Hunted

After reading tons of fairly mixed reviews of this book I decided to finally read it for myself! I found that I liked it overall. Perfect Beauty and the Beast retelling with just the right amount of the authors spin on it. I found the world building was okay, and the writing was good. For me however, I found myself growing irritated with Yeva after a while. And while the end was good, I wished for more from the Beast, especially at the end.
3.5/5 stars for Hunted

A Beauty and the Beast retelling with Russian folklore weaved into it? Yes please! This book has it all, a strong female lead who longs for a life other than what she is living, a Beast torn between two natures for God only knows how long, even a DRAGON! I really enjoyed this take on a classic fairytale.

This is an amazing, beautiful book. It is incredibly well written and keeps solid momentum all the way through. I especially love the ending, which resonates strongly with me. I have found a new favorite author, one which I can't wait to share with my students!

Hunted is my first Meagan Spooner book and I must say I quite loved it! Winding down on the Beauty and the Beast readathon I was happy to be able to squeeze this new release in. I’ve been seeing some mixed reviews over this one which started to make me worry, so I kind of stopped reading them. And I will say that I am one of the ones who truly enjoyed this one!

There’s a different sort of air to this story, perhaps because our Beauty is living somewhere in Russia and has a different personality than all the Beautys who came before her. But she’s definitely one you will enjoy. She’s fond of the hunt though lately she’s been learning to be more ladylike. And that’s when her father loses everything. The family must sell all their worthy possessions and move to this small hunting cabin the woods where her father hopes to be able to hunt and sell pelts to pay off his investors whom he failed. But soon her father slowly begins to lose his mind it seems, as he starts raving about a beast in the woods who scared off all the animals and he was determined to hunt it down. But he never came back, so Yeva, our Beauty, brushes off her old hunting bow and starts to hunt around the cabin to take care of her sisters and then sets off into the woods to find her father after a long period of time has passed.

And it is then that Yeva encounters the Beast. But he’s not like any Beast we’ve seen before either. Every other chapter in this book is an excerpt from the Beast’s point of view. Almost like a journal entry and we can see how he fights with the animal and human side. Where one is always trying to take over the other. It was kind of insightful in some ways. After Yeva’s encounter with the Beast she is taken prisoner and befriends a young man on the other side of the door and she shares stories with him. Soon we meet the Beast in full and he has a certain task that only Yeva can perform, he wants her to go hunting.

While we do see trends in this book with the story that we all know and love, we can also see how this one stands out from the other. The location and culture are among those things! The stories Yeva indulges in were fairy tales from her childhood and it’s no surprise how big of a role they will play in the story as well.

Yeva definitely has more anger than any of the Beautys before her as well. She believes the Beast has killed her father and she swears to herself vengeance and that she will kill the Beast one day. She warns him of this too. The two basically don’t have that love connection going on like we slowly see revealed in the Disney movie. Here we definitely have something new and different. The romance itself isn’t really all that clear either. One moment the two hate each other and then in the next we see kindness. It almost makes your head spin, but yet I couldn’t help but like it.

One thing that was sort of unclear throughout was the curse itself. How the Beast became cursed really isn’t something that’s explored until the very end and even then, I wasn’t really positive that that was the curse itself. But I guess I was supposed to take that as fact. If anything that was the only issue I had in the book.

I liked how Meagan kept quite a bit from the original fairy tale and even the Disney movie as well and incorporated it into Hunted. We had a wealthy merchant lose everything and move to the woods. We had our Beauty with siblings, granted just two sisters, but they were a heck of a lot nicer than the original Beauty’s sister. Yeva’s sisterly bond was one thing I truly enjoyed about the story, though as to be expected, her sisters weren’t in the story too much. Yeva has a suitor who has eyes only for her. And he likes to hunt as well and Yeva really has no love for him, but this too was even different because he’s basically the opposite of Gaston! And even one of her dogs, Pelei kind of reminded me of Phillipe! Mostly in the moment she’s asking it “where’s father?”!

Hunted was truly a remarkable read! I quite enjoyed myself and loved seeing a fresh new take on The Beauty and the Beast story! Meagan really out did herself with this one! There was such a good balance of keeping true to the story that we all know and with adding in her own twists! And rumor has it that Meagan plans to write more fairy tale retellings! Truly hoping to see more of these that stick with the original fairy tale and of course with the Disney tidbits that we all know by heart! Be sure to add Hunted to your list for amazing fairy tale retellings because it’s truly not one to be missed!

Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars

1. Alright Beauty and the Beast retelling! Let’s do this!
2. Her Dad is aggravating me.
3. Solomir…. Are you the Beast or Gaston *ponders*
4. Yeva… you is kinda dumb.
5. Where did the dog go? Wasn’t there a dog here? Did I make up a doggo?
6. Yeah sure. Lemme just wear this blindfold. This is all normal.
7. Big broody scary Beast is cranky.
8. Yeah. Me and this Beast are not gonna get along. He doesn’t like the puppers.
9. I’m skimming. I’m skimming. Skim skim skim.
10. Doe Eyes (doggo) is the best character tbh.
11. There really isn’t much dialogue is there. The writing is pretty but I think more dialogue would help me understand the characters better.
12. Where is this magic forest? Is it the same forest just with a magic veil? Is it a new forest? Someone explain.
13. Per above point, I think we skipped the class on World Building 101.
14. Totes magotes saw this twist coming.
15. See, this is what happens when you procrastinate.
16. That was kinda anticlimactic. I was hoping for more from this one.

Wrap Up
So to wrap up, I was disappointed with this one. There was potential there but it just never really grabbed me and I didn’t love any of the characters. I wish I had loved this one but we just didn’t click.

Ever since I heard that Meagan Spooner was writing a retelling of my favorite fairy tale, Hunted has been one of my most anticipated reads of 2017! I loved her Starbound Trilogy and knew I would probably adore anything she wrote. Yes, it was incredibly hyped, but how could a Beauty and the Beast retelling not be amazing?

As it turns out, Hunted is a pretty straightforward Beauty and the Beast retelling with a few embellishments to the characters' stories. Yeva is literally called Beauty and the beast is literally called The Beast. He lives in a castle in an enchanted valley in a forest and Yeva stumbles upon it while looking for her father. She is taken prisoner and slowly realizes that there's more to Beast than she first realized. It's almost cut and paste, which I have absolutely no problem with because I love this story!

Although this book is extremely predictable if you are at all familiar with this fairytale, Meagan Spooner has taken it and tweaked it just enough to keep it interesting. I thought that both Yeva and Beast were incredibly interesting characters! I was invested in them and would honestly have loved a little more backstory to Beast.

Now that I've talked about what I enjoyed, let me jump right into my complaints. Hunted is a book in desperate need of a villain. Not only has the villain been removed from the story, but the urgency has too. Without a time limit on the beast's curse, there's not really anything at stake and the book is incredibly slow as a result. Not even Yeva was in any kind of hurry to break the spell and I was bored to tears. It took me WEEKS to get through Hunted, which is incredibly abnormal. The writing also becomes more flowery as the end approaches, making it even more difficult to slog through an already boring story.

The world building was also severely lacking. Beast's valley is enchanted, can only be found if he wants you to find it, and there's a castle at the center. Yeva lives in a village and then in a cabin in the woods. That is the extent of the world building. Someone just informed me that this book was set in Russia and I had absolutely no idea! After the incredible world building in the Starbound Trilogy, I expected way more.

My final huge problem with Hunted is how it takes the tale of Beauty and the Beast and makes it even more creepy than it already was. Sure, we all know that there's a little Stockholm Syndrome happening here and yeah, it's kind of weird for a woman to fall in love with a beast, but it is still a classic and many people find it terribly romantic. In Hunted, Meagan Spooner has likened the relationship to a physically abusive one and it made me feel really skeevy about enjoying the romance. Here's an example taken directly from the text:

Yeva listened in silence, her own thoughts troubled. She'd known other women who'd formed attachments to men who were cruel to them, though she'd never known any in such dire situations. She'd always thought them foolish, weak, lacking in the self-assurance to know they were better than the men whose backhanded compliments made them flush so. But perhaps they were simply in love. Perhaps their hearts had betrayed them, and not their courage.
- pg. 289.

This conversation goes on between Yeva's friend who is voicing her concerns about Yeva's time with the beast, and Yeva who tries to justify his treatment of her with internal dialogue like that quoted above. I mean... I don't know. I'll just let you judge that for yourself.

Hunted had the potential to be incredible - just look at the source material - but it fell way short for me. With the removal of all urgency the story dragged on forever and the romance creeped me out. I also found the ending to be pretty anti-climactic. The only thing I liked about this book was the characters and the parts that were pasted directly from the original. Sadly, this just wasn't for me.

Actual rating: 1.5 stars

I thought my search was over, my fellow romance book-loving friends. You see, I’ve been hunting for a great romantic read so captivating I would not want to lift my eyes off the pages, not for a single second. For awhile, that is exactly what I thought I found in this Beauty and the Beast type similar themed romantic tale.

You see, I loved Yeva, the heroine, and how though she was the youngest daughter she was the strong one her father could connect with when their family fell on hard times. Her sisters were amazing, as well. So loving, supportive, and protective of each other I found myself wanting them all to get their HEA sooner rather than later.

