Series: Standalone?
Format: E-Galley, 155 pages
Release Date: August 30th 2021
Publisher: Phoenix Reign Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / ParanormalFrom USA Today bestselling author Stacey O'Neale comes a standalone YA fantasy retelling of Sleeping Beauty.
The
day has come for sixteen-year-old Aurora to receive her witch mark. She
should be thrilled. But unlike the rest of her coven, a centuries-old
family curse has already decided her fate; the cost of her new power is
her life.
After the ceremony, her grandmother offers her hope:
Aurora can save herself and prevent her coven from dying by awakening a
sleeping prince with the power to break her curse. Unfortunately, she
must travel through the forbidden Shadowlands to reach him.
The
enchanted forest is filled with magical creatures—friends and
foes—including the mysterious son of a powerful wolf pack leader. Can
she find the prince in time, and if she succeeds, will he choose to help
despite having been placed under the sleeping spell?
Stacey O'Neale's Cursed Beauty is the authors retelling of Sleeping Beauty but with a gender twist. The day has come for
sixteen-year-old Aurora Briar to receive her witch mark like everyone else in her family and coven. Every
witch who turns sixteen goes through a witching ceremony to determine
what kind of witch they will be and what mark will be permanently placed
on them. Her mother is an earth witch, her eldest sister is an lunar witch.
She should be
thrilled. But unlike the rest of her coven, she knows that a centuries-old family curse
has already decided her fate since it skipped her mother and sister. So, what happens? Aurora ends up being a blood witch which means that in order to save her coven and her family, she will be sacrificed and her blood used to heal the land. After
the ceremony, her grandmother Daphne offers her hope: Aurora can save herself
and prevent her coven from dying by awakening a sleeping prince with the
power to break her curse.
Unfortunately, she must travel through the
forbidden Shadowlands to reach him. Aurora, however, doesn't go alone. Her best friend Hazel, an earth witch, has had enough of her mother's interference in her life, and wants something more for her own future that doesn't ride on whether or not her mother thinks it's a good idea or not. The enchanted forest is
filled with magical creatures—friends and foes—including the mysterious
son of a powerful wolf pack leader, Sage Fernandez and his friend Rune Garcia who crushes hard on Hazel.
The shifters have reason to not allow Aurora to complete her mission. They have an absolute hatred for vampires, and if the prince is awakened, things are likely to go back to hard times for the shifters. This, of course, makes things really difficult for Aurora and Hazel since the shifters would rather see them fail in their mission. With a little help from Sage and Rune, the girls travel to the castle and witness a stunning scene. Can she find the prince in time, and
if she succeeds, will he choose to help despite having been placed
under the sleeping spell?
With regrets, I only rated this as 3.5 as the ending leaves a glaring cliffhanger ending. I don't mind cliffhanger endings if I know there will be another book in the series. I do not like the fact that we are supposed to make up our own endings for what is going to happen next to Aurora, Hazel, Safe, Rune, and the Vampire Prince, Derrick. I liked the relationship between Hazel and Aurora as well as Hazel and Rune. They make the perfect couple and she has a great chance at becoming something amazing with her magical abilities. I would have liked this book to be a bit longer with more worldbuilding since all we see in parts and parcel of the world including Aurora's home and parts of the Shadowland.
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