I LOVED this book. What a sweet retelling of Beauty and the Beast! It was modern, it was fun, it has relatable and lovable characters. I think it was the e perfect second edition to this book series, and I can’t wait for what’s to come

I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Jasmine Guillory just knows how to write a fascinating love story. I listen to a book podcast "Bad on Paper" which one of the host Becca always talks about how much she enjoys a "famous person- normal person" love story, and this book fits the trope.

Isabelle Izzy, a young, overworked member of the publishing house, has to go and convince Beau, a celebrity to finally write his over- due memoirs, she ended up learning a lot about him, and also about herself while building friendships and love.

The book was funny, captivating (I want to live in Beau's house, and have access to that library and his snack cabinet ), and excellent. Although I have to say, I missed Jasmine Guillory's signature hot sexy scenes in this book.

What a fun read this was - a modern retelling of the Disney version of 'Beauty and the Beast', complete with some fun easter eggs sprinkled throughout the text.

Isabelle though she landed her dream job as an editorial assistant for one of the major publishing houses, but after two years she's jaded and burnt out. Not sure if she wants to give up and move on to another job, she's jumps at the chance to visit a reclusive author whose manuscript is very behind.

Beau is the child of Hollywood Royalty, with the requisite bratty behavior to back it up. He ignores all efforts made by Izzy and her editor to contact him, and is known to have quite the beastly temperament...

When Izzy shows up at Beau's door, she almost gives up and returns home, but she ends up staying (thanks to Brad's matchmaking assistant, nicknamed Kettle). She agrees to stay for a few days to give Beau some 'pep talks' as a way to help him learn how to write. The few days turns into a week, which turns into a month as they get to know each other and discover their love of writing (or rediscover in Izzy's case).

Predictably there's a bit of a situation that necessitates Izzy's return to her real job, but rest assured - it's a happy ending.

This is the second in the 'Meant to Be' series, and is a complete stand-alone. It would make a great beach read, snowy/rainy day read, or really an anytime-you-need-a-nice-sweet-romance read.

By the Book by Jasmine Guillory is the second book in the Meant to Be series. Book one, If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy, was an adorable Cinderella retelling. Now Guillory takes on my favorite Disney tale, Beauty and the Beast.

Overall I would recommend this book to those who like sweet romance and fairy tale retellings. A solid three stars.

I was really excited for this beauty and beast retelling in contemporary world. Izzy works for a publisher and is unhappy with her current position which we can all relate to very well and Beau is this rich, reclusive celebrity who has been taking forever to submit his book. Izzy takes up this challenge and ends up at his door offering to help finish his memoir. Surprisingly, Beau takes up on her offer and she gets to stay in a beautiful, vintage mansion and enjoy some mouth watering food, luxurious pool and facilities.

I was so jealous of this vacation which doesn't really happen in real life at least with me. It was a quick read romcom suitable for those who are into clean/no steam/closed door romance. I liked all the references to Beauty and beast but being a retelling, we all pretty much know how it would go. Cute read for this summer while at beach or a pool!

This author just might not be for me. This book is a perfectly inoffensive Beauty and the Beast retelling, the second in a series of modernized fairytales. I enjoyed the first, If the Shoe Fits (written by another author), which I found quite charming.

I think my lack of enthusiasm stems from two things: the first is the characters are meant to be in their mid 20s, but read as pretty juvenile. I get this is a Disney imprint, but who is this for? It doesn’t really fit as a contemporary romance (this is about a 1 on the spice scale) but also doesn’t really fit YA either (adult characters/themes). This is also true for the first book, but it bothered me less, probably because of my second issue.

I found the characters rather bland. Beau and Izzy have zero chemistry. Their banter is pretty lame, and since we spend most of the book with just them, the story drags. Beau gives me no “former playboy” vibes. Izzy is annoyingly perky (that prologue almost made me DNF). Overall, the lack of zsa-zsa zu made it hard to care or root for these characters to overcome their obstacles, which felt pretty low-stakes anyway.

I’m sure this book will find love from readers, but it was not my cup of tea.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion for the eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Mein Leseerlebnis

Nach “The proposal” und “Party of two” ist dies das dritte Buch der Autorin, dass ich gelesen habe. Zu den beiden erwähnten Liebesromanen gibt es auf dem Blog keinen Post, da “The proposal” vor dem Start des Blogs erschienen ist und zu wenig Eindruck auf mich gemacht hat, um es nachträglich noch zu rezensieren, und “Party of two” fand ich zwar ganz nett, aber auch dieses Buch konnte mich emotional nicht mitreißen.

Nun also Versuch drei mit “By the book”. Ich hatte gehofft, dass mit einem Liebesroman, in dem Bücher eine zentrale Rolle spielen, der Funke nun endlich überspringen würde. Denn viele Leser:innen lieben die Romane der Autorin und ich wollte ihre Freude endlich teilen.

