Audio Book Review: Beauty and Beastly

Beauty and Beastly

By:  Melanie Karsak

Publish Date:  December 6, 2017, Audiobook Release July 26, 2018

Format:  Audiobook - 6 hrs 4 mins
Narrated By:  Lesley Parkin

Genre:  Steampunk, Fairy Tale

Series:  3rd in Steampunk Fairy Tales series; 1st Book ~ Curiouser and Curiouser

Impression:  Steampunk and magical blend of a classic fairy tale.

Synopsis:
In this tale as old as time, Isabella Hawking must tinker a solution to a heartbreaking mystery.

When Isabelle and her papa set out from London on a sea voyage, Isabelle was thrilled. Visiting foreign courts, learning from master tinkers, and studying new ways to manipulate mechanicals sounded like a dream. But an unexpected gale turns the waters violent, and the ship is lost. Isabelle survives the tempest only to be shipwrecked on a seemingly-deserted island. Dotted with standing stones, faerie mounds, and a crumbling castle, the haunting place hints of a magical past. Isabelle may be an unwitting guest, but her arrival at the forgotten citadel heralds a new beginning for the beastly residents inside.

Beauty and Beastly is a retelling of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale set in 1814 Regency England.

First Sentence:
"Isabelle, are you coming?"

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles 

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

I've listened to Lesley before. She did Curiouser and Curiouser as well. Her proper speech of words and her accent adds to the drawing of the characters. She brings each character to life with their own vocal personality as she narrates, acting out the story for us. I believed the characters as she voiced them with heart.

I really enjoy Melanie's steampunk twist to the fairy tales. She keeps key ingredients but transforms the story. Here we have the rose, the mirror, the garden, the offer for dinner, and Be Our Guest, don't go in this area, spot of missing painting, the library, the dance, and more. But she turns the events to work as a new tale with strong old tale influences. This keeps the story true to it's nature and easily recognizable for all.

I love the creations in the world. The steampunk creations and ideas here. The world shines with the feel of it. Oh the place where the Beast lives. Wow. It sounds stunning and so special in it's own way. It sounds like a place I'd enjoy visiting.

I love how the story is of steampunk and clockwork, but it also holds an element of magic to it. Lovely blend of the two to create this tale. There is magic present in more than one way. There is magic in the world, of course. But there is magic in the relationships created.

*sigh* For me this is a golden charm. I'm afraid if I get going on about the story that I'll give too much away and you won't be able to experience and enjoy it as I did. Melanie is amazing at turning the fairy tale to her telling yet keeping the essence of the story true. I'm once again taken with the talent.

Totally worth listening to the story.



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

Audio Book Review: Curiouser and Curiouser

Curiouser and Curiouser: Steampunk Alice in Wonderland

By:  Melanie Karsak

Publish Date:  July 7, 2017, Audiobook Release September 13, 2017

Format:  Audiobook - 5 hrs 24 mins
Narrated By:  Lesley Parkin

Genre:  Fantasy, Steampunk, Fairy Tales

Series:  Steampunk Fairy Tales stand-alone

Impression:  Alice in Wonderland feel in a new story.

Synopsis:
To save the Hatter, Alice must work with the one man she despises so much that she might still love him.

* * *

Alice thought she’d turned over a new leaf. No more working for Jabberwocky. No more making deals with the ruthless Queen of Hearts. No more hanging around The Mushroom with tinkers, tarts, scoundrels, and thieves in London's criminal underbelly. But she’d been bonkers to dream.

Hatter’s reckless behavior leads Alice back to the one person she never wanted to see again, Caterpillar. Pulled into Caterpillar's mad schemes, Alice must steal a very big diamond from a very royal lady. The heist is no problem for this Bandersnatch. But protecting her heart from the man she once loved? Impossible.

First Sentence:
"Curious." I strained to look out the window of the carriage at the crowd thronging toward Hyde Park.

Purchase At:
Amazon

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Alice follows the boy who stole her employers pocket watch, Rabbit, back into the life she left behind. Into the rough part of town she returns, summoned. The love she once felt for William surfaces as the man he is now needs her help. Blackmailed into helping to save her sisters love, The Hatter, from his debt, Alice agrees to help Caterpillar.

Lesley's tone when speaking as Alice feels to fit her curiosity, which is the feel we get from Alice in many stories of her adventure. She has an opinion that she voices, not mean or rude, just a thought to add to the discussion.

Melanie writes Alice with the feel we would expect. A curious young lady with thoughts of her own to share. The story isn't as much falling down a literal hole like in the original story. But Alice living in a world full of wonder, and following a boy nicknamed Rabbit. The world created is full of steamwork and clockwork items. This blended with the steam and smoke draws a world of danger and mystery in which Alice is pulled back into. This is a talent as Melanie very craftily wrote the story in the actual living of the characters.

We see the world full of clockwork and steampunk from the beginning. There is a darkness to the story as well, particularly with one of the characters. Creepy, dark. But fits in the harsh life of the characters here. There is even a touch of magic present. Just a touch. Mostly the world is steam and clockwork.

There is a feel of double meaning to words, it's not confusing but tricky. Listen closely to catch it. I love how people have two names; real name and a nickname. Like William who's known as Caterpillar in town. Each name goes with a different part of his life. Which person is he when talking to Alice? William or Caterpillar? Both are of a different nature and are known for different things to Alice. This gives the twisty feel that we get from Wonderland.

Melanie touches on all the main characters from Alice in Wonderland in her remake. It was a nice game for me to see about spotting them all, though their names do give them away.

I was pleasantly surprised with Melanie's creation here. She captured so many important elements from Alice in Wonderland yet wrote a different story that feels true to the world. So well done!



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!