Picking up about 6 months after the events of the original story, we meet Belle and Lio (the Beast) as they begin a tour of the continent starting with a stop in Paris. Belle has been looking forward to returning to Paris, but not to meeting the king or being part of the court in Versailles. When she inadvertently gets caught up in a protest and witnesses firsthand the anger and violence of the mobs, she knows it will get worse before it gets better. In an attempt to prevent revolution from taking hold in Aveyon as well, Belle and Lio return home to their castle instead of continuing their continental tour. But trouble is brewing at home, too, and danger seems to be everywhere. Who can Belle trust? Family? Friends? She's not even sure she can trust herself!

I really enjoyed this continuation of Belle's story. She's always been my favorite princess because she has a brain and because she doesn't fall in love after 2 seconds. (Plus, I'm a librarian, how can I not love a girl who honors books and intelligence over looks and brawn?) :) There are twists and turns, some of which I saw coming and a few I didn't. I figured out the main culprit before the big reveal, but the how and the why were surprises. I definitely recommend this book for fans of fractured fairy tales, adventure, strong female protagonists, and YA lit.

Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

What I enjoyed in Rebel Rose was how Theriault does not shy away from the rough spots in Adam and Belle's relationship. The inequality in their backgrounds becomes even more of an obstacle as they begin to advance their station and social calendar. While Belle may not be a Queen, she certainly is drawn into a space, not of her choosing, that does not truly know what it is like to be common. 1789 France is on the edge of revolution and it's possible Belle is the only person who can stop it from spilling over to Aveyon.

Rebel Rose is firmly centered on Belle and her character. Will she be able to stay true to herself, even as the nobility looks down at her, and the commoners might resent her? At the same time, will she be able to advocate for the rights of her friends and Aveyon against those who want to maintain the status quo? Because it quickly becomes apparent that the trials of their relationship are far from over even though the curse is broken.

What drew me to Rebel Rose was Belle. I love her story. A fierce, independent woman who isn’t afraid to be herself. And a book to continue her story? Yes please!

What I didn’t expect was version of Belle. She was unsure, easily intimidated and almost shy. At first I thought it was her adjusting to her new life, but as the story progressed she questioned her ideas, opinions, and decisions constantly. This isn’t the Belle I loved and admired.

However, the history was great! I loved how it was lined up with France’s revolution. My favorite was when Lio came back from touring the noble’s estates and told of King Louis and Marie Antoinette’s downfall.

The story has great potential, but it lacking the pull to keep a reader focused and story moving.

The number of positive reviews for <em>Rebel Rose</em> by Emma Theriault has honestly left me wondering if I read the same book as everyone else. This is largely due to two characters, the two that I would in fact name the <em>main </em>characters of this novel, and the <em>glaring</em> problems with them. Ironically, when I speak of the two main characters of <em>Rebel Rose</em> I do not, in fact, mean Belle and Adam (Beast). Rather, I mean Belle and Bastien, Prince Adam's cousin.

<b>Let's Put It All In the Open </b>

I'm not going to beat around anything here: I honestly kind of hated <em>Rebel Rose</em>. It's not necessarily a <em>terrible</em> book. There's a lot of merit to the story that Theriault was trying to tell by weaving in the actual history of France into her rendition of Belle and Adam's happily ever after. In all honesty, though, I think she really failed in her goal.

In that sense, I find it rather baffling that the book has received the amount of praise it has.

<b>Belle (and Adam)</b>

To put it very simply, if you pick this book up because you love <em>Beauty and the Beast</em>, you should probably put it right back down. These are not the characters you know and love. In fact, Theriault does an absolutely disastrous job of bringing them to life. And this isn't even relegated to the lead two, but extends out to literally everyone. Barring the fact that they share the same names, it's near impossible to see the original characters in Theriault's renditions. This is true from Belle to Adam to the supporting characters of Lumière, Cogsworth, and Mrs. Potts.

There is precious little of Prince Adam in this story. At nearly every turn he is running off on some venture to deal with the politics of his station. In each circumstance, he leaves Belle behind. If you wanted to read a story about their relationship, you're not going to get it here. In fact, the only interesting thing about their relationship is the fact that Adam has some <em>severe</em> PTSD that's never addressed beyond the fact that it exists and they both have to work through it.