Doch dazu kam es leider nicht. Denn auch wenn ich den Schreibstil der Autorin generell und auch in “By the book” mag, so geben mir ihre Charaktere so gar nichts. Izzy wirkte auf mich recht sympathisch, sie war in Bezug auf manche Sachen aber erstaunlich naiv und blind. Und auch wenn ich sie nett fand, so hat mich ihr Leben wenig interessiert.

Mit Beau bin ich überhaupt nicht warm geworden. Am Anfang fand ich ihn sehr unsympathisch, gegen Ende ganz ok, aber das reicht für ein tolles Leseerlebnis natürlich nicht aus.

Etwas frustrierend fand ich übrigens eine Entwicklung in der Geschichte, in der sich herausstellt, dass jemand ein Wolf im Schafspelz ist. Vom ersten Auftritt der Person an hatte ich diesen Eindruck, nur Izzy hat es erst am Ende der Geschichte verstanden. Das wirkte auf mich unglaubwürdig und dadurch frustrierend.

Der bereits erwähnte ansprechende Schreibstil und eine gewisse Frische in der Geschichte haben meinen Eindruck vom Buch gerettet, für eine Buchempfehlung reicht das aber nicht aus.

Ich muss leider endgültig festhalten, dass die Charaktere der Autorin auf mich zu blass und uninteressant wirken, als dass ich in Zukunft weiterhin zu ihren Romanen greifen werde. 🖤🖤1/2

Für wen?

Schaut in eine Leseprobe rein, sprechen euch die Charaktere in dieser an, könnte das Buch und die Werke der Autorin generell etwas für euch sein. Viele Leser:innen schätzen die Liebesgeschichten der Autorin, einen Versuch ist es daher wert.

While this book was an enjoyable rom-com, it felt a little bit like it was written as a standalone story about a publishing house assistant working with a reclusive author and at the last minute it was decided to be a Beauty and the Beast retelling. The allusions and references to the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast seemed forced and inserted as afterthoughts, rather than integrated into the story as a true retelling of the classic tale.

Jasmine Guillory's writing style makes for a fun, quick read and despite it's predictability I certainly enjoyed the novel. I did find Izzy to be naive and annoying at a lot of points and her character development wasn't particularly deep. Many of her reactions felt forced or overblown just to add some drama to the story. Overall, I wouldn't discourage anyone from picking it up for a light rom-com, but it wasn't particularly memorable.

This is a beauty and the beast retelling and going in I didn’t know that until it was too late. I don’t exactly like retelling so the fact that this one was one really put me off.

If you’re a fan of retelling this is definitely for you!

I thought that this book was amazing when it came to the writing and plot and the pace. I do recommend it because this was a good book but it wasn’t for me.

I'm so sad that I didn't like this book. I LOVE Jasmine Guillory's other books and was so excited to see this new one coming out. As usual, I didn't read the summary of the book, so it wasn't until a friend told me she was looking forward to a good fairy tale retelling that I realized what I was getting myself into.

Retellings aren't necessarily bad; so many (most?) stories are just retellings of older stories, anyway. But this one just kept hitting me on the head with that Disney Beauty and the Beast theme. The publishing house that Isabel (like Belle, get it?) works for is TAOAT - Tale As Old As Time. Ugh. And Beau sneers and snarls and growls through the early days of their relationship. There are even snippets directly taken from the cartoon movie - Isabel in a long yellow dress descending the grand staircase, Isabel up on a ladder in the library, one foot raised in the air. Enough.

And did I mention the housekeeper's nickname is Kettle (not Potts <wink>)? Or the fact that Isabel talks to the furniture and almost hears it talking back? I really almost couldn't with this book.

And then the romance. It was straight-up PG, and the main characters are in their mid-20s, so I'm not really sure who the audience is. Not that everything has to be NC17, but a little heat would be nice, and normally Ms. Guillory delivers. There are kisses, hand holding, and hugs. Yup, that's that.

I liked how Beau and Isabel's relationship came together. They were likable characters and their conflicts and resolutions worked well. That's about all the positive review I can give. It's only my love of the author that brings the rating up to 2 stars.

My thanks to Hyperion Avenue and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm trying to find more bipoc romance novels to add to my libraray's collection. I read Guillory's first two novels and wasn't too into them. I figured I should give her another try. I liked this book-the adaptation of Beauty and the Beast was a nice one. I will buy this for my library.

I love a book about writing books so this was absolutely perfect. I also loved the update on beauty and the beast. It was so interesting because I do think of creativity as a kind of magic and that was a lot of the magic in this story: Helping someone find their voice and inspiring them to tell their stories. There's so much vulnerability in this book and I love how Izzy helps Beau tell the story that he needs to tell and really listens to him. So many books rely on the miscommunication trope but this book was about these two characters really struggling to communicate well and understand each other and making mistakes the way any of us would. I thought that was really beautiful.

By The Book is the 2nd book in the "Meant to Be" series published by @disneybooks. The first book was If The Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy and was a Cinderella retelling. By The Book is written by acclaimed author, Jasmine Guillory (The Wedding Date series) and takes on a modern tale inspired by Beauty and the Beast.

