Thank you so much for Netgalley f0r allowing to have an audio copy of I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast is me by Jamison Shea. All I can say is wow. This was one crazy story. The life of a ballerina and how someone will do whatever it takes to be number one. You slowly see Laure going through the motions of everything as she makes a deal. It slowly turns her into the beast. The narrator made this book that much better, it was so fun to listen to. It was not scary at all but it was more so suspenseful. I do approve of this book, if you can get it in audio format I would say do that. And come on, look at that cover. It is a perfect picture of how this book is.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

Laure Mesny is a Black ballet student in Paris. She has been at the top of her class for the past six years but due to her race and modest background, she has to fight harder for recognition. Laure basically makes a deal with a devil for power and success.

Excellent narration by Kristolyn Lloyd.

This book was one of the best horror books I have read this year! The horror was simply delicious! The descriptive writing was *chef kiss*! The descriptions of the actual ballet dancing were so good - just visceral. I went to look up if the author had been a dancer because I didn't think the level of detail could have been achieved by someone who had never danced ballet (Shea did have a ballet background). And the background of Paris catacombs with eldritch gods was on point(e) - see what I did there with the ballet reference? I loved how Laure's frustration with being passed over despite being qualified became monstrously personified.
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for this advance copy for review

Exceptional audiobook production of an engaging story that unites horror and mystery with elements of romance. The setting of the cutthroat, elitist, racist Parisian ballet world serves both as a backdrop and an explanation for Laure's alliance with dark forces. The narrator brings distinctive life to every character and makes this story a joy to consume.

US meets TINY PRETTY THINGS meets BLACK SWAN meets JENNIFER'S BODY
I was sold on this based on the title and cover alone, but picked it up in the midst of books that kept falling short for me, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. And god did it end up being one of my most pleasant surprises of the year.
This delivered on all sides - I ADORED Laure as a character and wished for her to succeed at all costs (very "I support women's rights AND women's wrongs" Black feminist revenge fantasy vibes; so what if she has to sacrifice her soul to a demon for the world to finally bend to her will), I often got chills at the horror elements, and I believed every detail of the unfair, privileged world of ballet.
The last quarter of this felt so bittersweet and melancholy in the way so much of the real world does.
Extra points for the truly phenomenal audio narration which helped this come to life. I say this often, but I cannot stress enough what an excellent reading experience this was on audio.

This book was confusing from the start because it starts off with ballerinas. I thought it was a horror novel but the first chapter is ballerinas...anyways I then made it to the 32% mark and fell in love with the darker aspects of this book and how it really feeds into the horror genre without being too scary...because as a person who does get scared easily surprisingly this book wasn't that bad. I mean it was creepy and odd but I didn't hate it. I did also listen to the audiobook ARC I got from Netgalley and that helped because the sound effects and voices in that are so creepy yet so good and really helped bring the story to life. The cover is absolutely gorgeous and I can't wait to have it sitting displayed on my shelf. I did think that for a debut it was a really good start to a career. The character development and plot developments were really well thought out and made sense.

Thanks to NetGalley for this audiobook.

This book started off strong, to the point where I assumed it was going to be one of my top reads of the year. The story follows Laure, a ballet student who will do anything to secure her place in the company. She is up against more than many of the other girls due to her class , race, and lack of family. After befriending the new star ballerina, Laure makes a deal with an ancient god for power.

As the story continues it goes in a lot of different directions and becomes a bit too chaotic and hard to follow. I don’t know if it would feel this way if you were reading print. Laure becomes more monstrous and everything goes crazy. It was a let down for me that felt the same as the letdown I got while reading Hamlet. All of this beautiful writing and character building that ends in absolute mayhem- and somehow not in a good way.

I loved everything about the ballet - the competition, the falsity, the emphasis on visible perfection (and how racism plays into that), on the balance of privilege and hard work, on the endless hunger of a beast that can never be fed. Laure in the ballet was vicious and driven and jagged - but also perfect and superior and so hungry for more. It made her compelling. She could reach out of the book and sink her claws right into you.

