By the Book by Jasmine Guillory

I will admit I had no idea this was a Beauty and the Beast retelling before I started (I requested it solely because I enjoy her books). Once I realized it was, I may have judged a little harsher because it’s my all time favorite Disney movie.

The book started out a little rough for me…it felt juvenile even for a YA. Over time though, I found myself liking the characters more and became slightly invested in how things would develop between them. Only slightly though.

The writing just didn’t compare to her Wedding Date series. I know it had to appeal to a much younger demographic than I typically read, but the story just felt boring at times and I found myself wanting to pick up a different book.

If you enjoy books with romance but zero spice, YA stories, or Disney retellings, I recommend giving this a try.

Thank you to @netgalley and @hyperionavenue for this arc in exchange for my honest review 💜

📚BOOK REVIEW📚

By The Book by Jasmine Guillory ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m convinced that no matter what Jasmine Guillory writes, I will be 100% obsessed with it. This modern take on Beauty and the Beast is fantastic!

Izzy is an editors assistant at a big time publishing company who ends up tasked to get the rowdy celebrity to finish the memoir he was supposed to write years ago. There are all sorts of nods to BATB throughout the story, and the characters are so enjoyable (even though sometimes they are awful people). 10/10 recommend!

Thank you @netgalley for the chance to read this book!

By The Book – Jasmine Guillory

3/5 Stars

Thank you dearly to NetGalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

By The Book was sickeningly sweet, very romantic, and very vast paced. The story follows Izzy, an aspiring author who works at Tale As Old As Time publishing company. Following her rapid burnout and need to prove her worth to her boss, she goes to L.A to try to convince their toughest and most stubborn writer to actually write his book so it can be published despite missing every deadline.

Beau is a classic grumpy male love interest with a slightly troubled past that he can’t put behind him. He confines himself to his home with his assistant in peace until Izzy shows up and turns his life upside-down.

By The Book is a sweet little Beauty and the Beast retelling that was more beauty than beast. Beau and Izzy’s relationship was supposed to be enemies to lovers but was more like mild dislike to very suddenly in love romance.

There is a fairly decent character development within this story despite it being so short and so quick. Beau coming to terms with his past and revaluating his fears and needs to open himself up again to the world, while Izzy finds herself again after a year of being severely burnt out was refreshing.

I do think this book could have done better for me personally if there was more depth and a little bit more spacing between events and the happily ever after.

Overall, I did really enjoy the characters and the representation in the book, but the story didn’t hit all my contemporary romance needs that would have made this a five star read. This story was cute and sweet, but not really anything more than that.

BY THE BOOK by Jasmine Guillory is a cutesy Beauty and the Beast retelling! I remember absolutely loving the first books in the series [IF THE SHOE FITS by Julie Murphy] and had high hopes for this one because I’ve loved all of Jasmine Guillory’s books.

But this one was a bit lackluster. The content read very YA - not that there is anything wrong with that! But it didn’t really hold up to my expectations.

The Beauty and the Beast references were great initially, but then they were suffocating. I didn’t need 100 references to furniture and dishes “coming to life” to take care of our Beast character.

I really wanted to love this one but I think it was just too cheesy for me?

I am excited about the next installment though!!

A Beauty & the Beast retelling, yes please! I read the first book in the series If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy and fell in love. I'm delighted that the 2nd book exceeded my expectations. Jasmine Guillory is a fabulous author and she told this story beautifully. Modern fairy tale retelling by popular romance authors is such a brilliant idea. I can't wait to read the next book, whatever retelling it may be.

This was…. fine.

I’d call it New Adult I guess; although it read more YA honestly. The “magical” atmosphere, the emotionally stunted characters.

The Beauty and the Beast nods were sweet though. I can tell Jasmine Guillory loved that story as much as I do!

I'm planning to listen to this book instead, because I honestly couldn't continue reading each page of this story. The over-expressiveness and excitement of the main character presented itself as an incredibly immature twelve year old, rather than the character's mid-twenties age. I've been told by a few friends who felt similarly, that listening to the book worked out far better for them, so I hope it'll help me too.

I love Jasmine Guillory, I love books about books, and I love Beauty and the Beast. But the style in which this book has been written is hard to stomach. For anyone else struggling with this one, please don't let it keep you from reading her other books, which are nothing like this (I'm talking about the numerous exclamation points, guys).

This book just fell... flat. It kept hinting at more, but it just never got there for me.

I enjoyed the sweet story and all of the Beauty and the Beast nuggets (although they became a little excessive and could have been embedded more fully into the story instead of just mentioned in a casual way).

I loved the Belle and Beast vibes from the two main characters, and I especially enjoyed how the house seemed to take on the responsibility of being a character as well - the bannister, the staircase, the bathtub, the library. There were too many references to the dishes or furniture coming to life at night to take care of the "beast" - Beau Towers, if you didn't catch that the 107 times the author mentioned it.

I WANTED TO LIKE THIS BOOK. It just didn't happen though. It felt like a romance novel for adults except it was written like children would read it, too??

2.5 stars from me. Sad panda :(

I loved this book! This whole series is just delightful. The characters were very relatable and developed. I love the twist on Beauty and the Beast! Extremely warm and fuzzy, was the perfect book to sit down with and finish in one sitting.

