This was a truly great book! By the Book is a modern day re-imagining of Beauty and the Beast. I loved all the Easter Eggs and references to the original Beauty and the Beast. Jasmine Guillory did an especially great job with incorporating the teeniest tiniest bit of magical realism, while also making this story completely realistic. It definitely added to the fairy tale aspect without taking from the plot or making it too unbelievable. I love that the characters were diverse and didn’t have size 2 figures. This was the modern upgrade that fairy tales need!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is about a working relationship until about 60% in. The characters barely have any chemistry until bam! They turn into lovers. There's also a shocking lack of detail about the professions of either character, considering the author must know a lot about publishing, but chose not to provide interesting tidbits beyond what someone could guess.

I really enjoyed this latest novel by Jasmine Guillory. The characters were fun yet had depth. Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy. #NetGalley #BytheBook

Another fun book my Jasmine Gulliory. Her work always includes a fun plot and characters — this one is no different.

A modern day Beauty and the Beast. Isabelle is an assistant to a publisher, Tale as Old as Time Publishing, and must get a troubled writer to finish his memoir. Izzy travels to California to Beau’s estate to try to help him. She’s met with his nasty attitude but ends up staying for much longer than anticipated. Unlike the Disney version Izzy is free to go and has access to the outside world but feels compelled to try to help her troubled writer. The two of course bond and fall for one another, but not without misunderstandings, and a few twists thrown in. This os my second Jasmine Guillory and while I liked the concept of giving Black girls a Disney-esque story (per the intro author note) but it felt really juvenile to me. Maybe it’s supposed to be but it didn’t have enough edge or spark for me. Some of the Beast references were sweet, like the Wi-Fi being called Lumiere, but it was a stretch to have Izzy talking to her bath tub. I think those that like twee stories will find this charming but it wasn’t really for me. Maybe I relate more to the Disney villain vs hero. Oh well. 2.5 stars rounded up.

I’m a huge Jasmine Guillory fan, and as always, this book did not disappoint! By the Book is a modern retelling inspired by Beauty and the Beast. I enjoyed all the Beauty and the Beast references sprinkled throughout the book. It stayed true to the story, while also adding in unique characters and themes. This is the second novel in the Meant to Be series that I’ve read, and I’ve loved both! I can’t wait to see what is next.

Like all Jasmine Guillory books, this book contains romantic chemistry, diverse characters, and beautiful writing. I loved reading Izzy and Beau’s story.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Tale as old as time: I love reading books about books. As a current literary fellow, I can definitely appreciate Izzy's challenges as an editorial assistant. I love that this story explores the inequities of the publishing industry, especially from the perspective of a Black woman, who has to work harder than most just for a seat at the table.

As this is also a modern retelling, I liked that I was able to pick up on those amongst all the classic tropes. The fairytale references were so cute and subtle. In regards to the romance, I adored both of the main characters. Their chemistry was great. I only have good things to say.

Thank you to NetGalley for kindly providing me with an eARC of this book! All opinions are my own.

Another winner from Jasmine Guillory, this Beauty and the Beast inspire "tale as old of time" features Black characters, a book loving assistant editor and an beastly celebrity author long overdue with his memoir. Clever and slow burning, the verbal sparring and gradual developing relationship is fun and funny. I was rooting for Izzy and Beau from the start.

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

So adorable! Jasmine's take on Beauty and the Beast has all the right upgrades (i.e. no imprisonment, angry villagers, or Gaston) but includes delightful nods to the original story. And there is a snack cabinet--that's just goals.

Thanks to NetGalley for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book by Jasmine Guillory based on the beauty and the beast. Throughout there were similarities, but also the story stayed current. I loved Beau and Izzy's chemistry and they made the story so enjoyable. I love Jasmine Guillory as an author and I always look forward to her new books.

