So, I wanted to love this. Half way through and I was sat at 3 stars, because I was enjoying it, but it was very politically heavy, and I don't love political fantasies.

This had a really interesting twist of the Beauty and the Beast that was enjoyable to read. I really enjoyed how characters that were well known came into play along with the new ones!

Thank you so much to net galley and the publisher for sending me a copy of this book. This is my first book by Emma Theriault, although it was not show stopping, I am interested in reading more from the author!

To say I was in a bad place health wise around this time would be an understatement.

I was struggling on and off. And ebeytuime I thought I was doing ok. I would start to struggle again.

I did really enjoy this book though. It may have taken me a while to get to it. But it was well worth the wait once I did

DNF @ 50%. I wanted to like this one more than I did, but none of the characters lived for me. Even Belle and Lio were dull. Not for me.

Not sure what I liked more, the writing or the characters! The setting was engaging as well. While I enjoyed this as a light read, there definitely could have been more natural character-driven progression to bump the level up.

This book seemed to take all the magical elements of the story and replaces them with real, historical elements. Imagine Belle, the ultimate lover of books and knowledge, being thrown into the French Revolution, being caught between the common folk and the bourgeoise. It was a fantastic display of character development, court intrigue, romance and revolution!

Sadly this book just didn’t grab as much as I hoped it would. I put it down and picked it up multiple times but I just couldn’t connect with it. Super bummed.

There's nothing better then twists on classic Disney stories. This one is a great twist on Belle's story and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's full of adventure and magic. Perfect for any fan of Disney!

This was not a book for me. I was not a fan of the characters or the plot. I think this just a case of my type of book.

I love a good belle story. And this one takes the cake. Queen Belle. The author did a wonderful job fitting belle into the role of Queen in a way that was realistic of the character trope of belle in the Disney franchise. I was I could have a Queen as amazing as belle. I look forward to reading more of this author’s books.

A Beauty and the Beast retelling/continuation that takes place after the enchantment is broken. Belle and Lio (Beast) are royalists set amid the French Revolution (lots of politics). This new story includes old favorites like Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Chip, yet also introduces new characters to enrich and expand the storyline. All-in-all, an interesting POV.

The entire concept of The Queen's Council sounds like a series that's right up my alley: reimaginings of Disney Princesses as they come into power as rulers with fairy-tale and historical elements. I mean, the whole coming into power but with the help of a mysterious force sounds like strong character development energy, so I should enjoy Rebel Rose, right?

- Not a fan of the writing style. I don't know, I think this really comes down to personal preferences most of the time, but I felt like it didn't flow as well at times.
- It's possible I'm not a fan of the narration and being in Belle's head instead of the writing style. She seems to pop in going, "I don't fit in," but two seconds later, she'll pop in with her two cents going, "the people need a voice" with her perspective from before she was queen while sounding like she fits in with nobility if that even makes sense. (Belle, pal, you are the voice.)
- Belle felt like a shell of herself. While this novel is essentially about her growing and trying to find the confidence to accept the crown as a queen, it's almost like she got chucked down one too many notches to just her essence (potentially to better fit her in with the historical time period this is set in?) and it just didn't execute very well.
- The pacing was just off, with most of the book being slow and then the end just being very quick.
- I loved the side characters though. I think Theriault depicted them really well and kept their personalities and characterizations.

I wish I could say otherwise, but Rebel Rose sadly turned out to be a disappointment.

Emma Theriault is the genius writer behind Rebel Rose, Book One of Disney’s new The Queen’s Council series. This new series will reimagine the stories of some of our favorite Disney princesses and the very real historical settings behind their stories. Rebel Rose is the continuation of the beloved Disney tale of Beauty and the Beast, picking up with Belle and her husband Lio in 1789. Historical fiction meets Disney in all the best ways in this young adult novel. They’ve only been married a few months, but find themselves facing the impending French Revolution and what that might mean in their own kingdom of Aveyon.

The fairytale finds its historical roots as the story unfolds from Lio’s visiting King Louis at Versailles to Belle’s work to better the lives of her people with real political changes to the relationship of Aveyon with the rest of Europe. The rich, vivid world created by Theriault highlights all the extravagance of the French monarchy while Belle and Lio visit Paris. As Belle ventures out into the streets, readers are also given a look at the undercurrents of violence, fear, and hatred of the Parisian commoners fighting for their lives against the monarchy’s constantly increasing taxes and vagrant disregard for their well-being. From historical moment references to Belle’s first-hand account of part of Bastille Day, Rebel Rose takes you deep into the heart of the political turmoil of the times and makes readers feel as if they are living it.
Theriault gives the same attention to detail for each of her characters as well. Throughout the story Belle chafes against the title of ‘Princess’, preferring to remain just Belle despite the fact that everyone around her thinks of her as their Princess. This aspect, coupled with others throughout the story, feels authentic to the progressive, head-strong Belle that we know from the classic story. Rather than breaking the character down to bare bones and building her back up, Theriault takes the Belle fans know and adds layer upon intricate layer until we can easily picture Belle as an actual historical figure. Readers also meet several familiar faces from the castle and a few surprising ones from outside its walls (but I won’t spoil who!) The inclusion of deep backstories for the supporting characters that make their way into Belle’s life adds to the richness of the tale. Belle’s ideas and desire to help her people drive the fast-paced story from start to finish.

Rebel Rose is the sequel to Beauty and the Beast during the French Revolution. Belle is married to the Prince of Aveyon, a principality of France. When the French Revolution starts, the kingdom of Aveyon decides to break away from France and form its own kingdom. However, Belle does not want to be queen. Through a series of events, Belle realizes that accepting the queenship is the best gift for the newly formed kingdom.

