REVIEW: BEASTLY by Alex Flinn

Title: Beastly
Author: Alex Flinn
Series: Kendra Chronicles #1
Genres: YA, Fairytales
Publisher: Versátil
Release: 2009 (First published 2007)
Source: Paperback
Pages: 272

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BLURB: I am a beast.

A beast. Not quite wolf or bear, gorilla or dog but a horrible new creature who walks upright—a creature with fangs and claws and hair springing from every pore. I am a monster.

You think I'm talking fairy tales? No way. The place is New York City. The time is now. It's no deformity, no disease. And I'll stay this way forever—ruined—unless I can break the spell.

Yes, the spell, the one the witch in my English class cast on me. Why did she turn me into a beast who hides by day and prowls by night? I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I used to be Kyle Kingsbury, the guy you wished you were, with money, perfect looks, and the perfect life. And then, I'll tell you how I became perfectly . . . beastly.

EXPECTATIONS: I just realized this book was released in 2009 (the Spanish version I have) and wow... I was like 14 when I read it. Hmm I also remember watching the movie and I know they changed stuff (?) as per usual.

THE WORLD: Our normal world but witches exist and also all the fairytale characters that were transformed (little mermaid, the frog from princess and the frog, etc). The book takes place in NYC.

CHARACTERS: Main character is a snotty 15 year old boy called Kyle Kingsbury. The typical rich and handsome boy who goes to a super expensive school and always has the latest technology, clothes, etc and his father is a rich and charming bastard who never worries a bit about Kyle. Ugh, the whole Kingsbury family is annoying and Kyle deserved to be transformed into a beast (just like he did in the Disney prince version). Then we have Kendra, the witch who transforms Kyle into a beast. We also have Will, Kyle's blind tutor who gives him classes since Beast Kyle... uh, let's call Beast Kyle "Adrian" for now... so he gives Adrian classes since he can't go to high school. And finally we have Linda Owens, you can imagine who she is. Let me give you hints; not pretty but not ugly either, smart and very hardworking, independent, loves to read... yes, I think you guessed it xD.

ROMANCE: Being a re-telling you can guess. Yes, there is romance and it's pretty cheesy but at least is not insta-love. Supposedly it happens over months but the book is so short it feels like two sentences.

GOOD: I mean, it's a curious re-telling since it's set in our modern world and it's original in the setting. The book is also very short and the language used is very simple so younger readers will have no problem following it. Other than that meh, characters are meh.

Of course, I think the message is also very nice but Disney also had that message. 

BAD: While the setting is original, the plot is not. The plot is almost a step-by-step copy of Disney's version of The Beauty and the Beast.

OVERALL: I'm going to lower the rating from 4 to 3 stars because I enjoyed it but I have to say the book is basic. I think that's a perfect word for it, basic.

What do you think about BEASTLY?