But as soon as we left the ballet, it just felt… meh. The overarching plot was slow to move, the side characters had no depth (we’re supposed to believe that they became some kind of found family, but it’s hard to buy in with what we actually get of them on-page), and then the eventual villain… as soon as the reveal happens, you go “of course” but the big confrontation just left me unsatisfied. Laure is all gray area, but the villain leaves us with nothing interesting, because we know they’re wrong from the get-go.

Overall, a solid offering but not a new favorite.

Laure is a member of a prestigious ballet academy in Paris. Every day is an intense competition for the top spots with petty attacks the norm as they each try to outdo each other.

However no matter how hard Laure works, not matter how good she is, she's always overlooked or seen as a mar on stage due to her race.

When the current best of the best, Josephine, lets her in on the secret to her success, Laure leaps at the chance to make them see her. But she got more than she bargained for.

And she uncovers more ugly darkness than just the entity that's giving her power in exchange for it's needs.

Special audiobook note: The narrator is fantastic!

This book showed a hardworking girl work her way up and let people break her and it tends to get to the breaking point and the newer power she found gave her hope and made her feel like someone. I just enjoyed this book so much and can’t wait to get an actual copy

I ended up DNFing this book. It had grabbed my attention initially but as the story progressed I became bored and also questioned where the "horror" aspect of the story was at. I do think the premise of the story was excellent and a great idea, but I don't think the execution hit. It felt almost like nothing but everything was happening at once? From what I had read I will at least give the story a 3 star review. I feel it has promise and for the right person this could be a 4 or 5 star read.

If you like death, possession and blood sacrifice mixed with ballet this is the book for you!

It wasn't for me, but I can see how another person would interested and eat this book up. The main character is a Black French-American Ballerina with the Paris Ballet Company and feels wronged because she is the best ballet student in her class but is constantly looked over/has to work harder because she is black.

She makes a deal with a demon? (I'm not sure if it is a demon or a god) for power over people. I' also not sure what the demon gets out of the deal since there is a time limit on the deals (first time its for 3 days, then 3 months, 3 years, forever), I guess the demon is banking on you either failing to uphold your bargain or renewing it. Also, you can make multiple bargains, one of the characters has 4 deals going on, for some reason.

The longer the main character has this power over people the more the power feeds on her and others, drawing Laure deeper into emotional darkness.

I'm not a huge fan of reading a character's emotional monologue and this book had a lot of hate/rage (against others and the world) monologues.

3.5 stars but I can see how this could be someone's 5 star

I want to start by saying Kristolyn Lloyd, the Narrator was great. I enjoyed the narration of I Feed Her To The Beast and The Beast Is Me.

Laure is looking for her chance to be the greatest in the cutthroat ballet world in Paris. But she keeps being overlooked because she does not fit the same mold as her peers. Laure decides to take matters into her own hands. So she makes a deal of a lifetime.

The ballet takes center stage in this story, and I would say if you do not know much about ballet, Some terms may be confusing and might take you out of the story. There are so many twists and turns in this story. There is even a small who dun it mystery. This story did not feel like a Horror to me. I didn't find it scary or even creepy. I also want to touch on the family dynamic of Laure. I want to know more about her background. She is not her dad's biggest fan. Her mom walked away from the family.


3.5 stars. I enjoyed the writing. I am looking forward to book #2 (if there is book #2) because the story left off on a cliffhanger, or at least what I think is a cliffhanger. If you are into reading about the cutthroat world of ballet, Then I recommend you read it.
Thanks, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners for providing this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Part horror, part monster-romance. I feel like I wanted it to be more unhinged with how it was marketed, though the final climax was pretty fantastic. This was definitely a fun read - and I'm curious to see how the story continues.

The narrator was great and the audiobook was produced really well.

Content warning: racism, body horror, gore, blood, possession, mind control, parental abandonment

Well that was a brutal read that's going to live in my brain for some time. Not only does Shea give readers a perfectly bloody horror story, they also tightly weave in the real life horrors of trying to succeed in the world of the Parisian ballet (and just professional ballet in general) to make the stakes even higher and the stress even more poignant.

