Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

“They said that love was terrifying and tender, wild and sweet, and none of it made any sense. But now I knew that every mad word was true.”

Nyx has lived for many years knowing her fate. Betrothed to the evil ruler of the kingdom, once she turns seventeen she is to marry and move into his castle, far from her family and everything she holds dear. She is intent on carrying out a plan to kill him and free the kingdom once and for all. But once she is behind the castle walls nothing is as she had imagined. The mysteries of the kingdom begin to compound and more questions arise. Most perplexing of all is her charming new husband and fairly soon she is uncertain of what the truth is and who she can trust. She knows that her kingdom depends on her defeating the sworn enemy she can’t help but be drawn to. And the longer she stays, the more difficult her mission becomes.

“If one of us had to die, it ought to be the one with poison in her heart.”

I love fairy tale retellings, Greek myth retellings, basically any new spin on a well-told tale. Cruel Beauty is a blend of a Beauty and the Beast retelling and Greek mythology, which I found intriguing. The novel creates a magical yet eerie atmosphere that is compelling. As the main character, Nyx is strong and complex while the villain proves to be witty and beguiling. Initially I was drawn to the story, however as it progressed it started to feel somewhat meandering and difficult to follow. I love the idea of what the novel tries to achieve but much of it was confusing, particularly the ending, but by then I was truly disconnected from what was happening. Thinking about it, I feel that the writing style is perhaps just not for me. Absolutely a good option for fans of Beauty and the Beast retellings, unfortunately it did not work for me.