Sandhya Menon never disappoints!

Of Curses and Kisses was such a cute read! Boarding schools are my all time favorite setting so I knew right away that I’d love this one.

I instantly fell in love with Grey. He was so misunderstood and I really enjoyed learning more about him.

I can’t wait to read more in the series!

I could not get myself interested in this story. I think Sandhya Menon is a brilliant writer for teens and I will purchase this book to have available for students, but I was not personally invested in the story.

I love fairytales with a twist. This book puts a whole new spin on Beauty & Beast. Yes there is a library, a rose (love how it fits into the story), and two characters who break a “curse” all on their own terms. The mountain setting was fitting for this story (swipe to see the #bookmap). I love that the others characters have more to depth to them than just playing a secondary character. . I’m really looking forward to getting to know them more as the series continues.
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If you haven’t yet, pick up @sandhyamenonbooks’s first 3 books. Her YA contemporaries are some of my favs! .
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Thanks to @simonteen @netgalley for the e-arc I read

I enjoyed this book but did not love it. I always pick up fairy tale re-tellings and this was no exception. It has all of the charm of Beauty and the Beast but there was one main flaw. And that is the main character, Jaya. She was very annoying and while some of her actions made sense, some seemed very out of character. Jaya is forced to do things for her family by her father rather than decided to do things herself. Sometimes she seemed strong and stubborn. She would then do something that would make you question if this was the same character.
Overall, the story was cute and I enjoyed Grey as the "Beast." I just wanted Jaya to be stronger, more consistent character.

3.5 out of 5 Stars

Thank you to @simonteen and @simonandschuster for an advanced copy! ⁣⁣

⁣⁣𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: 3.8/5 STARS⁣⁣
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𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: Rahul, Daphne and Leo. ⁣⁣
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𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦: ⁣⁣
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𝗙𝗔𝗩𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗔𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦: I’m a sucker for anything, absolutely anything, with a boarding school in it. Don’t know why, maybe it’s the after effects of Harry Potter/Mallory Towers, but I loved the setting. The story itself felt a lot like the Princess Diaries, in its tone and atmosphere. However, there is a definite modern aspect to this book; it handles female friendships, difficulties in communication, the implications of media coverage on individuals, without needing a serious overtone to the story. It’s light hearted, it’s funny, it’s sweet, and it’s a unique re-telling of Beauty and the Beast as it doesn’t rely on many of the tropes from the original fable. ⁣⁣
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I dock off a couple of points, not because of the writing (which I found fun to read) or the plot, but because I was invested more in the secondary characters. I liked Jaya and Grey, they were good MCs, but they didn’t hold my attention as much as Daphne, or Rahul or Leo or Isha. I wanted to know so much more about them and their storylines as they felt more complex. I realized this was a series when I checked it up on Goodreads, and I was so excited because I hope the next few books focus on the secondary characters, as Sandhya Menon did a fantastic job in making them all so interesting! ⁣⁣
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𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣𝗦: Grey and Jaya. They were very adorable, and Grey was the perfect brooding “beast” and Jaya wildfire “beauty”. ⁣⁣
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𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 𝗙𝗢𝗥: readers looking for a contemporary Beauty and the Beast retelling for a romantic read.

Of Curses and Kisses was a heartfelt book about finding one's self worth and following one's heart. Jaya made for a compelling and complex heroine, with her strong sense of duty and attention to status and tradition balanced out by loyalty to her family and compassion for those around her. Her protectiveness of her younger sister was understandable but also frustrating because of the way she ends up trying to stifle her sister's pursuit of happiness. Grey was a classic brooding love interest, feeling little control over his future and unworthy of love and happiness. The changes and growth that happen to both Jaya and Grey as they grow closer had me rooting for their happily ever after. While the curse and Jaya's pending engagement were sources of external conflict for the couple, I think the center of the story's conflict was ultimately about their internal issues and what they chose to believe they deserved. I'm happy with the choices they made, and the ending was everything I wanted.

I received an eARC from Simon Pulse via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My full thoughts can be read here: http://twincitiesgeek.com/2020/02/beauty-and-the-beast-get-schooled-in-of-curses-and-kisses/

Of Curses and Kisses is a cute modern YA adaptation of Beauty and the Beast. Taking place at an exclusive Colorado boarding school, Princess Jaya has hated the Emerson family her entire life. As the heiress of a royal Indian family, she is ready to do anything to keep in line with her family's wishes and traditions. Grey Emerson, the cursed heir of the Emerson clan, has lived a life of isolation. Told in alternating views, the two clash in typical fairytale fashion but with a modern twist.

I'm a big fan of Sandhya Menon and was thrilled to read this first book in her new series. I can't wait to see who from St. Rosetta's Academy will be the focus of the next in this series!

Did someone say new favorite beauty and the beast retelling? Oh, right, I did. I love Sandhya's other books, so I fully expected to love this one. I was not disappointed. While it took me a little bit to get into it, I really adored this book. It was different from her other works while still retaining that feel of adorable (and fantastic) romance. I recommend this one wholeheartedly. Jaya and Grey will have you sucked into their story in no time.