Which is such a shame because this was a genuinely intriguing plot point I would have loved to explore.

<u>The story primarily features Belle.</u>

The unfortunate truth of Theriault's Belle is that she is a shell of her former self. Instead of the wonderful, courageous, stubborn, and intelligent woman we've all come to know and love Belle is reduced to a meek and self-doubting girl who keeps all her opinions to herself. I don't know about you, but this is <em>not</em> a Belle I recognize. And it bugged the hell out of me.

In fact, the entire plot of the novel centers around Belle's refusal and inability to see herself as a leader. She cows to others at the slightest push, Despite her original character portraying precisely the opposite spirit and drive, Belle is eager to let others take care of things and wants very little to do with the responsibility of being a Queen.

Theriault's main goal with this character is to develop her into someone who is eager and ready to take on that role. And it makes me wonder why she bothered using Belle in the first place because this is not something she, as a character, needed to be developed to. The Belle we already had<em> </em>was fully ready to be the leader she needed to be. There's not a single moment where I believe for a <em>second</em> that Belle wouldn't have been up for the challenge, <em>especially</em> when the wellbeing of the kingdom was a topic of discussion.

<b>Bastien</b>

Ironically, Bastien was my favorite character.

A long lost cousin, having forgotten entirely about Adam during the curse, Bastien is introduced very early on. In a way, you kind of fall in love with him at first. And, if I'm being honest, he has more chemistry with Belle in those introductory chapters than even Adam does. If that's not a red flag for you, I don't know what is. Add in the fact that he spends more time with Belle throughout the course of the novel than Adam ever does and it just gets worse.

Despite all of this, Belle is suspicious of Bastien from the start. And she has <em>literally no reason</em> to be. There is nothing, other than Belle's strange intuition, to suggest that he is anyone to be wary of. So, why is Belle suspicious of him, then? Is it because he's part of the French aristocracy and in direct conflict with the good of the common people? Well...

I'd be perfectly fine with that being the case, I suppose. Unfortunately, Theriault completely eviscerates not only his character but any chance of having a decent plot in one fell swoop.

<b>Unfortunately, I cannot explain this further without spoilers.</b>

<spoiler>I already had my issues with <em>Rebel Rose</em>, but the moment Bastien's "true colors" were revealed sealed it for me. You can kind of see the book headed in this direction with his actions throughout the course of the novel. And it was fine, really, when he was being portrayed as a spoiled rich man trying to gain political power. However the second he turned into a voice of the resistance, his arc lost all credibility.

What purpose was there behind this plot thread other than to put Adam's life at risk? What motivations did Bastien have for acting in this way? I'll be honest, I can't find any. It was just patently ridiculous. The lack of any genuine and visible motivation behind his actions was quite literally the <em>worst</em> thing about this entire book. And I <em>hated</em> it.

I'm not even going to get into how utterly stupid and annoying that nonsense with LeFou was. That was some of the most idiotic flip-flopping I have <em>ever</em> seen. And it was all for the purpose of pushing the plot along, so deus ex machina rears its ugly head. </spoiler>

<b>In Conclusion</b>

The only good thing about this book--barring the opportunity to explore Adam's PTSD--was the incorporation of historical events. And even that was a little contrived in the end, being as surrounded by idiotic side-plots and pointless new characters as it was. And it's not that I think this book was <em>terrible</em>, exactly. Eliminate that stupid plot with Bastien and replace it with something actually rooted in French history and this might have been a superb novel with only the issue of Theriault's inability to capture the true essence of the Beauty and the Beast characters for me to complain about.

I don't know what book everyone else read and seemed to love so much, but this was just not it for me.

<em>I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.</em>

Rebel Rose caught my attention by the cool cover and then the description of the story. Even though I knew it was based of Beaty and the Beast, I didn’t have many expectations so I was going open minded.

So putting aside, what we know of Belle from the movies, this Belle (for a lot of the story) is self questioning, very petulant about her new role as the wife of a prince aka a princess, and hard headed about putting herself in danger because she wants to be a commoner. That drove me nuts!!!! I think there was a better way to portray Belle in where she’s questioning her new role, not her values/opinions, but using the power that it comes with to help the commoners as she desperately wanted to.

