It hurts me to say that I did not enjoy the dynamic between Axis and Layna.
Their relationship progression felt forced to me, moved incredibly quickly, and was not believable at all.
I wanted to cheer for these two complicated characters, however, I was not invested enough for their romance.

I unfortunately forgot to download the e-book on my kindle before it was archived and/or lost interest in the book because it’s been on my tbr for way too long, so I wasn’t able to read and review it (on time). Since I Must give a star rating, I’ve given it 3 stars to stay neutral/in the middle. Sorry to the publisher for not having gotten around to actually read it.

Fairytale retellings are tricky – you either get the formula right, or you create a monstrosity. Fortunately, this book wasn't a case of the latter.

Layna is in need of a place to hide from the guy whose operations she just tried to blow up. Axis can provide that, given he owns a castle, but the man has issues of his own – and the beautiful woman he feels instantly attached to is only going to add to his problems. Together, they navigate ancient curses and explore bloodlines, in pursuit of happiness and forgiveness, as they fight to survive and find their happily ever after.

Honestly, this was a sweet but mysterious read, with tons of hot scenes after a certain part of the book. The story was full of magic and suspense, and the dialogues were a piece of art, with each character being a complicated, realistic person.

And I’m not talking only the main couple – the side characters were just as important and intriguing. Tristan and Gareth stole my heart – I mean, I want a book for those two, they were just so wholesome! -, and I wanted to wrap a blanket around Jill and Edith and protect them from the rest of the world! The plot twist with Ryever was also pretty unexpected, and I came to regret everything I had thought about him when he first appeared.

Mind you, this is a fairytale for adults. There are multiple sex scenes, and some things that might trigger younger people, who might not be able to understand them fully and accept them enough to like their addition in the story. There is abuse, and death, and several parts where something close to drug addiction – or use of sex as a way to replace the whatever-the-fuck Axis was pumping in his veins. Every single one is necessary for the tale to bloom to its completion and not used as a plot point, so I advise everyone to be prepared for the weirdly satisfying and unsettling ride that is this book.

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***

***Disclaimer: I received an e-copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***

I read this book a few months ago but never had the chance to share my review until now. This was a unique and interesting retelling of the Beauty & the Beast fairytale, and I'm always a sucker for retellings! I liked the mystery of Axis and how Layna refuses to give up until she figures out what is going on with him. They are a great combo: a strong-willed heroine with a HUGE heart but a sarcastic sense of humor and a brooding and secretive hero with a big secret and a soft heart underneath it all. The only negative about this is that, well, it's not actually a very original setup, is it? But I will fully admit to it being a setup I love, and it is done quite well in this book. I also thought the writing was pretty good and flowed well.

For me, one thing that didn't work well was the main characters' total preoccupation with sex and all the sex scenes. I mean, I like a steamy romance as much as the next girl, but I'm more into a slow burn/build-up because that seems more realistic to me. This was insta-love and insta-SEX and it was all just a little much for me. But I'm hesitant to complain too much because that may be more about me and what I like than a true complaint about something "wrong" with the book. That said, I don't think others would disagree that this book is maybe just a bit too hung up on sex scenes.

Overall, it was a quick and interesting read, with characters I really liked and a tried and true story arc that worked. I recommend it if you like paranormal romance and don't mind the adult scenes. :)

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was not sure what to expect when I first started reading this book as I am not usually a romance reader so it was a little out of my wheel house. However if you like fantasy and foreplay then this is the book for you!

Axis is a man with a lot of problems who has suffered unbelievable abuse at the hands of his father as a child that haunt him still as an adult.

Layna is a feisty young woman who has ties to the drug Lord kingpin but is rebelling against him!

I did enjoy this book and I especially liked the fantasy side of the story. The romance side I could probably have done with less sex scenes only because they became quite repetitive with the same descriptions being used a couple of pages after the previous one.

Overall I thought it was a good solid story and for a debut book was a really good start!

Well written, great storyline (wolf shifters but not the typical read) and hot sex. This was a wonderful surprise. Brilliant world building with a fabulous main couple and great supporting characters

I've read quite a few Beauty and the Beast retellings recently - it's always been my favourite fairytale and I can never resist a book that even hints at being a retelling! - but I think this was probably my favourite out of all of them. The thing that first drew me to this book was the stunning original cover so I have to say I'm a little bit disappointed it's been rebranded to something so generic (I probably wouldn't have even looked at the blurb of this book if I'd seen the new cover on Amazon) but I guess they do always say you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover.

Anyway, more important than the cover is the story and Beautiful Beast was an enjoyable read. Layna has broken ties with a drug cartel and now she finds herself in trouble thanks to the revenge she tried to take. Axis is a wolf shifter who has trouble controlling his wolf form and who buys drugs from the cartel to help control himself. He rescues Layna and offers her a way out of the city by taking her with him back to his countryside castle retreat but he's keeping a lot of secrets from her about his wolf side and the emotional trauma he is dealing with from an abusive childhood.