Yeah, Yeva had me thinking she was pretty cool until she did something so unthinkable to our beastly hero, even after she started seeing glimpses of a softer human side, I found myself repulsed and angry at her. That act along with what became overly drawn out scenes broke the literary spell I was under to the point I found myself mostly skimming over the rest of it.

Solmir, what can I say? I fell for his character even before he made his first appearance. I even stopped reading and tried to find reviews to see if I could peg him as the hero/love interest of Yeva. You see, the synopsis is very vague on the Beast’s actual name. The fact he went after the girl he wanted, despite certain circumstances which would have had lesser men doing otherwise, had me swooning at his feet. But not to worry about him. Things eventually work out for him as they should.

Again, I loved how this tale started but then it lost its mojo in a very big way. So I’m off to hunt another great romantic read. Here’s to hoping these comments help you decide if this book is a good fit for you.

Title: Hunted, Author: Meagan Spooner, Pages: 384, Beauty & Beasty theme, graphic animal hunting scenes, brief OM/love triangle drama, no OW drama, some violence, no steamy scenes, mythical backdrop.

(These comments are based on a library version. This is not an ARC review.)

From the start to finish, this book was impeccably written. So much seems to have gone into it and it has turned out a masterpiece.
Beauty and the Beast retellings are hard to write. Books are hard to write. The problem with the Beauty and the Beast is that, if written wrong, can be construed as a Stockholm Syndrome-esque romance. Yet this book turned out, well, amazing. This story is a vibrant, slow burning romance that is unlike any other book I've read.
It's hard to explain without the aide of spoilers, but trust me; you want to read it. The characters fly off the page and the plot and story will keep you reading long after midnight. The tale that Meagan Spooner spins has the darkness of other worlds, the whimsy of a fairytale, and an inventive spin on a tale as old as time.
The beauty and the beast has always been one of my favorite fairytales. I think what always drew me in was that it featured a “princess” of intelligence. One that didn't get where she was with her looks. She was selfless and well-learned and brave. All of these qualities transferred well to the Beauty in this story. She was willing to do anything to save the people she loved. Face anything, kill anything, live with anything. And while she was beautiful, I think her intelligence was what really made her beautiful.
We need more heirones with the beauty of intelligence.
PSA: THIS BOOK WILL BREAK YOU INTO A MILLION PIECES AND GLUE YOU BACK TOGETHER WITH HAPPINESS AND WILL ALSO GLUE YOUR HANDS TO IT BECAUSE IT WILL NOT LET YOU PUT IT DOWN AND ALSO YOU WILL LOVE IT BECAUSE IT'S AMAZING AND WONDERFUL AND WHAT ARE YOU STILL DOING HERE GO PREORDER IT AHHHHHHHH

CONTENT GUIDE -
Sexual – kissing, character is naked for medical reasons in one scene
Violence – this gets pretty dark at points and descriptive of violent-ish scenes
Cussing – I don't remember anything
Drinking/Drugs – none

This is the strangest fairy-tale retelling of Beauty and the Beast ever. When I first read the synopsis on the back cover, I was intrigued. It looked like a very exciting book full of adventure. However, it took me absolutely forever to get “into” the story. I was over half-way through by the time I was really intrigued.

It kind of felt like the ending was rushed. I mean, there was only like one chapter of the ending. If you know me, you know that I like a happily ever after, not just an abrupt ending. What about what they did next? Did they actually live happily ever after or just for that one scene?

As a huge Beauty and the Beast fan, the retelling of that particular fairy-tale has to be good enough for me to recommend it and enjoy it. They can’t just be so-so. Unfortunately, this book was only so-so. As a story by itself, it was quite creative, but as a Beauty and the Beast retelling, it wasn’t as enjoyable.

The cover was really creative. I liked it a lot. That was one of the main reasons why I decided to read the back cover! I am going to give it 5 stars.

As for the story, this is really hard. Okay, so I a creative novel, I am going to give it 3 stars. As a fairy-tale retelling, I am going to give it 2 stars. I simply wanted a little more “fairy-tale” in the story. Still, you may enjoy this book. However, as a Beauty and the Beast fan, this novel wasn’t quite up to par.

I cannot stop thinking about this book. I finished it weeks ago, but this lovely Beauty and the Beast adaptation will not leave my mind. This is the first book I've really read by Meagan Spooner. I gave These Broken Stars: A Starbound Novel (The Starbound Trilogy Book 1) a bit of a go awhile back, but we sort of drifted apart halfway through. Not the case here. The gorgeous cover caught my eye and the early glowing reviews reinforced my conviction. Having finished it, I immediately ran out and purchased copies for a number of the relevant readers in my life. And despite having pushed on and read several books since, HUNTED is the one I find my mind and heart returning to over and over again.

Yeva holds a lot of things in. She loves her family—her father, her sisters—and so she sits obediently in the baronessa's chambers. She pretends to make small talk and embroider bits of cloth with the other ladies. She smiles politely at the young man who is said to be courting her (and doesn't think overly much about him when he is not there). She tries not to look too longingly out of the window and yearn for a time before her father made his money, before their lives changed and she was forced to come in out of the cold of the forest. And life is comfortable and quiet and perfectly fine. Until the loss of her father's fortune forces the family to return to the family's decrepit hunting lodge. When he subsequently disappears, Yeva knows he has gone after the legendary creature at the heart of the woods—the one no one has ever been able to find, let alone defeat. A talented hunter, trained at her father's feet, she sets out, determined to find find her father and save her family.

***

Yeva shivered. The thought of being left alone in the dark again was enough to make her eyes sting, but she had no reason to distrust her benefactor. He would not leave her a light only to take it from her again.

"Very well," she whispered, and turned the wick down, the light shrinking and quivering. Yeva almost didn't see it go out, afterimages dancing before her eyes and blinding her.

The door squealed open, the noise of rusty hinges shredding the quiet. Yeva clapped a hand over her ears, grimacing. Then came that tiny sound, a footfall. The person, whoever it was, was wearing the softest of shoes. Or else they were barefoot, like she was.

"Are you a captive too?" she asked the darkness.

The voice didn't answer right away. There came a quiet clatter as something was placed down on the tray of food. "Yes," said the voice then, the word emerging like a sigh.

***

Reader, I was a goner from the opening page. Hunted is told primarily from Yeva's point of view. But before each new chapter, we get a brief glimpse into the mind of the Beast. I started to simultaneously look forward to and dread each glimpse, knowing that the Beast's fractures could only grow more troubling with every passing day. The fragmented text and stark artwork on these handful of pages haunted me throughout the novel. But what a beautiful tale it is. Yeva is strong and determined and completely aware of the expectations regarding her future, as well as the ramifications her choices will have on the lives of her sisters and the people who have long worked for her family. She does not rush headlong into anything. But when the brunt of her family's protection falls on her shoulders, she does not hesitate to employ all of her hunting skills to strike out on her own in search of the author of her family's trauma and destroy it (or him). Vengeance is the watchword, and I absolutely believed she would follow through on her vow. But I also believed her grudging compassion, her innate desire for understanding, and the complicated choices she faces as an inhabitant of the Beast's castle. This story takes its time, and I savored every interaction, every conversation, between Yeva and the Beast.

Meagan Spooner's deft crafting of this fairy tale is exquisite. In fact, it is positively Robin McKinley-esque. And you know I do not use those words lightly. But truly, this Russian folklore-inspired adaptation of my beloved fairy tale is old school in the best sense of the term. It is the kind of deeply measured, quietly emotional, and palpably textured storytelling that I used to lose myself in as a girl. I want to fashion its very own nook on my nightstand so that I can reach it when the slightest need arises. To be clear, HUNTED is unquestionably the highlight of my reading year thus far. You simply must read it.

When her father goes bankrupt, Yeva, her father, and her sisters have to sell off all of their wealth and move back in to the rundown hunting cabin he owned prior to marrying their mother. He is determined to build back up their wealth by tracking and hunting the fantastical creatures of the forest he taught Yeva about in her childhood. Instead on of those beasts ends up killing him instead. Yeva, nicknamed beauty by her father, goes off on a hunt of her own finding much more than she’d bargained for.

As you can guess, this is a fairy-tale retelling of the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast- but with a twist. Meagan Spooner sets her Beauty in Russia and fills her tale with Russian folk tales that embodies this tale with life beyond a Beauty falling in love with her Beast in a broken down castle. In her captivity, Yeva keeps herself sane by telling her captor every story she can remember turning her dark and dank cell into multi-hued world, if just for a moment. As she spends more time with her Beast, she see’s through his outer appearance to see the humanity within him, realizing he may be one of her tales turned to life.

I am not sure why it took me so long to read this book other than I had a ton of fairy-tale re-tellings on my list and even though I’d heard this one was very good, I thought I knew the story of Beauty and the Beast. However, the Russian folk stories gave life to this Beauty and the Beast and I really liked the world Meagan Spooner built for the setting. I liked the Beast’s origin story and the journey Yeva had to take, both internal and external, to save him from becoming a true Beast gave more meat to the romantic musical that Disney made popular. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Hunted by Meagan Spooner is a Beauty and the Beast retelling set in Russia. When Yeva’s father goes missing, she leaves her sisters behind to find him. Little does she know she’ll be walking into the lair of the Beast.

