve tales， some pretty dark， some that put a spin on who is the victim and who is the monster， and some much more enjoyable than others。 While a lot of these aren’t horribly new takes on some of the tales they were still written well。 The illustrations weren’t finalized in the e-ARC but if what I’ve seen online is an indication of how the rest of them will look I’ll certainly have to get my hands on a copy for my personal collection soon。Overall a great read。 。。。more
Isabel
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I lived all 12 tales， but the beauty and the beast one omg beautiful。。。 a great buy this book。
Judy
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3。5⭐My favorite is The Little Mermaid。
María Paula
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As I write this seconds after finishing the book， my only thoughts are: Peter Pan destroyed me。 That's it。 As I write this seconds after finishing the book， my only thoughts are: Peter Pan destroyed me。 That's it。 。。。more
Michelle
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A little disappointing。 I liked most of the stories and how the author adapted them （especially Hansel and Gretel， Beauty and the Beast， and Cinderella） but I found the writing to be overdone。 The author was trying almost too hard to remind us that these were fairy tales。 The tone never changes and it was exhausting to read at some points。
Mindy
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2。5 starsWell this is a tough one to rate。 I enjoyed Red Riding Hood， Jack and the Beanstalk， and Hansel & Gretel。 Several of the fairy tales were unsettling and uncomfortable， with a persistent sense of sexual predation throughout。Blue beard and Sleeping beauty were very disturbing， bordering on grotesque。 I wasn’t able to find a “moral” in any of these stories that would make them true fairy tales。 Trigger warnings for implied rape， violence， emotional abuse， racial trauma， psychological distr 2。5 starsWell this is a tough one to rate。 I enjoyed Red Riding Hood， Jack and the Beanstalk， and Hansel & Gretel。 Several of the fairy tales were unsettling and uncomfortable， with a persistent sense of sexual predation throughout。Blue beard and Sleeping beauty were very disturbing， bordering on grotesque。 I wasn’t able to find a “moral” in any of these stories that would make them true fairy tales。 Trigger warnings for implied rape， violence， emotional abuse， racial trauma， psychological distress， child abuse， and cannibalism among others。 Overall I feel the book was trying really hard to be edgy and dark， but the execution of it just wasn’t there。Such a disappointment as I love fairy tale re-tellings and I really enjoyed this author's other books。 。。。more
Han
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Retellings give me such a comfortable， magical feeling， I‘ll never get tired of it。 This was a wonderful collection which I‘ll definitely reread， especially the Peter Pan story which is my new favorite short story of all time！ Great writing and such GREAT commentary。 Besides， it was so heartwarming to read about the diversity these retellings provided and the emotions they played on。 Red Riding Hood: 4/5 Snow White: 4/5Sleeping Beauty: 4/5Rapunzel: 3/5Jack and the Beanstalk: 3/5Hansel and Gretel Retellings give me such a comfortable， magical feeling， I‘ll never get tired of it。 This was a wonderful collection which I‘ll definitely reread， especially the Peter Pan story which is my new favorite short story of all time！ Great writing and such GREAT commentary。 Besides， it was so heartwarming to read about the diversity these retellings provided and the emotions they played on。 Red Riding Hood: 4/5 Snow White: 4/5Sleeping Beauty: 4/5Rapunzel: 3/5Jack and the Beanstalk: 3/5Hansel and Gretel: 4/5Beauty and the Beast: 4/5Bluebeard: 4/5 Cinderella: 3。5/5The little mermaid: 4/5Rumpelstiltskin: 3/5Peter Pan: 5/5 （actually 37258/5， it was just SO good and heartbreaking。 I‘ll never get over it！） 。。。more
Reagan Holloran
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（3。5）
DebbieG
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I am a huge fan of fairy tales and this retelling of some of the better know tales was great！ No， more than great - splendid， stellar， stupendous， sterling。 superlative， sumptuous。 I have run out of 's' synonyms so will stop here！ Started reading this at work and just had to read some out loud to my co-worker。 I am a huge fan of fairy tales and this retelling of some of the better know tales was great！ No， more than great - splendid， stellar， stupendous， sterling。 superlative， sumptuous。 I have run out of 's' synonyms so will stop here！ Started reading this at work and just had to read some out loud to my co-worker。 。。。more
