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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

When Does a Great Idea Override a Mediocre Execution?

by Chautona Havig · 1 Comment

A Dark Beauty melds an unusual twist on the Beauty and the Beast Fairy tale with historical ficiton set in Victorian England. Intrigue and romance...? Yeah! via @chautonahavig

Fairy tale retellings are a dime a dozen.  No, really. They are. It’s not always deliberate, but a few in particular, occur frequently. Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, and The Princess and the Frog are notable examples.

Because of this, sometimes even a mediocre story can come off as amazing simply because it’s a new spin on an old trope. A story that might have otherwise been a two or three-star read becomes three or four simply because the author managed to do something fresh or original in the retelling. That happened to me last night.

A Dark Beauty Review

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you

When Does a Great Idea Override a Mediocre Execution?

How about when an author makes us love the characters? Perhaps when a totally plausible plot keeps you turning page after page? Witty repartee?

Compassion?

There are so many reasons to love A Dark Beauty, but I’d say a unique character for our “beauty,” as well as our reason for the “beast,” top the list. A mechanically minded locksmith’s daughter meets Queen Victoria’s cousin and sparks fly!

An impertinent butler, a “Gaston-like” character who makes your skin crawl, and all the rumors, whispers, and trouble you could hope for–this book has them all.  It even has a housekeeper who is a decided nod to the Disney movie version’s “Mrs. Potts.”  You’ll never convince me otherwise.

So with all this, why did I say “mediocre execution?”

Well… because it was.  There are some serious flaws in A Dark Beauty–-ones I hate to mention because I really did enjoy the book.  I just also was left disappointed at the end.

For one thing, there is intrigue and a bit of a mystery that never gets solved.  We don’t know who did what or how. It’s as if once Dom and Georgianna are “together,” everything that conspired to make it happen as well as keep them apart doesn’t matter anymore.  What?  Why would you do this to me?

Add to that some strange anachronisms (more of the “unlikely” rather than impossible variety), and you have problems.

Some things I chose to overlook.  While Georgianna makes a couple of really stupid decisions, people do stupid things when they are grieving, scared, hurt, or otherwise have their minds occupied by trouble instead of using the sense God gave them.  I get that. In fact, as stupid as they were, they fit the story well.  They made her human and flawed.

I just wish I didn’t feel as if A Dark Beauty fizzled out at the end.

This is mostly due to a bit of deux ex machina for some of the elements that did “just happen” to work out.  Well, that and a genius plot involving Queen Victoria that we never find out the source and true plan of. It’s rather vague, contrived, and left unfinished.

And yet I liked the book. I’m glad I requested and received a review copy of it. It was an enjoyable read. No, I didn’t love it, but I’m not sorry  I read it, and I really do love Dom, Georgiana, Smith, and Mrs. Gill. They carried the book when the story flagged.  In my opinion, that counts for something.

I loved Clarissa Kae’s Of Ink and Sea, and she has a Cinderella retelling coming out in fall. I look forward to reading it.

About the Book

a dark beauty Book:  A Dark Beauty

Author: Clarissa Kae

Genre: Historical Fiction/ Fairy Tale Retelling

Release date: March 9, 2021

A Victorian Twist on Beauty And The Beast

Bold and brilliant, Georgiana has a gift for fixing machines—from clocks to carriages—while her father has a penchant for finding trouble. In an accidental fire, Georgiana and her father scar the once handsome face of Lord Pichon, cousin to the queen.

Rumors of Georgiana’s gift raise her family’s status. Her incomparable beauty captures the eye of many gentlemen and the wrath of Lord Pichon. Abandoned by his peers and alone in his cold castle, Lord Pichon is determined to enact revenge.

When Georgiana’s father makes a terrible mistake, she sacrifices herself to pay his debt—as a lowly maid in Lord Pichon’s castle.

Her wit and warmth begin to thaw Lord Pichon’s estate, making him question his version of the past. Will her kindness break the beastly lord, or will he hold her family hostage forever?

 

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  1. megan allen says

    April 3, 2021 at 6:15 am

    I have heard amazing things about this story!!! Beauty and the beast is one of my favorites! So excited to read this!!

    Reply

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The Because Fiction Podcast

The Because Fiction Podcast
The Because Fiction Podcast

Taking the pulse of Christian fiction

Episode 213: A Chat about Daughter of Eden with Jill Eileen Smith
byChautona Havig

How often does Biblical fiction go back in time… before time? Not often in my experience, but Jill Eileen Smith’s Daughter of Eden takes a bold step to imagine the creation of the angels… of even Michael the Archangel!  Listen in while we chat about Eden, Eve, her children, and the war between those banished from heaven and those who remained to protect those made in God’s image.

 

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you.

What Kinds of Lessons Can We Learn from the First People?

When Jill Eileen Smith said her book started at the fall–the original fall–instead of in the Garden of Eden, I knew this would be a book I had to read. I mean, come on! If you listen to the audiobook sample, it shares the creation of Michael and his first reaction to seeing the King of Kings! I loved it, and it made me even more eager to read Daughter of Eden.

Jill says she wanted to show the internal battle that must have raged within Eve as she regretted the terrible decision to give in to Satan’s lies instead of trusting the Lord’s goodness and care for her. Can you imagine that lifetime of regret?  

But also, Jill talks about how they had to learn to do everything. What plants to grow to create fibers. How to spin those fibers into thread. How to weave that thread into cloth. And they had to do it with everything… pottery, butchering, gardening, medicinal plants perhaps?  There’s so much to learn and yes, they had hundreds of years to learn it, but did they? They needed those things immediately!

Daughter of Eden by Jill Eileen Smith

The first time she opens her eyes, Eve gazes on One whose beauty nearly blinds her, whose breath is in her lungs. Her Creator takes her hand and gives her to one like her and yet different. Together, she and Adam experience pure joy as they explore Eden. But her favorite moments are when the Creator comes to walk with them, day after day.

Until everything changes. With one act of disobedience, Eve finds that her world is no longer a friendly place. With remorse in her heart, she must face the unknown future–the births, the deaths, the sacrifices, the loss of the one home she has ever known. Perhaps worst of all is the loss of trust, not only with her Creator but with the man who shares her life. How will they ever survive out of Eden?

Bestselling biblical fiction author Jill Eileen Smith imagines the life of the first woman to ever live, unspooling a story of love, loss, and the promise of redemption.

You can get Daughter of Eden at 30% off with free shipping (as of today, anyway!) at BakerBookHouse.com 

Learn more about Jill at her WEBSITE.  You can also listen to her episode about Miriam’s Song HERE.

Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at:

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Episode 213: A Chat about Daughter of Eden with Jill Eileen Smith
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