Who doesn’t love a Beauty and the Beast retelling? Beauty and the Beast has forever been my favorite Disney movie, so I was excited to read this book. I’m happy to say that it did not disappoint! It was a rousing romp into the world of Beauty and the Beast, and the unique spin on the story made it a captivating read.

The writing in Hunted was beautiful and perfectly captured the elements of the classic story. Admittedly I had a hard time getting into the book at first. I thought the beginning was slow and seemed to drag. It wasn’t until Yeva met the beast for the first time that things started to pick up. From that point on, I was hooked.

I really enjoyed the story concept and plot in Hunted. Once Yeva is with the Beast, the story unfolds rapidly. It’s an engaging story, and I liked the mythical qualities that were added in. The magic, the wonder, the anger—it was all great. I also appreciated the Beast’s perspective, which was provided on grayed out pages and cursive font. It was unique and well-executed. I found myself looking forward to those gray pages, wondering if the Beast’s perspective was going to show more beast than man.

I also really liked the ending of the book. Everything came together nicely and was wrapped up in a neat little package.

The characters in Hunted were well-written. I found myself getting sucked into Yeva and the Beast’s characters. Yeva was independent and spirited. The Beast was wild and sympathetic. Even Yeva’s sisters, though secondary characters, were interesting and added a nice touch to the story.

Overall, this was a great read, and I’m really glad I dusted this off my TBR shelf. If you enjoy retellings, this book is for you!

"Hunted" was one of the best releases in March. Since the movie of "Beauty and the Beast" was also released in March, the book got some extra attention! But the winning points were not only the title of the reference to the beloved tale.

The points went to the stunning descriptions and the Russian references which I am sure were inspired by the Russian version of the tale.
Yeva and her sisters live a good life, supported by their father's fortune. When they go bankrupt and have to move far into the wood, close to their father's hunting cabin, bothe Yeva and her sisters will have to learn more about heart-ache and survival.

Despite what many might think, Yeva's sisters are amazing. Each one is funny and they love Yeva very much. Especially Asenka.
Now, when their father disappear into the forest, Yeva decides to search for him; and there is where she meets the Beast.

From where can I begin now? From the double POV? Beacuse the Beast has also one?! Or from the fierce nature of Yeva and how strong-willed she is? Many would say that we have Stockhokm Syndrome here but this is NOT the case. You'll have to read the book to understand the whys.

The magic which also courses through the plot is very beautiful and dangerous. Some minor characters, also inspired by both the Russian and the Greek mythology make their appearance, adding more into the world-building.

The ending was very satisfying, open with many choices and the freedom to explore and discover more. Obviously I recommend it, as a loyal fan of everything B&B! ;)

On a scale of cotton candy to Brussels sprouts, Hunted by Meagan Spooner is hot stew on a winter's day. Stew thick with winter vegetables and rabbit meat. Nutrients building the immunity and heartening the spirit.

Meet Yeva, nicknamed Beauty by her father. As the youngest of three daughters, she became her father's stand-in for a son. Beauty shadowed her father in the Russian forest and stalked game with the swiftness of a fox. But always, the stories of her childhood beckoned. When her father loses everything and must turn to the forest for the family's sustenance, Beauty yearns to track with him, but he refuses because she must be a lady. When her father doesn't return home, she goes after him.

Another rebelling of Beauty and the Beast? Yes, please. I never tire of my favorites retold. I picked up this book because a friend suggested it. And I just loved it. As in, I stayed up two hours past my bedtime to finish it, and I rarely do that anymore as an adult.

I loved Yeva (Beauty). She has this strong spirit, and she refused to be a damsel in distress. Beyond that, Yeva was smart. Who can't like that?

***I received an eARC of this book via Edelweiss. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.***

Hunted by Meagan Spooner is a fantastic retelling of the beloved classic Beauty and the Beast. I devoured this book, listening to it in one day. I didn’t want to sit it down for even a minute. Thankfully with audiobooks you don’t have to sit it down, you can just take your speaker with you everywhere.

Yeva, our Beauty, is the youngest daughter to a wealthy merchantman in her town. Despite having everything she could ever want, Yeva longs for the forest and hunting with her father as she did when she was a child. When a business venture goes bad, she gets her wish. Losing everything they own, Yeva and her family move to her father’s hunting cabin. In the forest, Yeva still feels lonely, despite having her two elder sisters with her. She misses town, she misses her father who refuses to allow her to hunt, and she misses her would be suitor. When her father doesn’t return with his hunting dog, Yeva sets out to find him and so the story really begins.

I liked Yeva and disliked her, if that’s even possible. She was a greatly flawed character and yet she overcame those flaws making you like her. I think this quote really sums her up quite nicely:

"She wept because she did not know what she wanted, and because she wanted everything."

Yeva longs for more, always more and each time she receives what she wanted, she isn’t happy and wants something else. I think the author did an amazing job in conveying that longing. It was easy to feel it, and as a reader, want it with Yeva and mourn when it doesn’t make her happy. The question quickly becomes what will make her happy.

The Beast was a conundrum for me, yet instantly I fell for him. He was just as flawed as Yeva and longing to break his curse no matter the cost. I loved how the author mixed his original tale with the Russian fairy tales The Firebird and Ivan. Not only did this help to solidify the setting of the Russian woods in winter but Yeva’s upbringing. I found it fascinating to view the Beast through Yeva’s eyes and as the reader realize how she slowly fell for him.

However if you are looking for romance, look elsewhere. This book does not focus on romance at all. Yeva is the heroine of the story and doesn’t need the Beast to save her. Instead she is saving him. She’s looking for what will make her happy. At first it’s hunting, then revenge, and ultimately finding the Beast. Yet none of these make her happy. Instead she learns a valuable lesson about living in the moment instead of always looking ahead.

Overall, I loved Hunted. I didn’t want to sit it down and I’m already making plans to read through it again at some point. Beauty and her Beast felt real while reading and you want them to live happily ever after in the end. I think that is the mark of a great story. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys fairy tale retellings with strong heroines and medieval Russian settings.

Yeva (aka Beauty) and her family are wealthy and enjoying life among high society. Well everyone except for Yeva. She tires of the endless parties and vapid chatter with the ladies in their social circle. She longs for more.

When her merchant father loses their fortune, they are forced to leave the city. Her father is determined to get their fortune back and continues working. One day when he is out traveling, he never arrives back home. After weeks of not hearing any word from him,Yeva takes it upon herself to go search for him. It is then that she finds herself captured by the Beast….

I was really hoping that I would have liked Hunted more than I did. Maybe I’ve read too many Beauty and the Beast retellings? I enjoyed the author’s writing style and the characters were interesting. I loved the relationship between Yeva and her sisters. They were very close and cared deeply about each other. However, nothing really surprised me in this story and I didn’t really fall in love with the characters. If you happen to love all things Beauty and the Beast then I would recommend Hunted to you.

Hunted is a Beauty and the Beast retelling that will remain in your heart as if it were the original. This tale will enchant you. It will captivate you and entangle you.

“In every fairy tale there were rules. Even the monsters could not break them.” (Spooner, p. 133).

The Plot: Yeva is not like her sisters. She loves to hunt and has no interest in marrying. When her father makes a business decision that loses their fortune, the four of them are forced to move deep in to the woods, in their old, abandoned cabin. It is finally Yeva’s chance to hunt again and use the skills taught by her father as a child. But while her sisters care for the cabin and Yeva is out hunting, their father begins to go mad and talk of the beast hunting him in the woods. When he disappears, Yeva has but one choice; to go searching for their loving father. In her search she is captured by the Beast and held captive. Can she escape and return to her family?

I was hooked the moment I began this book. The author has such a lovely, lyrical writing style, and though this book was predictable, it was enchanting. I adored the use of Russian folklore and faerie tales and I fell in love with the magical twists the author threw in to this tale. The characters and story-line were so well written that I could believe that this was the original Beauty and the Beast tale.

“This is a dream…Magic. A fairy tale.” (Spooner, p. 367).

Yeva’s character was my favorite. She was strong, independent, and determined. She was kind and caring and fought for what she believed in. I loved that she had no care for trivial womanly things of her time. She is the kind of character I always look for in a story and she was paired well with the Beast.

“Yeva had always longed for nothing more than to live at her father’s hunting cabin, where she had spent so many happy days with him as a child on their expeditions.” (Spooner, p. 27).

The Beast was an intriguing character. He seemed like the beast from the original story but also held more complex layers and details. His story was that of a Russian faerie tale and his fight against beast and human nature was interesting.

“She’d long known that the Beast had two natures, and that they fought within him.” (Spooner, p. 235).

I feel like this story could win over the hearts of those who are in love with the original. It has so many magical details and felt like an age old faerie tale. I adored the use of the “faerie” realm aspect and the fact that there were other folk and faerie tales told within the story to make it feel more enchanting. I will most definitely be reading more from this author!

“…he’d told her of spirits and demons and creatures that had no names. But all children were told such stories…” (Spooner, p. 186).