Jade Driscoll
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3。5 stars--rounded down because I was just so disappointed by the absolute bonkers-weirdness of the Peter Pan story。Soman Chainani’s BEASTS AND BEAUTY: DANGEROUS TALES is a collection of 12 short stories， each one a reimagined version of a fairy tale。 The stories maintain many of the darker elements of the “original” stories from the Brothers Grimm and other classic authors， but they also offer new perspectives， subverted themes， and diverse identities。 The book is marketed as middle grade for r 3。5 stars--rounded down because I was just so disappointed by the absolute bonkers-weirdness of the Peter Pan story。Soman Chainani’s BEASTS AND BEAUTY: DANGEROUS TALES is a collection of 12 short stories， each one a reimagined version of a fairy tale。 The stories maintain many of the darker elements of the “original” stories from the Brothers Grimm and other classic authors， but they also offer new perspectives， subverted themes， and diverse identities。 The book is marketed as middle grade for readers ages 10+， and I can see this being an enjoyable set of tales for older children who want something a lot ~spicier~ than Disney。 As a whole， though， there were more weak stories than strong/memorable reworkings。[VERY MINOR SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH]I find the two standout stories to be Snow White and Bluebeard。 In Chainani’s story， Snow White is a Black girl hated and hunted by a white stepmother， and the story loosely follows the “original” Snow White plot while also adding themes of trauma， identity， and battling racism。 In Bluebeard， we see an androgynous / potentially non-binary boy—who despite being called a boy， looks like he does “not answer to the call of boy or girl” （200）—stand up for and remember those who died before him as well as save other boys from a similar fate。 There were elements of other stories that worked—Sleeping Beauty was intriguing， as was the “witch” in Hansel and Gretel。 Still， Snow White and Bluebeard are the only two stories I currently see myself returning to。[PRETTY BIG SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH]I felt especially let down by the Peter Pan story， which HURTS。 （Especially since I JUST read Aiden Thomas’s LOST IN THE NEVER WOODS， which was， like， almost perfect。） Barrie’s original novel/play is already pretty dark （Peter “thinning out” the boys， the island games of war resulting in real deaths， etc。）， so adding “dark” elements to the Peter Pan story isn’t too earth-shattering。 But this story wasn’t dark so much as it was just plain unnecessary。 I’m talking Wendy-has-a-husband-but-sleeps-with-a-Neverland-pirate-and-has-the-pirate’s-baby unnecessary。 Wendy-still-went-to-Neverland-as-an-adult-because-she-was-in-love-with-said-pirate-but-then-wonders-why-Peter-（ya-know，-the-boy-who's-whole-shtick-is-not-growing-up）-doesn't-like-her unnecessary。 I don’t even know what else to say。 When the story said the baby was the pirate’s， I just kind of… gave up。 I think I’ve decided that authors are trying WAY TOO HARD to make Peter Pan “dark” when the original already was！ （cough cough Darling by K。 Ancrum cough cough）。 Instead of reimagining Peter’s—or Wendy’s—story to be ~twisted~， the heart of Peter Pan is lost in the desire to be shocking and edgy。And， as several of the GOOD stories here show， you don’t need to be shocking or lose the heart of the “original” story in order to write a good， still-dark reimagining。 I dunno。 I was disappointed， fam。This book—and its stories—aren’t bad。 There are some weaknesses for sure， but the book isn’t *bad*。 If I knew an older child who was looking for some twisted tales and I didn’t want to hand them the Brothers Grimm collections， this would be a decent alternative。 But this also isn’t the first book I’m going to be recommending to just any older child anytime soon。 。。。more
Rhiley Jade
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3。5/5 stars。 My favorites were Beauty and the Beast， The Little Mermaid， and Peter Pan ❤
Eva
，
I admit this might have had a higher rating if the stories were organised in a different way， but the last three felt very underwhelming and spoiled the rest of an otherwise enjoyable collection for me。
yinka Adesanya
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Thibault Busschots
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