While I understand that Lio (aka Beast, no real name ever given by Disney lol) and Belle are now navigating new territory after breaking the curse, I can’t see them going through all that and having Lio disregard Belle’s opinions/needs. The many many manny times when Belle wanted to have important talks with Lio and she just let him plow through her needs/wants put her in a very submissive role which bothered me because I can’t ever see Belle letting him treat her that way. Thankfully, way later in the story, with the support and reinforcement of Mrs. Potts Belle was able to get her act together and be the empowered young woman she is.

I’ll be honest for majority of the book I was so frustrated and annoyed by Belle and Lio but towards the end of the things did pick up. It was nice seeing old beloved characters and one not so beloved. And the new characters might not be loved now but could be as the series progresses.

Focusing on the last part of the book and how things ended, I would say it’s a really good book. Overall, I’d say it was decent with great potential.

I've read a few different retellings of Beauty and the Beast, but sequels to this tale aren't something I come across often, and I love the way this story explored Belle and the Beast's lives post-curse. In Rebel Rose, Belle is trying to figure out how to balance the responsibilities of being queen – a title she never wanted – in a time where revolution may already be lurking within her own castle. I enjoyed the elements of actual French history included in the story, and the way that it shows how the Disney happily-ever-after isn't that simple. In a story with characters that are so familiar to us, and with Belle being a character I've seen written many different times, I liked this portrayal of her which kept her as strong and independent, but also showed her as someone with self-doubts and even flaws. There were definitely times throughout the novel when I just wanted to yell at Belle to stop doubting herself and trust her gut, especially when certain things felt a little bit obvious, but I liked seeing this other side of Belle that did still need to grow and learn about herself. I found this story fun, definitely building suspense as it went along, and a great sequel to one of my favorite tales. I definitely recommend picking up your own copy!

At first I couldn't tell if this was supposed to be a continuation of the 2017 live-action movie or the animated one but I have come to realize it's a mixture of both. I really enjoyed the historical setting they went with and the plot against Lio and Belle from Lio's own cousin.

**I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

There are so many things that I loved about this. Belle was one of my favorite princesses. Her love of books and adventure was probably what did it for me. While this wasn't a true Belle in the way that the stories tell, it's one that will ring true to many. Belle in this story is a little unsure and is stuck feeling as though her opinions don't mean as much. When thrust into being a monarch, this could just be one of those feelings. I loved Lio. I always wondered what he would be like when the curse was broken. I feel as though this is a good telling of that. The way that the other characters in the original tale are portrayed was also fun to read! Cogsworth and Lumiere were my favorite both in the original and in this future tale. I had so much fun reading this and I found myself following along with the history of the French Revolution as well.

Rebel Rose (The Queen’s Council #1) by Emma Theriault is an excellent historical fiction that takes the beloved Disney Princess Belle and the movie Beauty and the Beast and creates a wonderful story that takes the reader past the ending from the the movie. We now get to find out what happens to Belle and Lio (formerly the Beast) after their “happily ever after”.

We find our fabulous duo traveling from their estate in beloved Aveylon and to the hotbed unrest in Paris. On the brink of the French Revolution in 1789, Belle and Lio find themselves entwined into court intrigues, political instability, and the People’s Revolution. Both have been brought up in different circumstances, social circles, and ideals. Both have their own opinions and through the book, experience an awakening, their lives at risk, trust in one another, and learn that keeping an open mind, and heart, can lead them towards the right path.

I really enjoyed getting a glimpse of the characters from Beauty and the Beast and their imagined life after the movie ends. The author does an excellent job interweaving fairy tale with real events concerning the revolution. I was very impressed.

I enjoyed the character cast new and old, the suspense, mystery, action, and of course romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next book in this awesome series.

Thank you NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR, Bookbub, and Instagram accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication (and Instagram again).

"The Queen's Council Rebel Rose" by Emma Theriault is a book that answers the question many fans of Beauty and the Beast have been asking for years: What happens to them after the last petal falls and they go into their "happily ever after"

I can honestly say that "Beauty and the Beast" is my favorite princess fairy tale. When I used to write about movies and plot holes, a big thing that would come up is that in the time period this story is set in, Belle and the Beast would have most likely been beheaded like the other royals of the time Marie Antoinette and King Louis.