About: Hunted is a fiction novel written by Meagan Spooner. It will be published on 3/14/2017 by Harper Teen, 352 pages. The genres are fantasy, young adult, and retelling. This is book 1 in the Hunted series.

My Experience: I started reading Hunted on 12/3/16 and finished it on 12/7/16. This book is a great read! I couldn’t put it down and I literally lose sleep reading this book. I stayed up past 2AM 2 out of 4 nights to read and have to get up at 6:30am the next day to go to work. I didn’t fall asleep at work, but still! I sacrifice my sleep for this book! I really like the main character, Yeva. I like following her train of thought. She’s smart, brave, independent, and caring. It takes her awhile to realize what she wants, but so does everyone. We don’t always know what we want, do we?

“Her father had taught her that she should never try to comfort herself by lying about her situation. No heat, no food, and no way out.” 93% of the book

This book is definitely a page turner. Yeva’s family is very loving. They all get along well and take care of each other through good times and bad. Her oldest sister, Arsenka, is the best in the world. She’s a sister everybody would want. Since this book is a fairy tales retelling, when I read this book and the fairy tales within this book, I recognize them immediately because I have read those fairy tales for my son before. The story flows easily and smoothly. The story changes course when Doe-Eye, Yeva’s pet showed up. I didn’t like when Yeva only have her pet as her only companion for those weeks and they explore aimlessly around the building. I also didn’t like that Yeva told the same story twice, even though with a different ending, but the beginning of the story is the same. I think the author could write it differently in this case so it doesn’t show repetitions. I do like the ending of the book and the moral of the story. I like that there is no cliffhanger at the end of this book. I like both POVs equally and I like best when they have interactions with each other. Overall, I really like how easy it is to read this book.

Pro: fast-paced, couldn’t put down, family, hunting, retelling, magic, light-hearted, more than 1 POV, page-turner, not a cliffhanger

Con: minor dull moments, repetitions,

I rate it 5 stars!

***Disclaimer: Thank you to the author, Meagan Spooner, publisher, Harper Teen, and Edelweiss for the opportunity to read & review. Thank you! Please know that my opinions are totally honest.

xoxo,
Jasmine at howusefulitis dot wordpress dot com for a detailed review

I love fairy tale retellings, and Beauty and the Beast is one of my favourites. But this is definitely not a Disney Beauty and the Beast style retelling, which was just the way I liked it. The story is told from two unique perspectives and creates an interesting reading experience. I seemed to fly through the book as the drama unfolded. And it is dramatic, since the relationship between Yeva and Beast is the definition of tumultuous. Yet at some points, they do have a chemistry that I enjoyed, just as I have in previous retellings. The only time I was kind of thrown out of the story were at certain slow points in the beginning and right before the climax. That said, I found that the story tied together neatly, though I would have liked to spend a little more time in the magical world. Still, those are personal preferences and I'm glad I got around to reading this book. This definitely read like a classic fairy tale, so I would recommend it to readers who enjoy classic retellings and are looking for a more adult and dramatic take on the tale as old as time.

***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***

Hunted by Meagan Spooner
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: March 14, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from Edelweiss

Summary (from Goodreads):

Beauty knows the Beast’s forest in her bones—and in her blood. Though she grew up with the city’s highest aristocrats, far from her father’s old lodge, she knows that the forest holds secrets and that her father is the only hunter who’s ever come close to discovering them.

So when her father loses his fortune and moves Yeva and her sisters back to the outskirts of town, Yeva is secretly relieved. Out in the wilderness, there’s no pressure to make idle chatter with vapid baronessas…or to submit to marrying a wealthy gentleman. But Yeva’s father’s misfortune may have cost him his mind, and when he goes missing in the woods, Yeva sets her sights on one prey: the creature he’d been obsessively tracking just before his disappearance.

Deaf to her sisters’ protests, Yeva hunts this strange Beast back into his own territory—a cursed valley, a ruined castle, and a world of creatures that Yeva’s only heard about in fairy tales. A world that can bring her ruin or salvation. Who will survive: the Beauty, or the Beast?

What I Liked:

I've read Spooner's solo books (her debut trilogy), and her co-written books with Amie Kaufman. Her Skylark trilogy was so-so for me, but I loved the Starbound trilogy. When I saw that she would be publishing a new fantasy series, I was definitely intrigued and hopeful - maybe I would love this new solo series of hers. I'm so happy to say that I really enjoyed this new book of hers!

Yeva and her family have fallen on hard times, and they move far from town to their old cabin, where Yeva's father will hunt in the forest in order to provide for his three daughters, and make some money back to pay debts. Yeva's two older sisters, Lena and Asenka, are not like Yeva and her father. Yeva loves being in the forest, away from town, being able to hunt at will. But something dangerous lurks in the forest - a Beast who Yeva's father feared, right before he went missing. Yeva hunts the Beast, and what she finds isn't quite what she expected. She hates him, but she begins to understand him. How is it that he is just as trapped as she is? Yeva learns that the world she knows is not the only world that exists - and she is caught up in the magic.

Beauty and the Beast retelling, anyone? Perfect timing, given the live-action movie to be premiered soon. Personally, I'll take books over movies any day. This retelling is on its own level! I loved it. I was so curious to see how Spooner would handle the fairy tale, especially with all of the controversial aspects of Beauty and the Beast (Stockholm Syndrome, for one).

Yeva is a not an angelic, naive heroine, nor is she a fierce, kickbutt type of heroine. She is sweet and selfless, but also tough and very independent. She likes to hunt in the forest, and enjoys the solitude. She cares for her two older sisters and her father, so much so that she makes different sacrifices when the opportunities present themselves, in order to help her family. When Yeva ends up in the Beast's castle, she is angry but unafraid. I really, really liked Yeva. Arguably, she is one of my favorite Spooner heroines (I liked the ladies in the Starbound trilogy though). She is so selfless, when it comes to her sisters and father, and eventually, the Beast.

The Beast... we all know the story of Beauty and the Beast, so I couldn't help but feel pity and remorse for him, from the start. But in the beginning, the author makes readers feel a little angry with him. He is not kind or patient with Yeva, and he seems more animal than human in the beginning. But his humanity comes about more and more, the longer Yeva is with him. The Beast is a character that I knew I would feel for, and my heart broke for him constantly.

In this book, Yeva actually gets to know the Beast for a bit before she finds out that he is the Beast, if that makes sense. She believed him to be a fellow prisoner at first, and he brought her food and supplies in the dungeon cell. But then all is revealed that he is actually her captor, and she hates him. It's interesting because Yeva gets to know the Beast before she learns that he is her captor, and then she finds out and hates him, and tries to kill him several times. But she quickly figures out that he is cursed, under a wretched spell, and that he seems to be both human and Beast. I liked this setup, in terms of the story. It sort of accounts for why Yeva might fall for him - she knew him as a "good guy" at first. Furthermore, she tries to keep hating him after she finds out that he is her captor, but he is kinder to her, and not a terrible, abusive captor. Still a captor.

The way this story is told, you won't find Stockholm Syndrome here. Yeva recognizes that she probably shouldn't care about her captor, but she also recognizes herself in him (the loneliness, the love of the forest, the desire for more). She talks to a friend about loving a cruel man, but realizes that the Beast is not that type of "cruel man". I think the author handled this aspect of the fairy tale extremely well, and worked around Stockholm Syndrome.

The progression of the relationship is extremely slow, and there is no physical aspect of the romance. In fact, it's hard to call the romance a "romance" because while Yeva does fall for the Beast (and vice versa), it's definitely more of a progression of an emotional connection than a physical one. This is kind of obvious, right? I liked the development of this powerful emotional connection, though it's hard to say in my mind that it's a "romance". It definitely becomes one after the spell is broken.

There is a good deal of magic in this book! Yeva's father used to tell her tales of magical beasts he used to see while hunting in the forest. Now, Yeva begins to see them herself, like the Firebird. Soon it becomes clear that the only way for Yeva to free the Beast from his spell is to seek out magic, and that is what Yeva decides to do, towards the end of the book.

The setting is very Russian-esque, with the snowy scenery, forest, mountains, castles, and the obvious Russian names. I loved the setting and how it added to the magical world-building! Spooner did a beautiful job in crafting this fantasy world.

Overall, I really liked this retelling. Beauty and the Beast retellings can be extremely tricky, given the obvious Stockholm Syndrome problem, and bestiality, but I think Spooner rewrote the classic tale extremely well. There is so much more than two people falling for each other, but I'll let you discover that on your own. This is a great story, friends!

What I Did Not Like:

This is definitely a standalone novel and I absolutely love that it's a standalone novel, but I can't help but want a little more from Yeva (Beauty) and her "Beast", when he becomes human! We only get a few pages of them as a human man and human girl together, and the epilogue is a little on the vague side. Wishful thinking on my part, but I would have loved to get scenes showing the pair together, in the end. Like a more specific epilogue, showing their obvious love and adoration for each other.

But still, I'm really satisfied with this book overall.

Would I Recommend It:

I highly recommend this book if you like fantasy novels, fairy tale retellings, Beauty and the Beast, magical settings, clever heroines, and a romance that isn't a "romance" like you think. Plus, this is a standalone (though I think Spooner is writing more fairy tale retellings, possibly set in the same world but I'm not sure). It's perfect for fans of YA fantasy and fairy tales!