The story takes place shortly after Belle marries the Beast. While Belle is happy marrying for love, she does not want to be a princess and refuses to have a title. She believes that being a princess and a queen will prevent her from having the freedom she has always dreamed. Throughout the novel, Belle slowly warms to the idea of being queen and to accept the responsibility of the title. In this book, Belle spends most of the novel being unsure of herself. It is only through the help of others that she is able to gain confidence and self-esteem.

Overall, this novel is about confidence, friendship, and responsibility. The message of the story is to believe in yourself. There are a few characters that I liked. However, the rest of the characters are stereotypical and have little depth. The story itself was very slow moving. The plot is thin and seems drawn out. Most of the action happens in the last pages. I also found it a bit odd that the reason why the witch turned the prince into a beast is not because of his selfishness and that he needed to learn a lesson, but solely to make Belle to enter his life and make her his queen. Still, I like the historical aspects of the novel and the rise of Belle becoming queen. This book is perfect for those who want to learn what happens after the ever after in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast! I recommend this for fans of As Old As Time, Belle, and The Merchant’s Daughter!

This novel, set in the aftermath of Beauty and the Beast, brings the story into the real world in France. The political and financial ramifications of a province that is suddenly remembered are explored, as well as Belle's role as a peasant-turned-princess, in an interesting manner. I flew threw this novel,  excited to find out what the ancient magic was described in the synopsis, and finding out that it's a magic that specifically helps women in leading roles, hence the name the Queen's Council, was exciting. I really enjoyed the premise of the magic helping Belle, even when she was not coronated as queen, when she was still unsure of what her role should be post-curse breaking.
Definitely a good fit for those who love historical fiction, Beauty and the Beast, and a female protagonist who can be vulnerable and strong at the same time.

Rebel Rose (The Queen’s Council #1) by Emma Theriault, 345 pages. Disney Hyperion (Buena Vista Books), 2020. $18.
Language: PG13 (17 swears, 0 “f” + French swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG

BUYING ADVISORY: HS - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Now that Belle has married the Beast, Lio, she is ready for her adventure. They begin their tour of the continent by going to Paris to reestablish Lio’s alliance with King Louis XVI. Unfortunately, Belle and Lio soon return home instead of continuing their travels in order to protect their kingdom from the revolutionaries destroying France.

Answering the question of what happens after the “happily ever after,” this book picks up where Disney’s movie ends. Theriault brilliantly places the story into history and smooths down the rough edges of the Beast’s curse being lifted. As Belle adapts to being married to royalty, she learns to trust herself, despite all she has suffered through, encouraging readers to do the same.

Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

*Arc provided by Disney Publishing and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review."

If you've ever wondered what happens after the Beast turns human again and how Belle manages life in a castle post curse look no further. The Queen's Council Rebel Rose is the continuation of the classic story with the realistic elements of the impending French Revolution. France as a whole is restless and less than amused with monarchy leaving Prince Leo and Belle in a very precarious position. Forced to balance her past as a peasant and her new role as the wife of a Prince, Belle is forced to use everything at her disposal to keep those she loves safe.

It's taken me a bit of time to review this one. I started and stopped it multiple times for one reason or another. While this is technically a Beauty and the Beast continuation it's more of a historical fiction piece with names and themes from Beauty and the Beast. This makes it very hard to review the story as it's neither one thing or the other. In terms of the historical aspect I think the author did a great job conveying the intricacies of court politics especially at such a delicate time for a middle grade/ya book. In terms of continuing the story it felt a bit flat. Familiar characters were present but they didn't have a big enough impact to drive home the Beauty and the Beast vibe.

Rebel Rose takes the ending of the beauty and the beast tale right after happily ever after and sets the continuing story against the backdrop of the French Revolution. The author drops the happily ever after at least for the start of the book cause, like all newlywed couples, there are bumps along the road add to the fact that you married to a king and you are refusing the queen title well it makes for some stressful situations. I liked that belle stayed true to the strong-headed, book-loving character from the movie and that the beast still has some issues figuring out to deal with humans after being cursed for years. Belle wants to fight for the commoners of her kingdom and struggles with Bastien refusing to allow a woman's opinion on the advisory council. There is a lot of political strife, a beheading, so this I would hand to upper young adult reader. A delightful continuation of the story, and I am excited to see what happens in the following tale.

Initial Thoughts
I was so excited to read this book. I always used to think about what happens after the happily ever after at the end of a Disney movie and this series answers that very question.

Also, Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorites.

Some Things I Liked
I loved the nods to history. The French Revolution serves as the backdrop for part of this story and I loved that. I wish we had actually gotten more but it was a really interesting touch to add the time period and context to the story I knew.
Older MC. While Belle’s age is not stated specifically, she’s married and has a husband so I assumed she was a little older. I loved that she was a more mature version of the girl from the Disney movie.

Some Things I Wasn’t Crazy About
Lack of romance. While Belle was already married, I was disappointed in the lack of romance in the story. I wanted more scenes of Belle and Lio together.
Lack of plot. I also feel like there was no central plot until more than 60% into the story. It was just a day in the life of Belle and I craved action or a mystery or something to puzzle out.

Series Value
I’d definitely keep reading this series. I love that each installment is written by a different author and covers a different story.

Final Thoughts
I wanted to like this so much more than I did. I had high hopes because of the premise but this story did fall a bit short.

⭐️⭐️⭐️