I think what I liked most about this story was that Layna was a strong character who knew what she wanted and was prepared to fight to get it. She's not a damsel in distress and she's capable of looking after herself. Axis is the more vulnerable of the two emotionally even though he's physically stronger and that made them feel like quite an even match. I do love a brooding, damaged hero so Axis was a hit on that front and I enjoyed the way Layna brought out a different side to him and the way she was willing to take the reigns in the bedroom to help bring him out of his shell. Sex and love was never used as a cure for his emotional problems either which I think was important.

Gareth and Tristan were great side characters who added a bit of humour to a story that was quite dark in places. Axis had suffered a lot of abuse as a child and that could be quite hard to read about so it needed a bit of humour to tone things down and I think Kyla D. Knight did a good job getting the balance right. This was her debut novel and I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for what she publishes next, if it's anything like this one I'm sure I'll enjoy it.

Rating 2/5

This book had roots enough to become a great story but there was just too much sex that it took away from it all. I'm not against having lots of sex in a supposedly romance novel, but when it begins to affect character development and ruins the journey to love of said characters that's when a novel becomes annoying for me. .

A fabulous take on the Beauty and the Beast story. I was pleasantly surprised and I enjoyed it. Good writing and dialogue.

3.5 Stars
Beautiful Beast by Kyla D. Knight is the story of Layna and Axis.
Axis has to control his beast because it can hurt people. Axis grew up abused but has found friends with fellow beast who aren't has bad as him. When he goes to a drug king to buy drugs that keep him more uncontrolled he happens upon Layna. Layna was taken in years ago by the drug king who used her from a young girl to when Layna wised up to him. Now Layna is out to destroy the drug king but is saved by Axis when she is almost caught. Axis takes her to his home where she starts to learn what a beast he is along with his friends.
Exciting read.

Favourite Quote: “The creature drew back, and moonlight washed over his face as he stared down at her. Those strange, dark eyes softened. Filled with sadness. And it was in that moment that Layna, through the contact of their skin, through the connection of their eyes, sensed his sickness and suffering. There was no logic to any of it, no thought for the reality of her situation or the danger she was in. She felt only a great, yawning sadness.”

Synopsis

Layna is on a mission to stop the Snow King, Ryever, from evil trades and corrupt dealings in Darn after spending a lifetime living around his lies and consequences.
When a new handsome dark stranger meets with Ryever, Layna is determined to find out why. What she doesn’t realise is that the stranger, Axis, has noticed her first. When Axis unintentionally puts her life in danger, he saves her and frustratingly realises that he can’t stay away until he knows she is safe which already seems like a full time job.
Layna is surprised when her dark anti-hero saves her a second time from Ryever and his men. She is even more surprised when he offers her a safe place with him with the promise of comforts and hot water. With nothing left to lose, Layna follows Axis to his home to find haunting secrets and a deeply disturbing past surrounding those around her, as well as intense passion and a feeling of belonging somewhere for the first time.

‘It was the way he took care of people. Thought about them. Put them first. It was his mix of light humor and deep thought. The blend of culture and wildness. And the dark, hidden core of him that was still a mystery to her.’

My Thoughts

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this story, the passion became present almost instantly within the first chapter which seemed almost unnecessary at times. Not that I don’t like my share of erotica, but the characters had only seen each other from a distance before they found the need to touch themselves. I was already hooked on what sort of character Axis was going to be by his dark inner demon fighting to remain normal and passive in company and I was craving to know more over anything else.

‘All the same, the girl had been skilled. Very careful. Only someone like Axis would have known she was there. But Axis had known, and it had irritated him.
Partly because it had made him think about Ryever all day yesterday and today. More because he’d been tapping into his heightened senses to keep track of her – that was always a strain.
A dangerous temptation.
A crack in the iron cafe of his will.’

The characters were definitely unique and well described with some great character building, especially on Axis’s part. You begin to understand why he is so determined to put everyone before himself after what happened with his mother, the guilt and anger he feels on a daily basis is so emotionally consuming, you don’t know how he has the energy to get dressed let alone anything else. His past is so dark and haunting, it’s easy to see why he snaps quickly and why he fights with his inner demons. He doesn’t know whether being around Layna helps ease his suffering or simply makes it worse. He’s now got something worth fighting for, however what he’s fighting against is putting her in serious danger.

It would have been great to have spent more time on Tristan and Gareth. They had such an important role in the story but you felt you didn’t really know who they were or much of their past, it was more of passing details to fill in some blanks with Axis’s story rather than their own individual characters. I would have loved to have explored the world of the queen and her children before the curse, for Layna to remember growing up surrounded by magic and her family with a few flashbacks. The history of the children in the forest was so fascinating, I wanted to know more!