This book surprised me and went into that history, not shying away from the gory truth of what the royals and upper crust were dealing with in this time of unrest and revolution. Early on, in fact, Belle is at a riot and has to witness the attack on a Lord, while not seeing the most gruesome of the details, she has to see the aftermath before being hit on the head and taken back to where her and Lio (Adam) are staying with his cousin at the time.

Belle keeps her kind heart and is trying to make appeals between the upper and lower class, while Adam is dealing with more power than he was expecting to contend with after his cousin Bastian convinces him to succeed from the power of France.

There are sweet moments with a lot of the original characters, especially Mrs. Potts who becomes even more of a maternal figure to Belle and treats her well. Though if you are looking for a lot of romance, it feels a touch lacking as Belle and Adam spend a lot of their time apart doing their parts to try to keep revolution from reaching their little kingdom.

With many surprises, and a seamless integration of fairytale with real life, you will be drawn into this book fairly easily and anticipating every new change with bated breath. A tale as old as time meets history in this book that will leave you on the edge of your seat until the last page.

**Received as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. A HUGE thanks to Netgalley and Disney-Hyperion Publishing for the opportunity**

With Beauty and The Beast being one of my favorite Disney films, I was always fascinated by the idea of what happened after the events of the movie... Living in France so near to a Revolution, what would Belle and her Prince do?

Luckily, author Emma Theriault had this answer when writing The Queen’s Council: Rebel Rose! In a beautiful blend of historical fiction and the enchanting glimmer of magic we all know and love, I had so much fun reading this book. Not only did I appreciate the nods to the movie and history, I also loved seeing believed characters fleshed out in a realistic and complex fashion. To that end however, I did have some trouble with additions to the characters that I felt were disconnected to the film, such as some mild cursing!

Overall, this was a fun Disney read and I can’t wait to read more of The Queen’s Council series! Thank you so much to Disney Books and NetGalley for this eARC :)

Rebel Rose revisits one of the most famous periods in French history, combining it with Disney storytelling in a way never seen before. It is not simply a dreamed-up sequel to Beauty and the Beast, but a thoughtful, well-researched, historical fiction infused with Disney magic.

It is not often that my two passions – Disney and 18th-century French history – come together, but when they do, an almost inarticulate excitement ensues. Thankfully, Emma Theriault’s Rebel Rose did not disappoint and I happily pulled my words together enough to write of my sincere fondness for this wonderful book.

What is Rebel Rose About?
Rebel Rose is based on Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Belle and Lio have broken the spell that ensnared Lio and his castle, and they are now met with the onset of the French Revolution. If that is not enough, while attempting to balance duty, love and a mysterious magic, Belle is confronted with many personal – and political – twists and turns.

An uneasy tension is borne of Belle and Lio’s happily ever after. Despite her marriage to the prince of Aveyon, Belle refuses to take a royal title. In her view, a crown will not help her kingdom – she can do just as much, if not more, for her people simply as Belle. She is also wary of Lio’s cousin, the self-assured yet enigmatic Bastien, duc de Vincennes. How far will Belle go to discover where she belongs while fighting for a voice for all those in her kingdom?

The Story Lifts the Curtain on ‘Happily Ever After’
Besides the marriage of my two favorite topics, I love that this book lifts the curtain on ‘happily ever after’ and confronts some tough issues. Belle may be married to the man of her dreams, but what are the consequences of her choosing Lio? What has she sacrificed? What has she gained? There is an honesty to the story, its protagonist and its characters that delves into issues the classic tale-as-old-as-time either ended on or glossed over.

Theriault lays bare the insecurities in Belle, Lio and their relationship. While some of us may be able to relate to an extent, we cannot begin to imagine what living in a cursed castle for ten years might do to one’s psyche, nor what it is like having been our now-husband’s once-upon-a-time prisoner. It is heavy stuff.

The following great passage sums up some of the internal challenges and conflicting allegiances Belle now faces:

It had all seemed so simple after they broke the curse, when everything felt like a fairy tale. Back then, Belle would have said that their love would be enough to weather them through any storm, and she still believed it. But she hadn’t anticipated that the storms would grow and multiply, or that she would find herself adrift, unsure what side of the battle line she should stand upon.

