This was very cute. I didn’t realize this was a Beauty & the Beast retelling when I requested it, but I love B&tB, so I was game! Lots of fun Easter eggs from the Disney movie can be found all throughout the book. I really liked Izzy and Beau together - it seemed really genuine and natural. Heads up, though, romance fans - this is a Disney imprint so there is exactly ZERO sexy stuff on the page. In fact, it was so fade to black that I had to go reread a scene to try to figure out if they had done the deed -it was BARELY alluded to! 🤣 Honestly surprised this being marketed to adults as opposed to YA.

This is a fun little diversion that will in no way change your life, but it’s an enjoyable enough ride. 0 points for very much originality or steam, but lots of points for cuteness and a satisfying ending.

I am a huge fan of jasmine guillory so when i found out she’d be doing a beauty and the beast retelling, i was so excited. If folks are expecting the same heat level that jasmine does, don’t expect the same level that she gives us and her other series of books. This is a smart and sweet romantic comedy perfect for those who love fairytales and happy endings. With representation abound.

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of By the Book!

Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Fairy Tale Retelling/Romance
Pub Date: May 3, 2022

By the Book is the second book in the Meant to Be series, and it is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. This was a cute, fun read, and I really enjoyed it. The enemies to lovers and sunshine/grump tropes were really well-written, and I thought this book gave us a good retelling of Beauty and the Beast while also adding to the original story. I especially loved all the Easter eggs throughout the book that recalled the animated movie. Some people may complain that the story was a bit predictable, but I think you have to understand what you're getting into, ie a retelling, so I expected some predictability in this one. I still felt like the story itself was original, though.

I was really engaged in the romance in the book, and I loved both main characters. I did get a little frustrated at times because this was seriously a slow burn, and I have no patience! Other than that, though, I really appreciated this book as a whole. I can't wait to add it to my shelves! I only wish it were coming out in hardback like the first one did.

This book was rom com chick lit at its best. Sweet and predictable in an enjoyable way. Escapism at its finest!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58950845-by-the-book

This book was super cute! I loved that it was a Beauty and the Beast retelling but make it modern. A cute romcom that I think people will really enjoy!

I enjoyed this, but I didn’t love it as much as some other romances I’ve read recently. There was something missing—some parts that felt a little contrived. Obviously, everything in fiction is contrived, but it sometimes feels organic, which this didn’t. I also liked the hero but didn’t fall in love with him like I want to in a romance.

Izzy Marlowe is no longer thrilled by her job as an editorial assistant for the abrupt and dismissive Marta. She’s excited to leave New York for California because even though it’s a work trip, it will at least get Izzy out of the office. She’s been sending delicately worded emails to bad boy celebrity Beau Towers for the last year. His seven-figure book deal isn’t just late, it doesn’t seem to exist at all. Izzy volunteers to deal with him directly and ends up staying, initially for a few days, which then turns into weeks where she works her day job remotely and with Beau each afternoon. They share baked goods, snacks, and period dramas in the time they’re not working together, and eventually he reveals what has truly caused his writer’s block.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this novel, which RELEASES MAY 12, 2022.

This was a very cute retelling of a fairytale. There were a couple parts where I felt like the “beast” was a little too beastly but it was still understandable and acceptable when he “changed”. I appreciated the backstory of “beauty” which included friends.

I really fell in love with the concept of this book from the opening. I always enjoy reading books about books, and the glimpse into the writing and editing process, and the publishing aspect, was really cool. I really liked both main characters, and was in love with the Southern California setting. The only thing that didn't quite hit for me was the tone, this read more like YA than an adult romance. Not just the lack of steamy scenes (which is fine!), but just the way the characters spoke made it feel a little on the young side for me. But this was a super enjoyable read and I flew through it!

Isabelle is in her mid 20s and still living at home. She’s literally going through a quarter life crisis. She is a bit whiney and can come off as a bit ungrateful. Jasmine Guillroy’s writing style is perfect for this retelling.

I'm sorry, but I wasn't able to finish this book. Jasmine Guillory is such a talented writer. I've read, and loved, all of her books. However, this one I just couldn't get into. I felt the plot was unfolding slowly and I wasn't able to get as invested in it as I hoped I would.

I wish both the author, and the publisher, much success upon it's release. I know there is a huge audience waiting to get lost in this retelling of a beloved fairy tale. I'm saddened I didn't get swept up in it like they will.

I've been reading a lot of books about publishing or writing books but this book easily made it to the top of my list! It was a quick read and I was able to feel the struggles Beau was going through when it came to his writing and why he was struggling so much. Izzy, who works for the publishing company that acquired Beau's memoir, was sent to his house to figure out when he isn't responding to any emails and why any part of his book hasn't been turned in. Izzy and Beau work day after day for weeks to work on his book. During that time, both Izzy and Beau start becoming closer and closer. If you're looking for a quick, cute HEA book, this is for you!

This Beauty & the Beast retelling by @ jasminepics was such a fun read!