The Disney princess inside me love love loves a retelling, especially the story of Beauty and the Beast but ONLY when it is done well! This book delivers! If you have ever been let down by a book that promised more than it could provide or if you need a palate cleanser after tackling something long-winded or complex, look no further than this one!

This book was a very sweet read, and a nice retelling of a classic fairytale. I really enjoyed how Menon wove in modern elements with the classic ones, creating a rich story and one that I'll be sure to recommend to teen readers. Very well done!

Thanks for the opportunity to review an ARC!

Reading this as a pdf was difficult. The formatting issues got in my way and I had trouble getting into the story.

This book comes out tomorrow and since I had an ARC of it I decided to speed read it yesterday. It wasn't anything special which is why I was able to get through it so quickly. I thought it was a cute read and I think a younger audience would really enjoy it.

The two main characters are Jaya and Grey. First off I want to talk about Jaya. She was an interesting character. At the beginning of the book, she stuck to her beliefs and didn't let anyone tell her otherwise, which was annoying at times. However, as the book went on she started to change and see things from a different perspective which I really enjoyed reading about. She's still not one of my favorite characters but she's was fun.

Next up is Grey. Out of the two main characters he is the one I liked the most. He starts out the book as an odd duck but he grows to be a character that you start to care about a tiny bit. At the beginning of the book, he kind of feels a little flat but he does definitely go through a lot of growth that makes him an enjoyable character to read about.

The writing was very cringey. I think I need to stop reading YA contemporaries as the writing is not something I seem to be able to take. This book specifically was not good writing-wise. For some reason, the race of characters was capitalized and I found that annoying and unnecessary. Honestly, I found the fact that the character's race seemed to be mentioned a lot annoying as a whole.

The plot was not anything special. It was cute and romantic which fit the general mood of the book. I did like the female friendships a lot. I thought those were done really well. There were some times where I thought the characters were being stupid but then I remembered there were teenagers and it made more sense. The is it magic or is it not wasn't my favorite but it was okay. It was a cute story and I enjoyed it.

I think this is a cute light read that you could read in between heavier books if you're looking for something fun. I do think it would suit a younger audience more but I still enjoyed it. I am interested to see where the rest of the series goes as this is the first book in a new series from Menon. I don't know if I'll read them but I might if they look interesting. I recommend this if you're just looking for a cute romance that doesn't require too much effort.

Sandhya Menon is one of my all time favorite YA romance novelists, and so I was excited to see her do something a little bit different. Overall, this one was just alright to me. Beauty and the Beast is just felt a little overdone to me, and so it all felt just a tad predictable. I also was surprised to find that I really didn't enjoy the boarding school setting as much as I hoped :/ I found the side love triangle absolutely insufferable- it gave me Anna and The French Kiss vibes (a book I dislike) and so every scene with those side characters just put me off. There was just a little too much miscommunication driving the conflict for my taste. But I really liked Jaya and Grey as main characters, and I thought the most compelling relationship was Jaya and her sister Isha. Menon is still one of the greats, but I don't think this will go down as my favorite of hers.

Of Curses & Kisses was a fresh and delightful take on a classic, Beauty & The Beast from Sandhya Menon. I've been a fan of the author ever since her debut novel. With this book, she offers a story that is different in tone from her previous books, but you'll still find all the elements that make Sandhya's books compulsively readable here.

Of Curses & Kisses stars Jaya Rao, a young woman who hails from Indian royalty. After a scandal in the Indian media leaves her younger sister's reputation in tatters, Jaya and Isha arrive at St. Rosetta's Academy, a school for elites in Colorado. When Jaya finds out that Grey Emerson, the person she believes is behind the media leak is also at St. Rosetta, she sets out to take revenge on him. Her plan is to get him to fall in love with her and then break his heart. What she discovers, however, is that Grey is not exactly the guy she made out to be in her mind.

What makes Sandhya's books enjoyable for me are her characters. I have yet to read a character from her that I dislike and thankfully, Jaya and Grey were not an exception. Jaya was a character that had grown up to be obedient and devoted to her family duties. She took her obligations seriously and would do anything to protect her family's reputation even at the cost of her own happiness. As a result, she came across as somewhat rigid at times and stubborn almost to a fault. While these may sound like qualities that make her difficult to connect with, that was not the case for me. I found myself admiring her loyalty and her desire to want to protect her sister, perhaps, because I could see parts of myself in those traits? Her love for her sister was so pure and it warmed my heart to see the lengths she was willing to go to ensure that no harm would come to Isha. As the story progressed, Jaya's character underwent a lot of growth and she began to show more of her own desires. The battle between what she wanted and what she thought was expected of her played out beautifully.