‘An arm hooked with hers at the elbow. Another hooked onto her other side, and she was wrenched sideways, stumbling.
She was in a ring of dancers, swinging in a circle on the wooden, moonlit crest. The light was cold and eerie as it splashed over the faces and forms of the dancers.
They were not human.
Their bodies were a mix of animal and plant, a few human-like features appearing here and there. One had a sharp-featured human face but arms like branches, and these twined with the huge, bird-like wings of the dancer next to it.
There were legs of deer, ears of foxes, bodies of bramble and vine. Some wore shirts of moss; others were clothed in ragged scraps of cloth. A few were naked, male genitals swinging, female breasts swaying.
Their laughter was the music to which the dance was set, and it was high and cruel and mad.’

Personally, I felt that the author spent too much time with a passionate scenes between Axis and Layna than over the actual story surrounding them. Some readers may have preferred this take as a Beauty and the Beast erotica, however I found this to be quite disappointing as I was really enjoying the telling of the backstory surrounding Axis’s past with his father and the children in the forest. Instead of introducing new details, I found that there was quite a lot of repetition instead, I felt like I was reading the same lines over and over again at times when talking about Axis and his difficult past rather than delving more into various past scenes and characters. I guess the main reason for this slightly negative review is that I enjoyed the story far more than I expected but felt it was unfinished in so many ways. So many questions left unanswered.

Overall it was a great story and I would really hope that the author will bring out a second book to dwell deeper into the curse and the children, as well as more of the steamy romance too 😉

A deeply complex read with a powerful storyline and and multidimensional characters, Beautiful Beast is far more than just a pretty cover that promises a fairytale retelling.

First off, the writing is well done. Detailed yet never too wordy or tedious, Miss Knight’s writing expertly paints a world and characters while taking us on a journey through love, laughter, pain, and more. The story is sexually charged even from the beginning, and does not disappoint those looking for a more adult retelling of one of their favorite stories. It’s dark and gritty yet inspiring and erotic all at the same time.

Fairytale retellings are far from original but it is what Miss Knight does with hers that makes it truly stand out. The secondary characters are just as fleshed out as the leads, making for characters that are dynamic and interesting, yet flawed. They draw you in with their histories and personalities as large as they castle they inhabit.

Miss Knight’s willingness to also approach dark topics without bringing the reader down is also commendable. The story she creates is so captivating that it’s hard to not devour every word.

A powerful adult retelling of classic fairytale, Beautiful Beast is everything you did not know you needed.

as soon as i saw this cover, i requested it. i try very hard not to judge a book by its cover, but sometimes they are just so pretty.... plus, beauty and the beast retelling. sold.

unfortunately this one did not live up to the cover. i love romance, obviously, i read a lot of it. i am fine with smut as long as it balances out with a story. i did feel like there was just a bit too much in this one. too much too soon, it just escalates super quickly without a whole lot of build up. inappropriate times where i was just like wtf seriously. too much throughout the whole story. the first scene was steamy and i liked it a lot but they just started to get a bit redundant after a few. i think - i could be wrong, it all runs together but - at one point there was a sex scene, they went to sleep, woke up, she thought about them having sex the night before in a scene that we didn't see so we get it all in detail, so they have sex again and then i think she goes to get breakfast or a drink and another sex scene. so that was like 4 sex scenes back to back, 4 or 5 pages each.... it was just a lot. overall i don't mind sex scenes, obviously, quite like them but there is such a thing as too much. i guess i just wanted a bit more of a build up, a stronger foundation. i never felt any tension or them falling in love.

i wasn't a huge fan of some of the writing (deeeeeeeeefinitely, theeeeeeeeen, heeeeeere). the world took a bit to get into, not a whole lot of explanation of certain words so for the first few times you read them they make no sense - wanderer, children, snow just to name the ones i remember - or you think they are something else. i know you don't want to hit your readers over the head with world building but a little wouldn't hurt.

also there was a line where a gay couple say something about the girl not minding they're gay and she says 'actually i think it's hot'. uhh that just rubbed me the wrong way, flip the sexes and have a guy tell a lesbian couple he thinks it's hot. or someone tell a male/female couple they think their relationship is hot... yeah. no. then later she says 'i told you it turns me on'. do you seriously not see a) the difference of something being hot and turning you on, and b) how not okay that is? maybe i'm just being picky or finding offense anywhere but... like i said, rubbed me the wrong way.

then there was a fairly explicit m/m scene, which is fine, it's not like this book can be tagged as m/m because they aren't the focus, but if you're not into m/m, it's not something you'd expect and might not be your jam. and that's fine. it's not something i like to read. the whole m/m and tristan situation was just not my jam at all.

overall, this wasn't horrible, definitely didn't live up to the cover, was a bit too long and had a lot going on. not my personal jam. sorry netgalley and author. sigh. gorgeous cover though.