Belle and Lio are also confronted with another kind of beast – Versailles. Described as “an intricate beast of protocol and etiquette,” Belle encourages Lio to meet with King Louis accompanied by Bastien, leaving her to explore Paris. Belle’s fierce independence is illustrated throughout the story which provides a welcome consistency to the classic Belle from Disney’s film that we know and love. No titles or fine clothing would change her. Nor would she be swayed by judgmental townsfolk or an even more judgmental “immensely rich and disturbingly aloof” powdered Parisian bourgeoise. Belle sets out to confront curiosities and concerns to a large extent on her own. This resourcefulness and ‘oddness’ will please fan past and present. (Look there she goes the girl is strange but special.)

An Illuminating History Combined with Disney Storytelling Like Never Before
Theriault’s original characters in this story are such a delight. Mademoiselle Marguerite de Lambriquet is to Belle what the Duchesse de Polignac was to Marie Antoinette. Not in a frivolous, party-loving way, but in more of a commanding, persevering female presence kind of way. Marguerite is Belle’s ally in a man’s world and is also someone who Belle envies in many ways. There is a grass-is-greener-on-the-other-side conundrum at play between Belle and Marguerite which is expressly explored in the book, and a welcome addition to each character’s development.

Similarly, there are some touching, honest exchanges between Belle and Mrs. Potts. “I’m not sure if any of us will ever fully heal, love. We’ve all got our cracks and tears, but we learn to live with them. I’d wager it's like that for anyone who has seen trauma.” Given how Belle confided in Mrs. Potts in the Disney film – when Mrs. Potts brought tea to Belle’s room shortly after being imprisoned by the Beast, and Mrs. Potts’ enthusiasm to feed Belle (“Hear that? She's hungry. Stoke the fire, break out the silver, wake the china”) – these sorts of heart-to-heart conversations in Rebel Rose rekindle the reader’s love for Beauty and the Beast and its characters while drawing the reader deeper into post-spell turmoil and triumphs.

For the history buffs, there are countless name drops in all the right places throughout the story. In addition to the obvious ill-fated King and Queen of France, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette (for no French Revolution story would be complete without them), many other famous names appear among this book’s transporting pages.

Belle reflects on her time reading the works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Émilie du Châtelet, and Nicolas de Condorcet. She dreams of attending salons in Paris frequented by the likes of Olympe de Gouges and Madame de Montesson. She witnesses the very real, very violent, death of the Marquis de Launay before his head is fixed on a pike and paraded through the streets. Perhaps one of the lesser known names but one of my favorite name drops is the outspoken Rose Bertin, dressmaker to Marie Antoinette and also to Theriault’s Marguerite. These and other characters prove that the author did her homework, but more importantly, they immerse the reader and Disney’s characters in pre-revolutionary France.

Another wonderful touch is Bastien’s title as the duc de Vincennes. While to my knowledge there is no such historically renowned duc, the Château de Vincennes is certainly a real fortress that still stands today. While the character of Bastien may have been influenced by a great number of personalities, he was also influenced by the Château itself which played a small part in the French Revolution.

References to Beauty and The Beast
Besides the characters themselves, there are some lovely nods to the film without being tiresome or over-explanatory. Belle often revisits the night the spell was broken in her memory, not only the Beast’s transformation but also the villagers’ frightful response to Gaston’s call to action to kill the Beast, as well as Gaston’s death. The magic mirror the Beast gifts to Belle arguably plays an even more active role in Rebel Rose than it does in the film. One scene sees Belle return to the library in her hometown of Plesance, where she visits with Monsieur Renard to research Aveyon’s laws and customs. All references give fans a warm-fuzzy feel while cleverly adding depth to the new tale.

Likes Outweigh Dislikes
The things I liked about Rebel Rose tremendously outweigh those which I did not like. There are a few things that, in my view, missed the mark which are worth noting.

I am not a fan of the book’s title or its cover. Belle’s role is much more complicated than simply being a ‘rebel’ and she is not once referred to as such in the book. The cover similarly is uninspiring and misses the opportunity to convey the powerhouse of intrigue, history and magic that it really is. While one should not ‘judge a book by its cover’, based on the cover and title I would not be drawn to pick up Rebel Rose, which means I would be missing out on one of my favorite reads.