Rating:

4 stars. I had some expectations for this book, and I'd say Spooner met them. I'm excited to see what other solo projects she has, though I'm also looking forward to reading more co-written books!

Can a retelling of a classic fairy tale be original and unique? Ms Spooner has done so beautifully. She has moved it to Russia, where the woods are peopled with beings from Russian folklore, capturing their otherness, while her sisters are oh so human. Loneliness haunts the pages. The inner struggles of Beast with his dual natures depicts a constant battle between instinct and emotion contrast with Yeva's search for vengeance and yearning for something as elusive as the Firebird yet as powerful as love. I loved it. Strong characters, strong emotions, hunter and hunted, and always the lovely woods, oh so dark and deep.

A copy of this novel was provided through Edelweiss by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.

I'm a sucker for fairytale retellings. I'm an even bigger sucker for the types of retellings that sprinkle in fresh takes on standard tales and a whole lot of mythology. I find there just isn't enough in terms of re-imagining Beauty and The Beast. At least, not many that I like. In the case of Hunted, Meagan Spooner tells a tale that is instantly classic and new to our eyes--a lot of twists and turns, it's very high stakes and action packed, and also smart. I liked knowing what was going to happen but seeing it unfold in a way that is newer to me.

That's what sets Hunted apart from its counterparts--you can guess a lot of the twists but they don't necessarily play out exactly as you'd think. Then there's the characters and the way Spooner works around tropes and plots that could have been utterly clichéd and dully familiar. Let's take our newly rediscovered Beauty, Yeva. She is very much like her fairytale counterpart but with a few notable differences. I liked that she was a hunter and full of strength and a bit of vulnerability. I.E: she is real and far from one dimensional.

Spooner writes the characteristics of Beauty in a way that is intelligent and warm and there's no denying this. Watching as she grows in such a short amount of time (or in some ways, rediscovers herself and her love of the wild) was a privilege and if you need only one reason to read Hunted, it's Beauty. I do think Yeva is one of my favourites when it comes to fairytale retellings and Spooner did a beautiful job adapting her for this story. I loved seeing the way she plans and takes care of everyone and eventually, herself.

Adding in the trait of a hunters heart was an incredibly smart move and amps up Yeva while setting her apart from most takes on the tale. It's also what makes finding Beast far more interesting and different that the same plots we are used to. All the while, it keeps up that similar air of connection that we'd all expect when it comes to the story.

This isn't to say that Hunted is without flaws--like any piece of fiction, it has them. But there's so minor and easy to overlook for the good, it sets across a balance and doesn't distract from the original tales and Spooner's spin of things. Meagan Spooner's writing is light and detailed--a combination that is frankly lacking in other novels in the genre.

Overall, Hunted is an incredibly fast paced take on a familiar tale that will leave YA fans on the edge of their seat. Spooner knows exactly what she's doing and will earn quite a lot of praise for this one--rightfully so. If you're skeptical of retellings, I think that--ultimately--this will be one that you can enjoy with your whole head and heart.

I loved this retelling of Beauty and the Beast! It was extremely well-written, real and dark, and the ending really got me. Wanting... I love how the author developed the characters and plot, layering in magic as the main character grew in understanding. Matching it with the Beast's perspective added another great layer to the book. I know the author probably spent months writing this book, but I devoured it in two days. I couldn't stop reading it! This is going on my "favorites" bookshelf.

Beauty and the Beast: The Beast needs a Hero & it seems that Beauty's dad, Best Hunter [tm] turned merchant, is it. Only, not. As a merchant he got old (many hunters don't) and slow (definitely not a good move for hunters) and had three daughters, the youngest very beautiful. Her two sisters love her very much, and they all bake bread together as 'sister time' even though they have plenty of servants to do the cooking and cleaning.

What if Beauty wasn't the good and dutiful - and passive - daughter? What if she was a hunter just like dad, only she -used- to be a hunter like dad and now she's got to put on pretty gowns and be a fine lady.

It doesn't take very well. The story-line follows the familiar Beauty and the Beast, while completely not flowing at ALL. Disney, hide under the blankets, this is not a cheery sing-along situation. There's a dragon in the story, who does not fulfill any of the traditional dragon roles. I kept waiting, but hm, sometimes a dragon is just a dragon.

I like that, when Beauty leaves the Beast's castle and goes home, a villager former friend looks at her dirt and bruises and delicately mentions another friend, an abused wife who would not leave her husband, and would Beauty like to really, really rethink her situation? Yay Stockholm Syndrome is brought up.

This girl-in-forest-with-cloak cover could be anything from Ye Olde Mystery to Historical Fiction to Fantasy

Overall, Hunted was a pretty good read. It spent so much of it's time trying to shake off the "pretty" label (its main character is named Beauty, but doesn't want to be known for her Beauty... -_- ), but in the end is just another pretty fairy tale to put on the shelf.

Hunted is a retelling of the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, and was definitely released to coincide with the Disney live-action release. Yeva--known as Beauty to everyone--is a "feisty" red-head in a small Russian (?) village. After her father loses all their money, she, her sisters, her father, one servant, and their dogs go to live in his old hunting cabin. Beauty begins to go hunting again and then--in a shocking turn of events--is captured by the Beast.

My main issues with this story are the plot and the characters. Because this is a fairy tale retelling, you know exactly where this is going to go. There's not any suspense for me since Spooner told it almost exactly like the Disney fairy tale. This, of course, is the pitfall when retelling any well-known story, but the author didn't inject enough newness to keep me glued to the page.

In addition, the characters are weak. Beauty tells the readers one thing but then tells herself another thing a few chapters later. If she were supposed to be an unreliable narrator, perhaps I could forgive this, but she's NOT. She's the heroine of the story, but she's an indecisive, selfish brat, who Spooner continually rewards and who doesn't grow. (view spoiler) The Beast is fine--a bit bland, but he's one of the main characters for only perhaps 1/3 of the book, so I can forgive it. We don't ever find out the cause of his enchantment/curse, which irked me, but it's not the point of the story, so it's a forgivable miss.

I did enjoy Spooner's actual writing. She is descriptive when she needs to be, and her dialogue is solid and realistic. I particularly enjoyed the first few chapters when she is building Beauty's world and describing the transition from her life in the town to the family's life in the hunting cabin. In addition, Beauty's relationship with her sister's is well-written, if a bit too saccharine for my taste.

Hunted is definitely a book most YA readers will enjoy, especially if they enjoy their romances fairy tale-esque, their heroines feisty, and their heroes tortured.

This was so beautiful and dark. I am always going to love retellings but there are some that just stand out and this one was incredible! I couldn't stop reading and when I did pause reading I was still thinking about the story and characters until I picked it back up. it constantly had me wanting to read more and I loved hearing from the beast. it added so much to the story and made you feel for him so much more than I think you would if you only read Yeva's pov. Incredible world, story, and characters with beautiful writing.

Hunted by Meagan Spooner is in my opinion one of the best retellings of Beauty and The Beast that I've ever read/listened to. At first, it took me a few minutes to understand what was happening, each chapter starts out in the Beasts POV, but once I realized that, I couldn't stop reading. I needed to know what was about to happen. This book isn't like other retellings, mainly because I wasn't sure if that HEA was going to happen. It seemed at times that it wasn't and I wasn't sure how I would feel about that.

The writing style of this book is also very different which of course caught my attention right away and pulled me into the story even more. After awhile, when you read a few retellings of the same story things get repetitive. If I'm being honest, I get really bored after awhile and end up not finishing said book. It's already happened to me five times with Beauty and the Beast retellings, so I was a bit scared to read this one at first, but there was no stopping me once I started this one.

My favorite Beauty and the Beast retelling!

*I read this in January of 2017. I’m reviewing it now. I read it as an arc. This is, as always, my honest opinion.

I love retellings. I love seeing how an author can transform a story I’ve heard a thousand times into something new. And Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairytale. That being said, whenever I find a Beauty and the Beast retelling I am both excited and hesitant.

Meagan Spooner does not disappoint with her take of the story.

This book is charming in all sense of the word. I was addicted to this book as I read it. It has enough of the original fairytale, but still manages to give you a different twist.

Yeva’s character is great. She’s strong and tough and caring. She’s determined and she’s not afraid of doing what it takes in order to get what she wants. The Beast is a fantastic character, as well, and definitely has more depth to his character than most Beauty and the Beast retellings do.

It’s simply fantastic.

This is my second favorite Beauty and the Beast re-telling! Don't ask me about my very favorite one, because right now I CAN'T remember!

I absolutely loved all the characters in this book, from fearless and strong Yeva, to the messy and chaotic Beast. I loved how they were written, their character development and the slow hate-to-love shift between them.
One of my fave "changes" about this book is how lovely was the relationship between Yeva and her sisters (and their father). In most of the re-telling I've read, the sisters are mean and cruel to her, but in this book, Yeva's family was lovely and united.
I'd like to say that I loved everything about this book because I did, but for a long time, Meagan made me think Beast did "the inforgivable" and I hated him for a long time.I ended up loving him, but it took some time, so I feel like my time hating him was wasted?