I was excited to read the second novel in the Meant To Be series because I loved the first one so much! This was a very cute story that is a loosely based retelling of Beauty and the Beast. The characters were likeable and the plot was easy to follow and medium paced. The character development was good and I enjoyed watching both characters become more comfortable with each other, as well as themselves. At times I feel like the elements that make this a retelling (mentioning candlesticks, thinking that inanimate objects are talking to the female MC) were a little cheesy but understandable. The main characters also spent a lot of time "laughing" and "giggling" at each other or what someone said which I felt was very overdone. Overall, this was a very cute retelling and I'm interested to see what the next book in this series will be.

Sweet, sexy, fun. Jasmine Guillory has become an auto read for me with this one. Not just for those who love retellings, I think everyone who likes romance will fall in love with Izzy & Beau!

I love the little nods to Beauty and the Beast in this contemporary retelling of the Disney classic. (A publishing house called "Tale As Old As Time"? Come on, who's not going to eat that right up.) But behind the fluff and stuff (that can sometimes get a bit gimmicky) both Isabella and Beau are struggling with serious issues, and the amount of growth they go through in working through them is incredible to witness. I just want to hug them both and tell them everything is going to be okay.

This is the second book in the Meant to Be series by Disney Hyperion, and can be read as a stand alone. Each book in the series is based off a different fairy tale and is written by a different author.

Thank you to Jasmine Guillory, Hyperion Avenue, and NetGalley for allowing me to read a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a charming, pleasant story but not riveting. I was surprised that Guillory paid more homage to the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast than the actual fairy tale--a Netflix show called A Provincial Life, Izzy talking to candlesticks and teapots (which did not talk back), etc. Izzy and Beau were likeable enough protagonists, and I certainly felt the chemistry of their romance, but the story seemed more focused on spending time with them hanging out and developing feelings for each other than really getting into their characters. Not sure how I feel about that; on one hand, I appreciate the lack of manufactured drama and maturity in the characters, and it speaks to Guillory's talent that she could write a compelling story of characters just hanging out. On the other hand, it felt shallow and slow at times, and I didn't feel I knew the characters on an intimate level. So while I mostly enjoyed this book, it felt like it could have been shorter and deeper.

Jasmine Guillory does it again! Her books are nice, easy reads that help you take your mind off of all the other nonsense going on in the world and this one does the same! This fun, flirty romance novel wants to make you keep reading so you can see where the book is headed. Her characters are new and fresh and this is a great read to take with you to the beach!

I love a good Beauty and the Beast retelling! Izzy and Beau were engaging characters and I enjoyed following their story. Bonus points for the setting in the writing and publishing world.

This was a cute Beauty & the Beast retelling mixed with the world of publishing and finding your place. I enjoyed this story but the slow burn romance between Isabelle and Beau seemed a little forced to me. They were much better friends.

An adorable re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, with some SoCal flair and a new twist. I wish there would have been a bit more oomph to this book and a bit more substance to the story, but it was fine.

📚 Book Review 📚

By The Book by Jasmine Guillory is my first book by this author. It is the story of Isabelle, who started her career in publishing, and her goal to find independence and her purpose in life.

It has taken me a little bit to write my review on this one because it comes with mixed feelings.

What I liked:
💛 I enjoyed Isabelle
💛 I enjoyed the description of the setting

What I wished for:
🤍 I needed more depth. I needed more intensity in the book.
Everything felt very surface level. The romance scenes - PG. The deep conversation - not so deep.

This felt like a YA novel, when it was expecting something more adult. I definitely will try this author again. I never feel like one book should determine my feelings on an author.

As a huge Beauty and the Beast fan, I absolutely adored this contemporary retelling. The constant Easter eggs to the movie were so delightful, but this book still had substance of its own. Taking away the symbolism of someone who physically looks like "a beast" and just showing the story of someone who is treated like "a monster" besides physical appearances is really just a relatable theme in today's age of cancel culture and judging without having the full story.

Another enjoyable aspect was the whole behind the scenes aspect of writing and publishing. I honestly loved the writing side...I felt like there were really great tips woven in for anyone who may ever want to write a book. It may have talked me out of ever wanting a job in publishing though! It was just fun to see all that goes on behind the scenes.

Overall, this book was just so well done. It made me happy, it was a joy to read. It felt fresh and full of nostalgia at the same time. Highly recommend.

The second in the "Meant to Be" series, this is a delightful retelling of the Disney "Beauty and the Beast" story. Featuring main character Izzy, a young disillusioned and frustrated Black woman living at home and working in the (largely white) publishing world in NYC. She sees a chance to impress her boss by getting celebrity Beau to finally write his long promised memoir, so she decamps to his gorgeous house to do just that. What is supposed to be a long weekend turns into much more, and sparks fly. There's of course a gorgeous library room, talking to inanimate objects, a yellow dress, and lots of references to the publishing world. It was a fun easy read, though I think it lacks some of the wit of Jasmine Guillory's other works. I still loved this one anyway. If you love Disney, fairy tales, love Jasmine Guillory, or are just looking for a contemporary romance to read - pick this one up. Thank you to Netgalley and Hyperion Avenue for the advanced e-copy.