I absolutely loved this book!
Layna with her strength, her capacity of understanding Axis. Her tenacity in trying to help him.
Axis (loved the name BTW) was a tortured soul. My heart went out to him and his dealing with such heartbreaking abuse that he suffered while young. Gareth and Tristan were a good balance, loved their relationship, tho not perfect, was strong.

This book dealt with love, forgiveness, strength...I loved it all

And the romance....that was HOT!!!
Its the authors first book and I really look forward to what else she writes in the future!!

I have to admit, this was a little outside my normal preferences when it comes to books, but I could not resist such a gorgeous cover. But sometimes cover reads turns out well, and fortunately, though I did have some issues, I enjoyed a lot of things about this too.

First things first, the writing itself was great. It flowed smoothly enough to make me forget I was reading a book, and the characters had voice and personality.

Speaking of the characters… Layna had a relatable, sarcastic voice at times. She was also a very strong-willed, compassionate, understanding person. The only thing I didn’t like was how Axis was doing this huge favor for her, and she repaid him by snooping around and acting like she deserved to know all of his secrets.

Axis was the quintessential brooding paranormal hero. He was kind and compassionate to people, but he was damaged from a dark past and had a temper and mood swings, and he frequently pushed people away and emotions down. He also struggled with depression and suicidal impulses. His emotions and flaws were dramatic (as these things often are in books) but complex. (And his mental illnesses and emotional struggles weren’t automatically cured by love.)

Supporting characters Tristan and Gareth were great. Tristan could be prickly but had a good heart, and Gareth was a big, ol’ sweetheart who was always trying to lighten the mood and smooth things over between everyone.

There were also relationship complexities, like Tristan being in unrequited love with Axis but being in a relationship with Gareth. I was uncomfortable with Layna telling the gay men their relationship turned her on (to her, these were real people in a real relationship), but aside from that, I enjoyed seeing the way all four characters interacted and the way their relationships with each other grew. It brought some good angst and tension, and some sweet moments, to the story.

As for the romance… I’ll be honest, I tend to prefer books where romance is a subplot because I don’t like a lot of romance tropes, and while I didn’t feel it was fair to dock my rating too much since I think these are “me” things, I did have a couple issues there. I felt like the romance and love happened really fast, like they knew about each other but didn’t really know each other yet. They were also really preoccupied by sex, and there were A LOT of sex scenes. There were a couple other tropey things that bothered me too, like Axis’s need to claim Layna and the way he felt like having sex with her was the way to do that. But what I did like was how there was maybe a bit of a role reversal—or at least a more equal balance than what I’m used to seeing in M/F books—with the woman being the one to say and initiate the sexual stuff, to give sexy speeches, to be dominant sometimes, etc. And the man was the one who usually felt more emotional. And both enjoyed submission and being treated a bit roughly.

There were also some intense, heavy moments in this book because of Axis’s inability to control his wolf form, his use of drugs to counteract that, and his traumatic, abusive childhood. The author wrote the intense moments really well.

So overall, I had a couple issues, but they were mostly about personal taste. I still enjoyed the writing, the character relationships, and the intensity, and I think this one that a lot of paranormal/fantasy romance fans will like!

This just teaches me not to judge a book by its cover. I love romance books, and if they are heavily erotic, it's not a huge deal. But I was not expecting the sexuality to be so crude so early on, and it was way too insta-lust for me. It was like they just wanted to have sex with someone, didn't really matter who it was. I love the Beauty and the Beast trope, and this just didn't live up to my expectations. The cover hinted at more of a soft romance or maybe romance turning to steamy sex later on. But this was pretty much all about sex from the get go. Aside from that, the writing felt too choppy, and I had a hard time following the story in the beginning. It wasn't very clear to me what was going on.

I received this novel from net galley and the publisher. Thank you!
This novel was different than I expected it to be. It has several erotica moments. Axis is a wolf shifter and has no control over his wolf, which leads him to Ryever, who can get things for a price. Axis notices Layna following him, believing she works for Ryever. However, Layna is trying to stop Ryever's drugs from spreading. When Layna and Axis meet, both are attracted to the other and want sex between them. Axis brings Layna to his home, where they learn much about each other. Layna discovers she has healing abilities and wants to help Axis overcome his. However, Axis does not want to hurt anyone and will take the pain upon himself. Layna and Axis fall in love with each other, but Axis needs to let go of the past and Layna needs to remember hers.

Thank you to Weapenry Co-Op. for the arc of this book.
I loved it, couldn’t put it down, forced myself to stay awake to finish it, but I really didn’t want it to end.
A great story, strong characters, some smut, what more could you ask for really!