Overall, I loved this book. Loved the plot, the setting, the characters, the magic and the creatures. This book did not disappoint at all. It's a must read!

Originally posted on bayyinwonderland.wordpress.com
Wow. This beauty was a magical ride start to finish. I absolutely love all the lush words Meagan Spooner creates, the Starbound Trilogy being one of my faves. I honestly didn't even read the synopsis. I saw Meagan Spooner and beauty and the beast retelling and dove right in. 

I love anything and everything beauty and the beast. This was rich and even put a new spin on the classic tale. It was a little too slow in the beginning, however, hence me deducting one star. I loved the family dynamic. The side characters were fleshed out and felt real. They definitely brought a lot to the story. I love watching Yeva change and evolve throughout the book. 

The little chapters from the Beast's point of view were a great addition. They let us into his mental state and even gave us little clues about who he was. I figured out who the Beast was about halfway through, and was surprisingly right. 

I wish there was a bit more exploration of Beast's word because the glimpses we got had me falling hard. They felt very Grisha to me and I really want more about that world. Otherwise, this is a delightful retake on a classic tale. 

Beauty and the Beast, my all time favourite.

This book has a very special place in my heart. It took me far far away into a distant land, where fairy tales come to life in an ordinary girl's world. I loved reading this retelling, I thought it was so very well done. It was refreshing and real, I ignored all else when I reading Hunted, and I couldn't put it down!

I enjoyed reading Yeva's (Beauty) character, she enjoyed hunting and being away from society, her character developed well over the course of the book and I loved the way she learned about herself and thought of others.

I loved the encounter Yeva had with Beast. It was intriguing and clever. I loved the way Beast's character was complex and how his character development progressed with his time with Beauty. The pages before each chapter gave us a glimpse into Beast's world, and each time I thought I would put the book down to go to bed, or eat a meal, I would read Beast's pages and continue to through the next chapter. I really couldn't stop reading! Yeva and Beast's characters were more alike than they thought. I liked how Spooner kept the focus on wanting something more and touching base with it later in the book, reminding you of something Lena has said to Yeva at the beginning of the book.
I loved the way the fairy tales were told, and how it is weaved through the story. I enjoyed the blurred lines between the magic world and Yeva's. It was so magical!

The thing I love the most about this book, was the way Yeva and Beast connected. They learnt to understand each other and could see attributes of each other in themselves. The wanting something more, having a sense of wanderlust or restlessness that Yeva yearns for is very relatable and not something I often see in books.

I really really enjoyed Solmir's character (Gaston), who ended up being a very nice guy! I dreaded the moment Yeva left Beast and what would happen like how the villagers went after the Beast in the Disney movie. I loved reading about Yeva's sisters, Lena and Asenka and their bonds and relationships. Especially the sisterly love and understanding that we saw with Asenka and Yeva.

Overall, I adored this book, and I wish I can talk on and on about it but I would seriously be spoiling the whole book. I thought it was such a beautiful read and it will now hold a special place in my heart, alongside Cruel Beauty. Spooner weaved this story so well and it was such a magical and refreshing read from start to finish. I highly recommend this book, and I absolutely cannot wait to meet Meagan Spooner next month!!!

This is a retelling of Beauty and the beast. Yeva's family has lost their fortune and must move into a forest cabin so that her father may try to hunt and provide for the family. When her father does not return from the woods, Yeva (Beauty) goes to find him and the elusive beast he is obsessed with finding.

What worked for me: The relationship between the sisters was so loving and warm, which is a nice contrast to so many "fairy tales" that depict strained family relationships. All of the characters have a good nature to them making the reader fond of them all.

What didn't work for me: The relationship between Beauty and the Beast puzzled me. At times I could see a fondness developing but I was never fully convinced of it. I could actually see the bond more from the Beast's perspective than I could from Yeva's.

Author Spooner made several smart choices with this retelling of Beauty and the Beast: Russian folklore is mixed with hard fantasy to give a very unique story. The Beast is feral, the sisters good hearted, and the suitor for our heroine is not an evil person. But at the same time, the story is fairly inert for most of the book, the love story never really developed, and many of the characters were fairly hard to like.

Yeva and her sisters live in the City as part of the nobility. Yeva (named Beauty at birth by her father) is being courted by the man that Yeva's gentle sister secretly loves. When the family's fortune wavers and they return to the distant forest lodge their father used to call home, Yeva is secretly happy to return to her love of hunting and be free of court intrigue. But their father is not right in the head and has gone hunting the Beast whose body he feels can change his fortune. When Yeva, who is as skilled a hunter as her remarkable father, goes after him, she finds herself beaten and imprisoned by an unknown jailer. Despairing, she has only one goal - to kill the beast who killed her father.

The basis of this story is Beauty and the Beast meets Tsarevich Ivan, the Firebird and the Gray Wolf. Spooner seamlessly weaves the Russian and French myths together into a coherent but grim story. Where the story falters, however, is not where most readers would expect. This isn't a "Barely even friends then somebody bends" Disney tale and instead involves a brew of hate and despair. As such, we don't spend much of the book with the two protagonists getting to know each other so much as hurting or torturing the other. Those looking for a sweet tale won't find it in Hunted but readers wanting an edgier and darker take on the fairy tale will likely enjoy this book for its uniqueness.

Most problematic for me is that there just wasn't enough emphasis on the relationship to warrant a love story at the heart. The Beast cultivates an atmosphere of hate and pain (yes for a reason) and Yeva is so one-sided in her determination to destroy/maim the Beast that not even Stockholm Syndrome would explain the attraction to each other by the end. It's dark cold dungeons, broken bones, and slit throats rather than pretty dresses and dancing talking candles.

Because the Beauty and the Beast tale is interwoven with Ivan, Spooner has quite a bit to work with and doesn't spend too much time with the 'getting to know each other' part. That is both a positive and a detractor, though. We get an interesting retelling but we also lose the heart of Beauty and the Beast - that outside appearances aren't as important as the goodness within. Since Beast is feral, barely sentient, that point is completely lost.

Because I didn't believe the relationship, the ending lost its relevance for me. Oddly enough, I really like how Yeva's sisters fared more; indeed, I really liked her suitor who stayed true to her despite her single mindedness. The story does tie up quite nicely and clearly a lot of great thought was put into creating an intriguing concept. I only wish the heart of Beauty and the Beast (the romance) was retained rather than adding in the quest for the Firebird. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

Reader thoughts:
Imagine that Gaston was nice and that Beauty knew how to hunt. Then imagine that the Beast's curse is more than just thorns and roses, and it can't be broken by a mere declaration of love.

The book seemed to start more one way and end another. It felt a bit dreamy, almost disjointed. An enchanted wood and beast in a castle; this felt familiar. Then there were a woman-dragon-creature and a buttaboy-imp-creature and also a firebird. These didn't feel familiar, didn't feel like they belonged in this tale. They broke the medieval fantasy mold and made this book more fairytale-esque and quest-like.

I did like that Beauty had good reasons for hating the beast (other than his appearance, see) in this novel. It made her later feelings that much more powerful. She connected to him well because they both were so discontent and kept wanting, wanting, wanting. It was annoying for a bit, because this made Beauty sound so selfish. Then she learned better.

I liked having the hunting dog added in. I loved what happened with Beauty's older sisters and their fiances. I like what happened with their father and how some thought he was going mad, which is true to the original tale.

Writer thoughts: Or this could be called Narrator thoughts: because I want to comment on the voices, too.

All the normal chapters were in Beauty's voice (a girl's voice), and between every chapter was a paragraph or so from the Beast (read in a man's voice). This was exciting. I hadn't seen this done before, and yet I was planning to do that with Royal Deception, since there are paragraphs between the chapters that are from the bad guy's pov.

Also, the Beast's paragraphs were a great measure of his state of mind. When he was more beastly, his paragraphs were single words strung together ("Snow...pain...Beauty"), but when he was thinking more like a man, his sections were coherent and complete thoughts. Fascinating.

This is a retelling that has beautiful writing, wonderful family dynamics and a female character that's role model we need in books today. Meagan Spooner creates a cold, isolated and atmospheric story about Yeva who goes into the woods to find her father after he claims a "beast" is hunting him. This is the ultimate Beauty and the Beast retelling; it's not romance heavy, so if you're tired with romance heavy YA books, this is for you!

This was a very straightforward Retelling of Beauty and the Beast. However, it lacked originality. The story was not very creative, and it was very similar to Uprooted, East, and A Court of Thorns and Roses. I would have enjoyed it it more had I not read any of those books. As for the characters, I never felt connected to any of them. They felt cold and distant. I did not believe in their romance. They went from hating to suddenly loving each other. Thus, their relationship was unbelievable. I do recommend this for fans of fairy tale retellings.
(Note: While I received an ARC copy of this book in courtesy of Edelweiss, I read a finished copy at my local library.)

A Beauty and Beast retelling.
I would give this book a 3.5
A beautifully written story, but something felt like it was missing for me. I typically enjoy retellings, but this one just was not for me.
I enjoyed how the Beast's point of view was written, along with his character development. I felt that I just wanted more from the main character, Beauty. I just didn't fell connected with her, and didn't really care what happened to her. I don't want to say too much, but I don't like when everything just fits perfectly together.