Laure Mesny is a teen with nothing that has spent her entire life fighting tooth and nail to get by and to make the Parisian ballet see beyond her skin color and social status to acknowledge the raw talent she has as a dancer. So when she's constantly told she's not the right "look" for Parisian ballet, it's no surprise that she would agree to the terms of accepting power from a primordial river of blood in the hopes that it would finally be enough to allow her to succeed. And when it doesn't, it makes sense that Laure goes scorched Earth.

Even though this is a slow-burn horror, I FEED HER TO THE BEAST AND THE BEAST IS ME grabs readers from the start and doesn't let go. Ultimate power always comes at a cost, and the costs for Laure are high and mixed with betrayals.

The ending is satisfying though suggests that the story is not over yet and there may be a potential sequel.

Kristolyn Lloyd gives a brilliant performance as the audiobook narrator.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Macmillan Young Listeners in exchange for an honest review.

💭Thoughts:
I have so many thoughts running through my head after reading this book. First off, this cover is gorgeous and creepy and perfectly represents the story. The title is so good too.

The narrator did such a great job with the narration. I found myself really feeling the emotion and totally creeped out multiple times. She did a great job differentiating the voices for the many different characters.

This debut novel is like nothing I’ve read before. A dark, complex look into the world of ballet. The writing is poetic and descriptive in the best way. It really helped to set the atmosphere, which I think is really important in any horror novel. I immediately felt for the FMC, Laure and the racism and classism she faced. Her desire to be the best and prove herself at any cost made her the perfect target the evil god. I don’t want to give too much away when it comes to those aspects of the story.

Overall, a gripping novel that I think readers who enjoy complex characters, moral dilemma, and the dance will enjoy. Looking forward to the next book in the duology.

I'm not usually a horror reader so I decided what better way to break into the genre a bit more than by picking up a YA horror to ease my way into it. I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast is Me is quite intense and dives into themes of institutionalized exclusion and hidden discrimination. Throughout the book it lurks and while it is obvious in some scenes, it's almost entirely present the entire story and really brings to light some tough criticisms.

The beginning is a bit slow just in terms of gathering and getting to know all of the characters but then we really start to pick up the pace. Our main character is an incredibly powerful role in the novel and the connection between herself and the reader becomes so fleshed out and built upon to leave us clinging to her. She's powerful and a bit harsh with her inner monologue that searches for validation.

While being horror this still offers some insightful themes and topics all held within this beautiful and chilling metaphoric story that Jamison Shea has crafted.

I am recently getting more into horror and I really enjoyed this ballet “retelling”. The audio was haunting and the way the narrator gave voice to each character and read the French portions was believable and engaging. It’s definitely on the long side at 11 hours but I felt pretty engaged the whole time. I think it might be a bit of a long read in text format but I really enjoyed the immersion of the audio.

All in all this was an interesting debut and I’m excited to see what else the author comes out with.

I think this will appeal to horror fans, especially anyone who enjoyed Black Swan, the movie. I enjoyed the narrator's voice and pitch-perfect accent of French vocabulary. I felt that she added an authentic element to the story.

Overall I thought the audiobook was long--11 hours--and some parts dragged on. I am a huge fan of Giselle but if someone is less familiar with that ballet, they may feel lost with some of the details.

This book was wild! In the very best way.

I love books where the characters do bad things, but they are cool with it… I mean at least they are honest.

The world of ballet is a competitive beast. You have to be the very best at all times to make it, sometimes having to step over others in order to get to where you want to be, at least in this book.

Laure is already a perfectionist. As a Black girl in ballet, she desires to be the best, despite the constant pressure and discrimination she endures. When she finds herself venturing into eerie underground caves, a power she never expected presents itself to her… but at what cost?

Things start to go really well for her, and as she cascades into mania, she starts to really see what she is capable of… but, what is after her? What has she bound herself to?

This is a really unique, wildly intriguing book about the lengths you go for power and what can happen along the way.

The narration in this, for Laure and the storytelling itself was fantastic. Overall a really great listening experience though.