Izzy is stuck in her dead-end job as an assistant in a publishing house. She convinces her boss to send her to California to find Beau, an elusive writer who is months behind on writing his memoir. Izzy finds him closed up in his house on the hill (of course, it has a library) and he agrees to let her stay to help write the book. Beau and Izzy start to warm to each other but are they brave enough to see if they are meant to be?

I am a sucker for books about books and By The Book did not disappoint! I was completely drawn in and read this book in a day! I loved how the relationship with Izzy and Beau grew slowly as they both had to learn to trust the other. The writing was funny and fast-paced....a perfect rom-com.

This story is inspired by Beauty and the Beast and I loved the way the author wove elements into the book without hitting you over the head. This was truly a modern take on an old story that felt fresh and new.

I have loved almost everything I've read by Jasmine Guillory (there was 1 exception) and I was really curious to see how she adapted Beauty and the Beast for the modern era. I really enjoyed this retelling, especially the nods to the original tale (including the Disney version). Is there anything Jasmine Guillory can't do?

I enjoyed this book, as I do with all of Jasmine Guillory’s books! It was a modern day retelling of Beauty & the Beast, but I feel like that is all it was. I would’ve liked more conflict between the main characters before the inevitable happy ending.

A modern day fairytale inspired rom-com with a Black main character "princess"?! Yes please!!!

Oh this was just so, so cute! I loved this book so much, and the writing was amazing. This is the second book in a new series of modern day Disney fairytale retellings done by different authors! The first book is called If the Show Fits by Julie Murphy and it's a Cinderella retelling. The second book is By the Book by Jasmine Guillory and it's a Beauty and the Beast retelling!

This was really cute, had great, relatable main characters and tons of Beauty and the Beast "easter eggs" hidden in the book! I thought Izzy and Beau had great chemistry, and though their romance was definitely a slow burn, it was still really great. They went from "enemies" to friends to lovers and I loved that transformation.

Let me tell you I have NEVER related to a male main character as hard I related to Beau! A misunderstood homebody who hates making phones calls, and is obsessed with snacks and being comfy? Yuuuuup, thats me.

Overall this book was fun, lighthearted, quick read that I really enjoyed. I loved how both characters found themselves and their voice and found their happy ending.

"I love books. I love everything about them. I love the way you can fall into another world while you’re reading, the way books can help you forget hard things in life, or help you deal with them. I love all the different shapes books come in, and the way they feel in your hand."

𝘼𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧: Jasmine Guillory
𝙋𝙪𝙗 𝘿𝙖𝙮: May 3, 2022
𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙧𝙚: Romance, Fiction
𝙎𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨: Meant to Be #2

Thank you Hyperion Avenue for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. This review will be posted to my blogs & Amazon closer to publication day!

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I enjoyed how Guillory delivered this present-day Beauty and the Beast! Somehow she managed to cleverly incorporate all the things we love about Beauty and the Beast while making By the Book it’s own contemporary “fairytale”.

One of the most touching and personal aspects of this book was the dedication:

“To all the black girls who loved books and wanted to be princesses”.

As a Black girl who loved books and dreamed of being a Princess, this dedication made the story so much more meaningful for me. It felt like a celebration of my childhood fantasies.

By the Book is a cute romcom! If you enjoy slow burn romance, playful banter, and men with tough exteriors and soft hearts, then you might enjoy By the Book. I especially liked that Isabelle is Black and bookish!

That being said:

🌹 I found Isabelle’s internal dialogue repetitive and her naïveté annoying and preventative of her character development from having significant depth

🌹 The timeline and pacing of the story felt somewhat rushed

🌹 Some of the characters reactions to events in the book felt forced

Overall, By the Book is a sweet, fun read that may not stay with you long after it’s done but I’m happy that I read it!

By the Book is Jasmine Guillory's modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Isabelle is working at a publishing house when she finds herself unexpectedly stuck staying with "beastly" would-be author Beau. We all know how this story ends, but Guillory does an excellent job of adding her fresh and modern spin to a classic. This book is fun, sweet, and super readable. I look forward to reading more from this author.

An absolute hit for Disney fans and lovers of closed door romances but this retake on the Disney classic of beauty and the beast fell a little flat for me. I was drawn to this book because of its author as I have loved her books in the past.
I enjoyed the lens on the modern day publishing industry and the commentary on the lack of diversity within its walls.
I felt this book lacked a new twist or spin on the classic Disney story and fell a little flat in the romance department for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for a copy of this book

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the preview of By The Book. Jasmine Guillory has done it again. After reading the entirety of the Wedding Date series, I have been anxiously awaiting new drops by this fabulous author. By The Book does not disappoint. The story follows Isabel, a young, precocious book enthusiast who is anxious to get her career in publishing on track. She is high performing but flies under the radar. After nearly two years of tough criticisms and an even tougher boss, Izzy takes on the hardest challenge yet: coaxing a book out of the devastatingly handsome but angry Beau. This upbeat novel is a blend of Beauty and the Beast meets The Devil Wears Prada, and I enjoyed every second of it!