I stopped reading in the middle, so sorry. I like to read fairy tale re-tellings, but I go for the romantic more light-hearted ones. I didn't like the bloodlust and body parts in the snow kind of stuff. Certainly it was well-written, with highly developed characters and with a new twist, but today I needed something else.

From the very first page this book had me wondering what was really going on this book had me wondering who really was the villain who really was a good person was there any hero or heroine at all could have me wondering about human nature and who what really makes a person or a beast in the first place this book will stick with me for the rest of my life it's almost like looking into a mirror about real life really is and if there's one thing I could say to the author all I can say is thank you for a beautiful story that would become part of me as it is part of you and everyone who's ever read it if you enjoy a fantasy spin-off this is definitely a must-read!

A Beauty and Beast retelling.
I would give this book a 3.5
A beautifully written story, but something felt like it was missing for me. I typically enjoy retellings, but this one just was not for me.
I enjoyed how the Beast's point of view was written, along with his character development. I felt that I just wanted more from the main character, Beauty. I just didn't fell connected with her, and didn't really care what happened to her. I don't want to say too much, but I don't like when everything just fits perfectly together.

I stopped reading in the middle, so sorry. I like to read fairy tale re-tellings, but I go for the romantic more light-hearted ones. I didn't like the bloodlust and body parts in the snow kind of stuff. Certainly it was well-written, with highly developed characters and with a new twist, but today I needed something else.

From the very first page this book had me wondering what was really going on this book had me wondering who really was the villain who really was a good person was there any hero or heroine at all could have me wondering about human nature and who what really makes a person or a beast in the first place this book will stick with me for the rest of my life it's almost like looking into a mirror about real life really is and if there's one thing I could say to the author all I can say is thank you for a beautiful story that would become part of me as it is part of you and everyone who's ever read it if you enjoy a fantasy spin-off this is definitely a must-read!

I first found out about Hunted, by Meagan Spooner, from the author's newsletter (co-hosted by Aimee Kaufman). A YA retelling of Beauty and The Beast, I was intrigued and put myself on my library's wait list. Luckily, I was able to get an e-book version of it on it's release date of March 14th. It is much deeper and more complex than anything Disney could come up with, and I devoured it quickly.

What I Liked:

Character:

Yeva is the main character, who's father's nickname for her is Beauty. She loves is hunting with her father. But, now that she is of marrying age, she is discouraged from hunting, and thrown in with women who seem most concerend with fashion, gossip, and catching a husband. She feels alone, and wants more. I loved that the book focused on more than Yeva wanting a mate who was more intellectual than the men that were around her village. Yeva can't even articulate what it is she wants, she just knows it must lie in the forest...

I also enjoyed the character of Solmir, the man is courting Yeva (Gaston's counterpart, if you're keeping tabs). He was not an uneducated thug, as in the Disney version. He was actually quite kind and truly interested in Yeva's well-being. He was everything any girl (but Yeva) could hope for, yet Yeva could only feel a sisterly love for him. She wanted more...

The Beast is also much more complex than in the Disney version. I loved how the book showed his dual nature fighting against each other. Is he a man doomed to have animal instincts he can't control? Or is he a beast cursed to have a conscience? He is also not trying to get Yeva to fall in love with him! She is a gifted hunter, and he needs a hunter to kill what has bewitched him.

Themes:

I found the themes in the book to be nuanced and have such depth. The idea of everyone having more than one nature was astute. No one is completely good or bad. We also have more than one role in life: woman, sister, lover, nurturer, provider. We can be many things all at once.

There is also the theme of discontent throughout the novel. Yeva doesn't want to live in the city, but when she gets to the country, she wants to live even further in the woods. When she is there, she dreams of being reunited with her family, but even when this happens, she is not content. Can she ever be happy? Is "happy" a destination? Do you get there, and suddenly you're happy? This book goes in to all of that with the Beast as well.

Underlying flaws:

I think this book does a great job of addressing some of the troubling parts of the original story. Many people have pointed out that the Belle character (Yeva) is suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. This is when you are kidnapped, but then come to identify too much with your captors. Another way to look at it is from the standpoint of an abusive relationship. Is Yeva in that type of situation? Why would she want to save the Beast? I liked that the story didn't shy away from these issues, but explored them instead.

Overall, this was a very satisfying story! It had suspense, fully developed characters, and fascinating themes. I loved it!

Beauty and the Beast has always been my favourite fairytale. Perhaps it's because of the magic, used for more than making a fancy ball gown or carriage. Or maybe I like that it is a redemption story, about a selfish man made good. Maybe it's because the heroine is strong and resourceful but still kind, or because of its similarity to the tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon. Whatever the reason, I love the original fairytale and I equally love Beauty and the Beast retellings. Hunted has all of the elements of the original that I love, with a haunting writing style and gorgeous setting. It is more detailed and clever than a simple Disney tale, but it retains that ethereal quality, with a sharp, deadly edge that offsets the beauty.

It's been years since Yeva hunted in the woods with her father. Her muscles have grown soft and her training lax after her father moved her family to town and determined that Yeva would be best served playing lady to the baronessa, sewing and wearing fine clothes. But a turn in fortune sees Yeva, her two sisters, and her father removed from their home and returning to the little cabin in the woods. Yeva secretly rejoices at her chance to once again roam the woods with her bow and arrows and traps. But a strange madness overtakes her father, who is sure a beast rules the forest, and, after her father disappears, Yeva goes after him and discovers a world that has previously only belonged in the legends she was told as a child.

This story is gently woven, exactly as a fairytale should be. Yeva is no fainting damsel, but she is understanding and kind. She loves her family and wants to protect them, despite being the youngest. I found Hunted to be one of those books that you are desperate to get to the end so you know how it ends but when you near the last pages you want it to go on forever.

The East European names and folklore, and the snowy, rugged setting are a charming backdrop to the story, but hold a kind of hidden danger in its beauty. Much like Yeva, beautiful but with a dangerous and deadly edge. She is a strong hunter, good with a bow and arrow, she excels at moving through the forest, tracking her prey, and setting snares and traps.

When she is taken prisoner by the Beast, it is her silent and invisible ally to whom she grows attached (but there is no love triangle, hope that's not too much of a clue...). The Beast, when he captures Yeva, expects her to be rescued and plans to capture her rescuer to use as his hunter, only realising much later that Yeva herself holds the skills he needs to break his curse.

I really loved this book. Loved the mix of fairytales and legends that blend so well together. I loved the romance that, of course, starts off with fear and hatred and anger and slowly learns to see past that to come to a place of understanding and love. I loved the characters, especially Yeva, but also everyone from the Beast to Yeva's loving sisters. And I loved the ending that perfectly ties everything together but leaves it open enough for the characters to forge their own path. Because while this might be a fairytale it has a life of its own...

The publishers provided an advanced readers copy of this book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.

When Yeva goes into the woods to find her missing father, she finds a Beast, a ruined castle, and a forest full of magical creatures. This book is set in medieval Russia and does not follow the traditional fairy tale. It’s a darker story that also shows the Beast’s humanity from time to time. For a different take on this beloved fairy tale, I recommend reading this book!

Overall Assessment:
Hunted is a B&B retelling, yes, but it is also different in many ways. Yeva, our “beauty”, is a hunter. Yeva’s family consists of her, her two sisters, and her father. Her father is a merchant, but lost all their fortune – not in a bad slimy way like gambling. It was just a mixture of bad business decisions and terrible luck. Immediately I loved all of them. Yeva’s father is loving and dotes on his daughters; her sisters are strong and kind, and Yeva herself is strong-willed, selfless, and intelligent. She is one of the most likable characters I’ve read in a while and thoroughly enjoyed reading about her. I don’t want to give too much away, but many of the other characters are different as well.

One cool feature of the book is that before each chapter we get a short journal-like entry from the Beast’s POV. We see his struggle as he continues to grapple between humanity and becoming the beast he shares a mind with. The beast’s curse is unlike any other I’ve read in these kind of retellings. Saying anything other than that might give it away, but it’s definitely unique.

I know I’m not giving much of the plot in this review, but I really don’t want to spoil it for anyone. Just read it! And then come find me so we can talk about it!

What I liked:
– Likable characters all around. There was literally not a single character that I didn’t like in the book.
– The many twists on the original tale. Even though it was a retelling, it still felt very original.
– The slow-burn romance between Yeva and the beast. It’s definitely not an insta-love situation.
– The big surprise at the end. Actually, throughout the book there were many surprises to be had.

What I didn’t like:
– I can’t think of anything I didn’t like. It was a little slow in the beginning, but it was necessary for the plot progression and character development.

Final Thoughts:
– Hunted is not just another regurgitated B&B retelling. While sticking with the common overall theme, it is filled with original ideas and characters. I recommend it to everyone in need of a refreshing B&B retelling, and anyone who loves a strong female protagonist.
*Full review on my blog* --> ChandaReads dot Com

Hunted combines a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with Slavic folklore and does it well.