The "Beast" of the story is, as you probably guessed, Grey. Ah, this soft, broody, lonely boy. My heart ached for the situation that he was in, and I wanted nothing more than to protect him and convince him that happiness was right around the corner. Grey grew up feeling utterly unloved by his father who blamed him for his mother's death. His father believed that his destiny was tied to a centuries-old curse tied to his family and the Raos and that he would die on his 18th birthday. He lived in constant fear of his impending death and as a result, he has isolated himself from most of the students at St. Rosetta's Academy. He began to experience moments of happiness when Jaya appeared in his life, but he was very cognizant about the fact that his life would be ending soon. It was very distressing to agonize so much about his death.

Jaya and Grey's relationship may have started out as a lie, but it became clear very quickly that these two were meant to be with each other. As with Beauty & the Beast, this a slow-burn romance and one that is extremely satisfying as the two begin to open up to each other. What I liked best here was how they taught each other to believe in themselves and that it was okay to put themselves first for once. There were several obstacles in Jaya and Grey's relationship that prevented them from being together and most of this book has to do with them attempting to overcome these challenges. Theirs was an angsty romance and I loved every swoon-worthy moment of it.

Sandhya weaved a truly beautiful story with Of Curses & Kisses. I loved how she incorporated the core elements of Beauty & the Beast with her own twists and made this retelling unique. The boarding school setting with all the scenic descriptions was also to die for. I loved meeting all the students at St. Rosetta's as they made for a great secondary cast. There were plenty of relationships besides the romantic one between Jaya and Grey. I am eager to learn more about them in the subsequent companion books of this series!

If you like Beauty & the Beast and boarding school settings, Of Curses & Kisses is a book I definitely recommend picking up. I think you'll love the sweet romance and everything else the book has to offer as much as I did!

Of Curses and Kisses does not hide that it wants to be a modern Beauty and the Beast retelling, which is great because it is exactly that – and more!

I am a bit weary when it comes to YA contemporary because I feel many books lean so heavily on stereotypes that there isn’t anything real to grasp. However, this book is real, honest, and quite cute.

To break it down.

Real. I love when YA characters act like actual young adults, rather than reading like an adult is writing what they think young adults act/talk like. It made visualizing the story so much easier, and I really felt that each character acted their age and how one might act given certain life circumstances.

A huge theme readers will find in Of Curses and Kisses is family. Family can make us, break us, and sometimes both. All the characters had their own complicated feelings and situations with their families, which added some serious dimension to their development. Some characters, like Grey and DE, had really troubling family situations that were flat-out bad. But then we have Jaya and Isha who have wonderful parents, who make mistakes. Because adults are human too.

With this also comes forgiveness after making mistakes. It is seen between characters on different levels, peer to peer, peer to adult, etc. It is also seen as something that does not always happen, which is true to life.

While I read a lot to escape how real life tends to me, I appreciated that the issues the characters faced were done in a thoughtful, realistic way. It was a good reminder that life is hard, but we keep moving forward.

Honest. I’m not sure I’ve picked up a YA book that addresses colonization in such an effective way. I’m pretty behind on recent YA books, so I know that there are other books out there. I need to get to them.

Of Curses and Kisses is fiction, but it is straight-forward in discussing colonization and how it still harms countries today.

It also talks about how difficult it is to meet the expectations set up by our families and pasts. Watching Jaya navigate this and find her own voice was fantastic.

Cute

All in all this was a love story. It was adorably charming and an overall good time. If this is the direction YA contemporary is heading, then we’re in for a very good time!

I’m not a teen anymore, but I would definitely suggest this to any teen who wants a modern retelling of a classic fairy tale that boasts unique, diverse characters, realistic problems, and difficult choices.

I’m looking forward to the next book in this series.

There's nothing wrong with this, but nothing wonderful either. Supposedly this is based on Beauty and the Beast but it feels more like the tale was shoehorned onto a YA romance more than anything. Also, two POVs? Both Grey and Jaya sound exactly alike, so why bother? Hearing more about the curse, more about Isha's life at the school, more about the Indian side of things would have really strengthened this. Having said all that, the way the two main characters connect felt real, and the friendships between the students (as well as the rivalries) were also very realistic, once you get behind the elite setting and lives.

eARC provided by publisher.

I must start this out by saying that I think with better editing, this book could earn a 2 star rating. The writing, primarily the dialogue, is very stilted and unnatural, making it very hard to be invested. I have never struggled with more with NOT DNF’ing a book. I felt as if the author was grasping at every straw they possibly could to make this story as similar to the Disney Beauty and the Beast as possible, but I think the story really would have benefitted from some good ole’ fashioned originality. And that necklace. We’re tired of hearing about the necklace.

Included in SBTB's monthly New Releases post, which highlights upcoming books for the next month: https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/2020/02/februarys-new-releases-part-two/

Contempoary re-telling of Beauty and the Beast -
Jaya and Grey start out as enemies, but they finally come around to love...even if he does have a curse that causes him to be sort-of beastly!
Super fun and witty with elements of romance and fantasy. Would rate 4/5 stars. Wouldn't add to my classroom, as it's middle school, but would recommend for HS classrooms and libraries.