Review: How Beauty Met the Beast by Jax Garren

Title: How Beauty Met the Beast
Author: Jax Garren
Series:Tales of the Underlight #1
Release Date: November 19th 2012
Publisher: Carina Press
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 3 HOOTS
Reviewer: Karia
Buy From: Amazon / B&N

Sum It Up!  I liked the characters.

 

Summary
The Beast
Scarred. Damaged. Living with a terrible secret. Agent of the Underlight
Wesley "Hauk" Haukon has nothing left but the fight for liberty against
the oppressive Order of Ananke. He's starting to lose hope...and then he
sees her.

The Beauty
Despite her night job as a burlesque dancer, grad student Jolie Benoit
has always played the mostly good girl. That all changes following a
scorching sexual encounter with a stranger whose face she doesn't see.
After she's kidnapped by thugs and rescued by a man with a very familiar
voice, Jolie becomes a pawn in a struggle she never knew existed.

Hauk knows he cannot have her, and resolves to protect his heart and his
secrets. But as they work together and grow closer, he finds new reason
to keep fighting. Dare he risk hope in a new life, one where Jolie can
see past his ravaged face and where their friendship can grow into
something more? (Goodreads).

Review
I loved the 1987-1990 Beauty and the Beast TV show (the new one is still
growing on me!). I loved the underground scenes and the whole
underworld idea. I saw this book on Net Galley and instantly thought,
"wow, The Hallows meets Beauty and the Beast!".

One issue I had with this book was the fact that it suffered first
book-world building. I don't like the procedural style of world
building and I found myself noting it here and there (which took me out
of the moment). I liked the characters, but I found myself working to
keep track of the new ones here and there (also distracting, and this
may have been my fault since I read it over Christmas with children
running about).

In retrospect, in writing this review and having just finished reading
"Skin Deep" by Pamela Clare, I realize that I love the dark, tortured,
physically flawed hero. I love when they don't see their own worth, but
go above and beyond to save and comfort others. I will be looking up
book #2, "How Beauty Saved the Beast". Enjoy!