#BytheBook #NetGalley

<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/f0f79a585464296a33bf1d00493e05add42a2f49" width="80" height="80" alt="10 Book Reviews" title="10 Book Reviews"/>

By the Book is about Isabelle Marlowe an assistant in a publishing house (Tale as Old as Time) who is feeling burnt out. She is giving it one last effort and see if this is the job/career is for her. She volunteers herself to get an overdue manuscript from the famous bad boy, Beau Towers.
Jasmine Guillory has done it again! This was such a fun retelling of Beauty and the Beast. You could really feel the love these characters have for each other and they feel real. The slow burn worked for this type of story. Beau's character development gave it so much depth and getting to see the many different sides of him helped bring this story from what could have been a flat retelling from Isabelle's POV to a well-rounded romance.
The pacing, the bookish love, the Easter eggs from Beauty and the Beast made it a quick and easy read. If you were looking for the steamy scenes that we love from Jasmine I would not recommend this to you but on its own as a closed-door romance, it is perfect. The ending was such sweet and happily ever after that if you like things tied up in a pretty bow, this will be perfect for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. I have to admit I knew prior to reading that this is a loose retelling of Beauty & the Beast, so I found myself seeking out the similarities and references to past reimagining's and Jasmine did not disappoint! From Isabelle's yellow dress as she descends a grand staircase, to her having imaginary conversations with household appliances. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the characters, but that is not really a surprise considering I've read and enjoyed every book Jasmine releases! She always has strong female characters who are not afraid to be themselves and the same is true of the main character Isabelle; she doesn't shy away from Beau's rough exterior. As expected, he softens and they take a liking to each other. As predictable as expected, I definitely recommend!

This book was so cute! It took me awhile to see that this was a romance book, it is definitely a slow burn, but I really loved the story itself so it was easy to get into. Izzy is sent to work with Beau, an author who has had trouble writing a memoir. Beau has not responded to any correspondence, so Izzy decides to go to his house. While there, she gets invited to stay with him to provide support. The majority of the book explores their time living together and working through the writing of Beau's memoir. I loved reading about the way that Izzy was able to get Beau to write and built a friendship with him. This was built so well that it was almost shocking to find out that Beau was attracted to Izzy since the beginning. The only thing that I didn't really like about their relationship was that they seemed to get into fights somewhat frequently and they said some pretty nasty things to each other during. They would fight, apologize, only to turn around and fight again. It made it seem like their apologies weren't actually genuine. I thought for sure that their relationship was going to die out when Izzy had to come back to New York, but that NOTEBOOK! <3 Made my heart so happy. If you like romance, this is a great read that has a good story line. I also like that it features POC.

Isabelle is an overworked publishing assistant desperate to be promoted. Beau is a celebrity bad boy who is supposed to be writing his memoir but has apparently dropped off the face of the earth. As a last ditch effort to impress her boss Isabelle offers to go to Beau’s home and encourage him to get moving on his book.

When she gets to his mansion, she’s met with a cranky beast who’s not made any progress on his memoir and challenges her to stay with him in his home to give him daily pep talks.

Beau is a tough nut to crack but Isabelle sees the good man underneath, and his story that needs to be told - slowly falling for him in the process and uncovering some things about herself as well.

If Beauty and the Beast is your childhood favorite, give this one a try. My only complaint is that the first Meant to Be Novel featured a plus size character, where Isabelle was mentioned to be a size 12. I was hoping they’d continue to be plus size throughout.

A sweet and swift retelling of a tale as old as time. Muck like Izzy and Beau's snacks that feature prominently throughout the book, this novel is a quick treat that is fun to read, but lacks some substance.

Although I enjoyed the cast of characters and appreciated the journey that both Izzy and Beau went through to become better versions of themselves, at times I felt like something was lacking from the novel. The relationship between Izzy and Beau felt like it needed more time to develop than it was given. I did like the nods to Disney's Beauty and the Best throughout the novel.