Yeva, called Beauty by her family, is the daughter of a successful merchant who comes into some hard times. The family is forced to move into a hunting cabin in the woods. While there, her father's mental state quickly deteriorates. He disappears one day on a hunting trip, and Yeva sets out to find him. Instead, she winds up captured by the beast and imprisoned in a basement dungeon. She's determined to avenge her father's murder, kill the beast, and escape from its clutches. But, over time, her feelings for the beast start to blur. He's her prison warden and a murderer, but also a sort of a friend. When Yeva does finally escape the beast's castle, it's not the relief it should be. Even reunited with her family, she struggles with conflicting emotions over her time with the beast.

At first, Yeva felt like a bit of a Katniss clone to me, but she really came into her own as a character as the story progressed. I liked that the beast was an actual beast-- animal in both appearance and behavior woven with occasional shreds of humanity. There isn't instalove between Yeva and the beast, and their relationship is complex. Yeva's feelings for the beast grows out of how she feels like she can relate to him.

I did think the last 10% of the book was rushed, and I didn't like the resolution with the Firebird. I could have done without the beast's chapters; whenever I see blocks of text in italics I'm suspicious of how necessary it is to the narrative. That said, I really enjoyed the characters, and the story completely hooked me. Sometimes I just "click" with a certain book, and that was the case with Hunted. This is the best retelling I've come across so far.

I received a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss.

**Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy**

I love fairy tale retellings, and I especially love retellings of Beauty and the Beast, and so I was primed to fall in love with HUNTED from the very start. With its beautiful cover and intriguing description, I was so excited to read it - and luckily, HUNTED did not disappoint.

There were a lot of things that I liked about HUNTED. One thing that took me a little time to get into, but that I ended up liking, was the pages told from the Beast's perspective. They were confusing at first, but also a way to draw you into the mystery and the story. Plus, as Beauty and Beast get closer, they are an invaluable glimpse into Beast's feelings for Beauty.

Yeva is a spectacular Beauty. Following in the tradition of Disney's Belle, she doesn't really want to get married, and she wants something more from her life. She cares more about her family than nearly anything and she's honest and loyal. I liked watching her fall for her captor, despite her simultaneous hate for him on occasion. The Beast is mercurial and fascinating. The romance between the two is slow and not always the highlight of the story, but that was fine, as I felt the mystery of why the Beast was the Beast was more important.

HUNTED feels very Russian influenced, and reminds me strongly of THE BEAR AND THE NIGHTINGALE, which also featured a strong heroine who loved the wild, with tinges of A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES, whose heroine also would do anything for her family. It was a captivating tale that I read in an evening, and I would highly recommend it.

I picked up the book because someone took her dedication and placed it on Pintrest. I thought I *had* to read this book that so clearly called to the child in me. I'm glad I did.
The trope is not new; take an old fable and make it your own. It's the journey that will decide if it's a good enough story to meet longevity. I'm not sure it will only because it may get lost in the plethora of stories available now. Because it's a "teen" book (though I disagree -- it's a fairytale that provides a lesson that we all need reminded of from time to time). Because it might not be movie material to those who make those decisions.
It might be the dedication that lured me in, but it is the note from the author that will stay with me.
"There’s no such thing as living happily ever after—there’s only living. We make the choice to do it happily." - Meagan Spooner

Whole book was great unto the end. Very interesting and original. Fantasy mixed with fairy tale. But the end seemed too draw out some weird moral about it being good to always be wanting, which I didn't like. If it wasn't for that little bit at the end, which made for a poor conclusion, it would definitely have been a 5 star book.

This review originally appeared on herestohappyendings.com.

I've been trying to read more fantasy these days, particularly fairy tale retellings, so when I heard about Hunted by Meagan Spooner, I was incredibly delighted and knew I had to read it. I haven't read anything else by the author, so in terms of writing I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was blown away by the beautiful style of writing and the way I was captivated by the story from the very first page.

"We always know before the change comes - but we never know what the change will bring."

Yeva, often called Beauty by her father, is a young girl girl who has a good life - she has her father and two sisters, and maybe has caught the eye of a boy who she might one day marry. She wants for nothing except the ability to spend time alone in the woods, hunting with her bow and arrow instead of having to learn ladylike ways from the town's baroness.

When her father loses everything they had trying to make a trade deal, the family is forced to move into the old hunting cabin that belonged to their father - the one that their mother made him give up when they met, because watching him go off into the woods hunting always made her fear the worst.

When they move in, they have to sell all of their belongings and their father must once again take up hunting. Yeva, who longs to go out hunting with him, is not allowed to do so, but decides that until her father returns, she wants to be sure that she can provide plenty for her sisters to eat, so she goes out hunting with her own bow, relishing in the ability to have some time alone in the woods with her thoughts and the snow.

One day, when their father is due to have returned and has not yet, Yeva sets out looking for him, even though she is aware as to what she will find. When she does find him, she also finds the beast - a creature that she has been warned about her entire life, and that everyone in the village had come to fear.

When Yeva attempts to fight the beast, she winds up finding herself failing - and ending up as the beast's prisoner in a dungeon. She's completely in the dark, and in pain, but it seems as though the beast is making sure that all her needs are met, and the two of them find themselves talking, with Yeva telling stories and the two of them slowing starting to get to know one another through slow, stunted conversations.

"In every fairy tale there were rules. Even the monsters could not break them. And where, except in fairy tales, did there exist a talking beast?"

Once Yeva learns of her true purpose - she was captured as bait for a hunter who had plenty of skill to come along and help hunt down the being that cursed the beast so long ago, she is reluctant to train, until the beast threatens the lives of Yeva's sisters unless she complies. Out of fear, she does so, and the beast finds himself incredibly interested in her. Over time, the two of them grow closer, almost to friendship status, even though the main thought at the back of Yeva's mind is follow through with her plan of revenge and kill the beast for murdering her father.

"Only she frees both of us. She moves like beauty, she whispers to us of wind and forest - and she tells us stories, such stories that we wake in the night, dreaming dreams of a life long past. She reminds us of what we used to be. She whispers to us of what we could be."

The majority of the story is told in Yeva's point of view, but at the beginning of almost every chapter is a page or two that is told from the Beast's point of view. Some of the things the Beast has to say are kind of frightening, while others are more positive and beautiful. The more time Yeva and the Beast spend together, the more time you can see that Yeva is bringing out the best in him.

I've noticed that in a lot of fairy tale retellings or fantasy books, there is an insta-love or a romance that makes the main character just melt into a useless love-stricken puddle. That really isn't the case in Hunted, and I think that's part of the reason that I loved it so much. Yeva's character is strong willed and a character that is willing to stand up and fight for what she believes in - she wants revenge for the death of her father, and she is going to let absolutely nothing get in her way of that. If you want a strong heroine, Yeva is probably one of the most badass ones that I've come across yet.

This is one of the best Beauty and the Beast retellings that I've read yet, honestly. I loved the characters, including the strong family bonds that the sisters held. Yeva's character is strong willed and she goes after what she wants, while at the same time remaining caring (especially toward her dog).

The one thing that I found myself not enjoying as much as the rest of the book? Definitely the last few chapters. They were kind of confusing, and they felt somewhat rushed - and were a bit strange. I was kind of hoping the book would have been a little bit longer and had a bit more of a satisfying ending, especially since this was a stand-alone (Yes! A stand-alone fantasy! They do exist! Thank you, Meagan Spooner!)

If you're a fan of fantasy and retellings, you should not miss this one - it's beautifully written, detailed, and an incredibly fun book. It's definitely one that I see myself adding to my collection and reading multiple times in the future.

Note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you, HarperTeen!

Hunted is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with elements of slavic folklore in the form of the legendary Firebird. Yeva, aka Beauty, is a skilled hunter, and when her father goes missing on one of his hunts, she sets out to find him. She ends up getting captured by the Beast, who imprisons her so that she can fulfill a task he requires of her. Throughout the book, she considers him her enemy, and vows to seek revenge against him. While training for his task, she starts to understand what he is, and what that means for her mission.

Most Beauty and the Beast retellings have a prince disguised as a beast, but he is still gentle and caring underneath. This Beast is sort of different, in that he is both man and beast - though only appearing as the latter. He has the intellect of a human, but the pragmatic and instinctive nature of a Beast, which constantly puzzles her. At first, she is ready to kill him because she thinks he is just a creature, and which she can collect as a trophy. But soon she realizes that there is a slight human presence underneath, in the way he responds and the emotions he expresses. Still, the fact remains that she considers him her enemy and no kindness of his can erase what grief he caused her.

The storyline neatly follows the plot of the original that everyone is familiar with, but here and there you see hints of slavic folklore being sprinkled in. At first, I thought it would be something related to faery tales, but we get Rusalka, and through Yeva's childhood stories, about Ivan and the Firebird. Still, she doesn't realize that she herself is part of a fairytale, and when the time comes to break the curse, she uses her knowledge of her stories to do so. The author spins a nice tale between these two different stories of Beauty and the Beast and Firebird, and combines them very well. Also, the hunting parts of the book, the scenes where Yeva is in the forest, were so well-written I could feel like I was there in that forest with her.

The ending was a little vague with respect to the curse, but I loved the twist the author gave to the two original stories. Well, more to the Firebird one, because that was more dominant towards the end. However, that action picks up in the last 15% of the book, and I felt that the middle lagged a little in terms of pace. Overall, however, it is a good retelling and I would recommend it for fantasy fans!