3.5*
Imagine the Disney screenplay you grew up with and could recite word for word… rewritten with a Tim Burton-esque dark edge. That’s this Twisted Tale in a nutshell.

I love a good reimagining of a familiar story, and I grew up on Disney Renaissance, so I was excited to discover this series, starting with this book. I appreciate that the premise is stated right on the cover; this left me able to focus on the plot instead of over-analyzing details to discover the main twist from the original story. The inclusion of some exact details and dialogue from the animated film was at times comforting in its familiarity, but other times felt a bit jolting because this is such a different story. (Like two sets of characters in parallel universes having the exact same conversation.)

I didn’t realize how dark this retelling was going to get. Be aware that it’s definitely not intended for story time with young children. It is quite well written and cleverly thought out, though, and I look forward to reading others from this series. ( )

Okay, I’m going to be honest, I really didn’t like this book. It isn’t completely horrible, which is why I’m not giving it a one star instead, but I hated this. Mostly, I think I hated it because of the characters. I hated Belle’s mother and I hated Belle, which pains me to say since I love Belle in the movie. In this book, however, I just found them insufferable, and since they were the main characters, it just kind of ruined it for me. ( )

I found this book to be such a fun read featuring belle and the beast. I really enjoyed the questions that i tackled. I really loved how this book expanded the world and delved in more about belle parents past. I loved the part of the book the focused on the parents. I wish that part had been expanded a tad. I found his book to such a fun read and loved how it answers even more questions. This book could even lead until a sqeual easily ( )

I found this book to be such a fun read featuring belle and the beast. I really enjoyed the questions that i tackled. I really loved how this book expanded the world and delved in more about belle parents past. I loved the part of the book the focused on the parents. I wish that part had been expanded a tad. I found his book to such a fun read and loved how it answers even more questions. This book could even lead until a sqeual easily ( )

Mystery, twisted, beauty and the beast ( )