I also felt that there was no warmth to Cogsworth’s character. Yes, he is a stickler for protocol and the ‘straight man’ to Lumiere’s ‘funny man’, but he comes across as stiff and under-developed, unlike Lumiere who is given the opportunity to travel with Belle and Lio to Paris and meaningfully interact with the new characters. While his role is relatively small, the repetitive reminders of his unshakable formality neither carried the story forward nor bolstered his character development. But this is me being nit-picky.

Rebel Rose Gives Adventure New Meaning
These examples and many more aspects of this book paint an intriguing picture of a remarkable period in history alongside what happens after happily ever after. Rebel Rose sets a high standard for the other books in the Queen’s Council series to follow while inviting them to be as clever and creative as Theriault has been with Belle’s story.

I conclude with another of my favorite passages from the book, and encourage you to embark on the adventure that awaits you when Rebel Rose is released on November 10, 2020:

Belle had come a long way from her desire to leave Aveyon behind forever in search of adventure like those she had read about in her books. Now she understood that adventure didn’t have to mean chasing endless horizons. Adventure could be gathering brilliant minds… so they could challenge her. Adventure could mean traveling to every corner of the kingdom and meeting people from all walks of life in order to learn from them. Adventure could be working to make her kingdom a better place for everyone in it, with the man she loved by her side.

This wasn't quite what I expected it would be. I loved how it incorporated the real history of the French Revolution to show how it could impact a principality. I loved all of the nods to the movie and the original fairy tale. I loved Belle's relationship with Adam. Some parts felt a bit rushed or over the top, but I still enjoyed it overall.

Belle and the Beast have broken the curse and embarked on a life together, but their happily ever after is interrupted by a country on the brink of war. Belle and Lio must combat political scheming, violent revolutionaries, and their own self-doubt to protect their kingdom and serve the people.

It is fun to return to the world of the classic Disney tale, and it seems that this book in particular is drawing on the storyline from the live-action version. The addition of historical context was incredibly smart, and it is fascinating to see these fairytale characters interacting with real historical figures and moments in history. I also appreciated the honest depiction of trauma in both Belle and Lio.

If Belle is your favorite Disney princess, this book will likely be a disappointment to you. I feel that she lost all of the traits that made her such a wonderful character in the movie. In the book, Belle is timid and uncertain and she rarely voices her opinions. She seems to have had her spirit completely broken and is willing to do things that she does not agree with in order to avoid ruffling feathers. To me, that is completely at odds with the character we know who is stubborn, kind, and courageous. While I think it is important to show that adult relationships and communication take work, it is disturbing to see Belle lose herself in order to please her partner. She does gain some of her courage towards the end, but it took months of her suffering before she was willing to speak up.

I was also surprised by the book’s odd choices in “adult” material. There is a good amount of violence in the story, including a graphic depiction of beheading, but the relationship between Belle and Lio is very chaste. The two barely share a kiss, which I find odd considering they are married and share a bed. Additionally, Belle does not drink and instead orders tea when she visits a tavern. These decisions felt very calculated towards abstinence, while violence did not seem to be a concern. This bothers me, but may not bother other readers.

Overall, I thought this was a disappointing and frustrating read. I would not recommend it to readers at the library, but am sure the book will be successful due to the Disney fandom. This is a planned series, so I hope in future books we see a return to the strength of Disney heroines that made us fall in love with the characters.

I like the concept of what life is like after their happy ending but the mixture of real life events, but I struggled with it a lot. It was really hard for me to suspend disbelief. This book is also it ties into the Disney Beauty and the Beast so that also made it hard for me to get into.

If somone liked the Beauty and the Beast Lost in a Good Book, or the Twisted Tales or the Villains series you would like this.

I did not think I would enjoy this book as much as I did. I really appreciated the layers of self-awareness this book brought to the stage. It addressed the historical time period, the harmful relationship Gaston and LeFou had, and LeFou's sexuality. The book didn't shy away from showing the realities of the French Revolution and I really appreciated that. The aging up of the story was something I needed and I am so glad Theriault was daring enough to take that step.

Watching the relationship between Belle and Lio grow and come through all of the trials and tribulations they experienced together was very endearing and heartwarming. I did feel some of the dangers the two of them faced were are little exaggerated as they were pretty separate from the conflict some times (since they were stowed away in their castle) and didn't feel like a present threat cause it wasn't really happening in front of them.