I enjoyed this take on Beauty and the Beast quite a bit - fresh and original but yet plenty of Easter Eggs and winks to truly, a tale as old as time. I found Isabelle to be a smidge off-the-mark of what makes a great heroine, mostly due to her dispensation to shout at someone and then quite literally, run away. I found this a bit tired as a trope and again, hits on one of my biggest pet peeves with lazy writing - miscommunication as a plot point. Despite that, I was rooting for her and especially rooting for Beau in his journey to healing and working on relationships with himself and some people around him. I especially loved the Santa Barbara setting [although we don't see the town itself too, too much, which you'll have to read to understand why] - there's truly no better place than sunny, southern California! All in all, 3.5 stars for a cast of endearing characters, well-paced writing and a library that could truly just make a gal swoon.

Thanks, as always, to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. I look forward to seeing this on shelves on May 3rd!

Okay so.

I was already walking into this a smidge apprehensive given a few things: I wasn't a huge fan of Jasmine's last book; while I adore Beauty and the Beast and I've grown quite tired of retellings. But I was like look - I can put that aside for a cute little story and I've loved a lot of Jasmine's other books.

And well -- that's a lie! I could not! Wow! Wow I could not!!

One thing I've noticed that Jasmine doesn't do as well as I would like is ... well. All the romances seem to happen in a void. In While We Were Dating, while there was a few things that emphasized that the main character was a celebrity, no one... reacted like it. Which, fine, she could've been a smaller town actress, but an actress in a Large Superhero Film would probably start to have pap shots. But in this book? I had no idea what job Beau had (which if it was mentioned, I don't remember), and even though they mentioned that he was afraid to be seen in public........ that was never an issue. like there was one part where I thought the big ~drama~ would be because they hugged in public, but actually nope! no issue at all.

I noticed this in the other Meant to Be story, which was the weird shoe-horning of the disney property into the book. His housekeeper is nicknamed Kettle (???), his wifi is lumiere (which to be honest, made me laugh so much it was awful). The "Gaston" was an asshole but also ...not at all Gaston. What we hate about Gaston is that he's the dude that everyone likes in the small town but he's an ASSHOLE and this dude.... well, he sucked, but that was it.

I just felt like a lot of the characters could've used a lot more fleshing out. I didn't love how the boss's story ended up nor the other Black woman the MC knew. Oh! The main characters! Bland. so bland. It was a little disappointing. I liked the friend a lot! But I felt like she had more personality than the two leads.

Uh!

That's it! I'll probably keep reading Jasmine's stuff and while I saw some reviews mention that they thought it might have been a new editor which is why it felt so different, but if anything, this book highlighted issues I've seen in her other works. So. Yeah.

Thanks to Hyperion Ave and NetGalley for a chance to read!

✍️ One Sentence Synopsis: Modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a California escapism twist.

💭 Overall Thoughts:
Jasmine Guillory is an auto buy for me. I love her writing style and how much I feel connected to her characters because of the way she writes them. I love the witty banter between characters and the true rom com feel of her storylines. She also writes such strong female characters that I love.

This one is no different. There is some adorable forced proximity/ enemies to lovers romance going on and watching a very grumpy Beau become a soft teddy bear was just adorable.

This is a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast and for the most part it was incredibly well done. My only qualm were I felt the references to inanimate objects were a little over the top… but that’s just me, and it was a very minor aspect.

An adorable and enjoyable read that will be out May 3, 2022!

Highlights:
😆 Witty banter
😾 Grumpy cat turns teddy bear
😈 Enemies to lovers
🏰 Fairytale Retelling

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for allowing me to read with request for review.

"By the Book" is a delightful retelling of "Beauty and the Beast" set in SoCal. I enjoyed Isabel's growth as a character throughout the book. Beau's character was a little tougher for me to get into. One minute, he was the WORST, and the next he's being super tender and sweet. Although it took some time, I ended up rooting for them both.

This is a great book to read on a cold day when you're dreaming of sunny beaches in the middle of winter. Heck, it's great to read anytime you want something that will make you smile. 3.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley for the free advanced copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.