I immediately fell in love with Among the Beasts & Briars when I saw its cover. It’s simply magical: a fox, a crown of roses, a fairytale-like font…I was more than eager to start this book by Ashley Poston when it was nominated for our first online book club!
Among the Beasts & Briars
As you can already tell by looking at it, Among the Beasts & Briars is a fairytale. But like many fairytales, it has a dark and creepy side to it.
The story takes us to Aloriya, a prosperous kingdom in which we meet Cerys, one of the two main narrators. She’s the only daughter of the royal gardener and destined to use her green fingers to keep the palace’s gardens in perfect shape. Her village and the royal family are unaware, however, that Cerys is far more than just a botanical talent. Deep within her, a dark magic connected to her past is stirring. Her magic is entangled with the cursed woods that border the kingdom.
For centuries, the royal magic has been able to prevent dark magic from entering the kingdom, but things take a disastrous turn when Cerys’ best friend becomes queen. The creatures from the woods have arrived to demand the crown and destroy everything that gets in their way. Alone and powerless, Cerys has to flee, looking for the mysterious Lady of the Wilds. Well, not entirely alone. She has her fox with her, of course. Because no heroine worth her salt would set out without a loyal furry friend.
Tale as old as time?
I have to admit the book rather confused me. It’s a dark fairytale, filled with humour and young love. It’s not new, of course, that a fairytale has a darker side, but, sometimes, the descriptions felt a bit too wannabe horror and surreal for my tastes. It reminded me a lot of the TV series Grimm.
But what really surprised me was that as of page 1, no, even as of seeing the cover, I was convinced that this would be a modern version of Beauty and the Beast. There are indeed several elements (e.g. the font on the cover, the roses, a girl and a beast, not to mention the almost literal quotation “But can you imagine? Me, dancing with that boorish, brainless..”. You’re immediately tempted to continue with “Madame, Gaston, can’t you just see it?”, no?) but the storyline itself never comes close to the original fairytale. Very strange.
My favourite part was without a doubt the Fox. Delightful. Such a nice character and the dynamics between him and Cerys are very funny and entertaining.
I didn’t finish the book easily, though. But the further I got, the more I liked it and I really wanted to know the end. I didn’t think the writing style flowed though, apart from the dialogues, and I wasn’t fully convinced of the combination of Disney and Grimm either. But the story is definitely entertaining and the looks of the cover are enough to consider it a gem. Will you see the grand finale coming? Absolutely. It couldn’t have been more obvious if she would have added a giant neon arrow to point at the clue. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the story and the book will receive a nice place in my library. Three out of five gemstones:
Age Category: Young Adult
Trigger Warnings (click here, may contain spoilers)
Mild. Warnings for violence, gore & self-harmDo you want to discover more?
If my review inspired you to pick up the book, don’t hesitate to check it out at Goodreads or at the below online stores. If you decide to buy it via one of the following links, I will receive a small percentage at no extra charge for you!
Amazon.nl: English Hardcover Edition
Is there anything as fun as special editions? Especially if they match the standard edition so very well. On the picture, you can see the standard edition in white. The black one is the Owlcrate edition. Aren’t they the perfect couple? There are more difference between the two than the colour of the cover, however. The special edition has red sprayed edges, it’s signed and comes with a letter of the author. And of course, we should not forget to mention the pretty illustrations on the inside of the dustjacket! This special edition is definitely worth its higher price.
Similar to this
If you are a fairytale retelling fan like me, you should definitely read A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. This new version of Beauty and the Beast stole my heart as of page one. The series tells the story of Harper, a young woman from Washington D.C. who gets kidnapped and suddenly finds herself in the enchanted castle of Rhen, the cursed heir-to-the-throne of Emberfall. My full review of this first part in the Cursebreakers series can be read here.
As we are already discussing Beauty and the Beast, it’s impossible not to mention A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. This is without a doubt the best known new version of this fairytale. The series takes us to the kingdom of the Fae in which a human girl, Feyre, is faced with an impossible choice: leave the human world behind forever or die. My full review of part one can be found here.
I had never read one of Ashley Poston’s works before Among the Beasts & Briars. I’m really looking forward to start her Once upon a Con series, of which the first book is Geekerella. It’s described as a fairytale and an “ode to nerd culture”. Sounds great, no? As the title already suggests, it’s a new version of Cinderella and tells the story of a sci-fi fan who wants to enter a cosplay competition but is thwarted by her annoying stepsisters. Did you already read this book? If so, what did you think about it? Update: I loved this book so much! Check out my review here.