I adored watching the motherly relationship between Belle and Mrs. Potts. I really appreciated she pushed Belle to do what needs to be done rather than ramble on, giving long paragraphs of flourishy words that sound like advice.

The pacing of the book was kind of off for me, which is why I am docking a star. I adored this book regardless.

This story was the perfect start to these retellings/continuations of the Disney Princess stories. I would recommend this to anyone who loves Disney and/or enjoys the Twisted Tales that Disney Hyperion has been releasing lately.

- 4 stars -

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I must admit, I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did! I grew up with seeing Belle in my mother so I knew a continuation of her story would be difficult to do well, but Theriault does a fantastic job of it. Politics and a weary nation are at play with Belle and Lio's attempts to move on from the curse they broke, and historical intrigue makes the story all the more believable. The only reason for 4 stars instead of 5 was the pacing of the plot. I can't wait for the rest of the Queen's Council series too!

Starts off strong, but the middle loses its footing and doesn't seem sure of how to achieve a court intrigue plotline. At times the middle portion of the book felt like it was simply filler material until it could get to the third act.

The ending is tight, and I appreciated the inclusion of a Black queer woman, and the further canonization of LeFou as being a gay man. (I also appreciated that it's made explicit that Gaston was abusive/a bully towards LeFou as well.)

However, Belle and the Prince (here called Lio) are only in Paris for a brief few days before returning to their own castle to try to get ahead of the danger. Belle also spends a lot of time inside the castle, so the danger never felt very present or very much like a threat. This is mostly solved in the third act where the danger comes to the castle and Belle actually has to deal with it head on, but it was a little late after the meandering second act.

Still, it's nice to see that Disney is willing to age up their canon, with Bastille Day being an on-the-page event, and even some of the characters cursing. Though I did find it funny that, while violence and cursing are okay, the book is mostly scrubbed of any intimacy past kissing and has only one real subtle nod to sex. (Not that I think we need to read about Disney characters having on-page sex scenes, but the contrast between a dude getting beheaded and the chaste kisses Belle and Lio share was a little off-kilter.)

I adored this book! Theriault gives us the perfect blend of Disney and historical detail, in a compelling but utterly readable voice.

Belle is brought to life as a likable and relatable heroine, and her progression from feeling uncomfortable with her new royal-adjacent role to claiming it in order to help the principality she was once desperate to leave for far-flung adventure is a satisfying journey. When she finally cuts through all the delicious political intrigue, she had me cheering along with the rest of Aveyon (a moment that also had me choking up).

It's fun seeing many of the characters from the animated and recent live action films come into play--I am so here for Big Virgo Energy Cogsworth, and a feisty Mrs. Potts plays an important role as advisor to Belle, not directing her but inspiring her to find her strength. It's really a joy seeing a relationship like that between older and younger female characters, along with another female friendship for Belle that was a highlight of the book for me. Plus, when Mrs. Potts used a potty mouth (just the once!) it made me laugh--definitely a glimmer of Emma Thompson in the role there! There was also deft handling of the "gay moment" introduced at the end of the live action film. I don't want to get into spoilers, but I appreciate how in the book it's evolved into a presentation with real empathy, plus Theriault includes multiple representations of queerness and also uses all that rich historical research to bring in new characters of color.

The romance is just what I think fans of BATB will be looking for--no questioning of the love between Belle and her prince, just the pair facing new challenges together and apart. There are several adorably sweet moments between the two (hello, ponytail!), and a heartfelt treatment of the emotional aftereffects of the curse they've been through, as well as the rocky start to their relationship.

I think readers will love the clearly well-researched historical detail in the descriptions of France and Aveyon, and there's enough courtly machinations to keep them guessing along with Belle as she goes from the rowdy streets of Paris to the principality and people she's desperate to protect. This is a great read to get swept up in, with plenty of far-off places and magic spells--I couldn't put it down!

Belle has always been my favorite princess. I was so excited for this book. While not living up to all my expectation, I did enjoy it. At times it felt a little bogged down in the historical details and Belle seemed a little out of character for me at times. I loved the new characters introduced in the book, but wish we had some more times with old favorite. I would recommend if you are a fan of Belle and want to see her adventure continued.