🌹 REVIEW: BY THE BOOK 🌹

By Jasmine Guillory

📖 SUMMARY: Izzy thought she landed her dream job when she started working at Tale As Old As Time (😉) Publishing in NYC as an editorial assistant, but five years later, she still hasn’t been promoted, is under-appreciated, and starts to think maybe this wasn’t the right career move. So when an opportunity to impress her boss presents itself, in the form of going in person to talk to a reclusive celebrity who hasn’t turned in a memoir manuscript and won’t return any emails, she jumps on it. Well, Beau Towers is anything but happy to see her, and actually insists that the only way he’ll get any writing done is if Izzy stays at his Santa Barbara mansion and gives him daily assistance. Izzy slowly discovers that Beau might not be as beastly as he seems…

💭 THOUGHTS: I seriously enjoyed this one! I’m a sucker for a fairytale retelling, and I loved how this was in the world of publishing! It might be a Disney book, but it’s still fairly adult — no real 🌶 but there were some f-bombs in there! Though he has his moments, Beau is still a dreamy love interest and Izzy is a great MC to be inside the mind of. I was living for all of the little Beauty & the Beast references and was impressed that there was even a Gaston-like character in there! I also enjoyed the setting — can I stay in a Santa Barbara mansion sometime?? I found the romance to be both decently-paced and fairly believable, as far as romances go. And as a disclaimer, Beau does not force Izzy to stay in his mansion, he & Izzy’s boss ask and Izzy agrees. This is the second in Disney’s Meant to Be series, the first of which was a Cinderella retelling by Julie Murphy.

Thank you to @ netgalley and @ disneybooks for the arc! This one comes out on May 3.

✨ RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

🥰 YOU’LL ENJOY IF: you love a Disney retelling and have enjoyed any of Guillory’s previous books

By the Book by Jasmine Guillory was a sweet, delicious, wholesome slow-burn romance. I had no idea going in that this was part of a series - the Meant to Be series reimagining traditional fairy tales. Right away I thought there were some similarities to Beauty and the Beast and nods to fairy tales (like the book-loving main character, Isabelle, working for a publishing house called Once Upon a Time), but by the first scene at the home of Beau Towers, I quickly realized this was an actual retelling of Beauty and the Beast. I thought Guillory did a great job of telling a fresh and compelling story with vivid characters within the parameters of the traditional story we all know. I've long been hesitant of Beauty and the Beast because of the beast's violence and cruelty not being something we should be teaching young girls they should look beyond in a partner. I am happy to report that Jasmine Guillory did not go down a path of making Beau do anything so awful as to be unforgiveable, and Isabelle exercises her agency (even while the story addresses power, privilege, race, etc.) with more feistiness than the traditional Belle. The romance is sweet and mostly PG - this is not the book for someone craving some real spice. But I didn't mind the skimming over of the steam because I was here for the book love and wholesome fairytale romance.

This was a cute modern day Beauty and the Beast retelling. I've always enjoyed Jasmine Guillory's writing style and the concept behind this book had me racing through to the finish. This story isn't as spicy as some of her other works but it was so endearing and watching their relationship build from writer-publisher into something more was a lot of fun.

By the Book is a cute modern day retelling of the Beauty and the Beast story. The romance developed at a great pace, and the end of the story had me swooning, but I never felt totally connected to the characters. There is only so much you can do with Beauty and the Beast to make it original, and Jasmine Guillory did a decent job with it, but it was still the story of Beauty and the Beast. Overall, I still think people will enjoy this novel, but it's exactly what you would imagine when you hear "modern day retelling" of a classic.

This was such a sweet and endearing take on Beauty and the Beast. I always love Guillory's writing, but in this one I really felt connected to the story right away and raced through the book. I love how she took the concept story and modernized and changed it a bit, while also giving subtle nods to the Disney Classic.

Though this book may not be as spicy as some of her other novels, I really enjoyed the love story and was truly invested from the beginning. This was such a fun book that I really enjoyed reading.

The prologue had me worried with the amount of exclamation marks. But my worry quickly dissolved and I was sucked in and unable to put the book down.

Jasmine Guillory does it again, her story telling ability is out of this world. She understood the assignment with this retelling.

She has done it again. The current queen of romance writing has struck again. After falling in love with her previous romance series, I have fallen again for Guillory's characters. The typical romance trope but you can feel the chemistry through the pages.

I have been a fan of Jasmine Guillory's books for quite awhile and was excited to see that she was doing a contemporary re-telling of Beauty and the Beast. This was a fun, entertaining romance.

'By the Book' by Jasmine Guillory is the latest addition to Disney's Meant to Be series based on modern retellings of fairytales. The first, 'If the Shoe Fits' by Julie Murphy was based on Cinderella, and this one is based on Beauty and the Beast.

It's so incredibly romantic. This is a non-magical retelling but it still feels magical. Izzy is an overworked, underappreciated editorial assistant who feels she's hit a wall in her career. With seemingly no room for advancement and moderate talent (according to an ill-meaning coworker), the opportunity to work with a famous actor on his memoir seems the perfect chance to make her mark. But Beau is complicated, and attractive and altogether unexpected. The chemistry is immediately obvious between Izzy and Beau. As they get to know each other they learn perhaps their first impressions weren't all they thought. Their romance is a little bit slow-burn with an instant attraction and I loved every minute of it.

I really loved the references to the Beauty and the Beast cartoon, it was a tiny fun thing to ready along the way!

This reimagining of Beauty and the Beast also comes with it's own Gaston in Gavin, a passive-aggressive (and later aggressive-aggressive) coworker who seems determined to bring Izzy down. An important part of this story, and in Gavin's attitude, is Izzy being one of the only Black employees at her job. I really enjoyed the way Guillory handled the villain role, it had a very satisfying ending.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.