3 Glutton Stars ⭐
Spicy Level: 🌶️🌶️/5

So, no one is more disappointed than me in that I didn't like this because Rebecca F. Kenney is one of my favourite authors if not my ULTIMATE favourite. I absolutely adore her writing, her characters, her world-building, and her ability to just tell fantastical stories. But something about this just didn't hit the mark for me.

This is a Great Gatsby retelling.

𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨:
Daisy has just gotten out of a long-term emotionally abusive relationship where her ex-boyfriend was cheating on her. To help her distract herself and entertain herself she finds herself at a lavish party with her close friend, who also happens to be a popular daredevil social media influencer. It turns out this party is hosted and paid for by Jay Gatsby, who happens to be her childhood best friend and almost sweetheart. They were never actually in a relationship, but they were definitely each other's first crushes and if they had stayed together would have developed into more. Daisy hasn't seen him since she was a teen. Turns out Jay has done all of this for Daisy (and by this I mean he established his extravagant wealth for her). He wants to rekindle their past relationship, but he has a secret... He also happens to be a vampire.

The Great Gatsby was never part of my prescribed reading. I think, because it's a very American novel, it's more likely to be covered in the American school curriculum, so I'm not the South African one... So I am NOT that familiar with the story outside of the Leonardo DiCaprio movie and one other "retelling" I have read. Therefore, I don't know how much of the character's portrayal was that of the "original" Jay and Daisy from The Great Gatsby, or if it was Rebecca F. Kenney's portrayal of these characters. But the one thing that I know from Rebecca F. Kenney's previous books, is that while she puts an excellent and unique spin on her retellings, she is often very true-to-the-original-story characterisation. But there lies the problem because I didn't like the characters of Jay or Daisy, and I DON'T KNOW IF I DON'T LIKE THEM BECAUSE THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS ARE LIKE THAT OR IF IT WAS HER PORTRAYAL...

Specifically what I didn't like was this felt VERY insta-lovie. There is already a historical relationship between these two characters from when they were children. And now that they are older they have some unrepressed anger toward each other and slight animosity because Jay never reached out even though Daisy tried.... She feels like he just abandoned her, but she's also got these feelings that he was the one that got away, so very quickly forgives him for his silence. Jay is from the start obsessed with everything Daisy, she is his single-minded target and I didn't like that because insta-love is not one of the tropes that I particularly enjoy reading about. Their attraction didn't feel like it had a lot of merit and growth, because it was already there - so there was nothing to build up to...

Daisy is an interesting character because she does grow substantially in the book as she gains some of her self-confidence back, now that she is no longer with Tom. Initially, she is meek and quiet because she's been very much repressed and controlled by Tom. After her breakup, she discovers her independence as the story progresses and she becomes more comfortable with Jay.

I did expect a little more of a freak-out when she found out Jay was a vampire. The fact is THROWN onto her (so she didn't have the clues and buildup Bella'had in Twilight) and she's almost like "cool story bro". So that did seem a very abrupt change (the story felt almost contemporary up to this point when the change to supernational happened, it didn't have time to blend). And while it was a shock of a reveal, I think it needed more build-up... and then it needed to be expanded a bit more because the lore of supernatural beings isn't expanded on after. They are just "there"...

This is a single POV story (which I think might be one of the first times I've seen RFK do this - not counting the warlord book, since that was two books of either POV) so I don't know much about Jay except what is "shown" through Daisy's interactions with him. Jay is elusive and secretive. Very quick to anger and sometimes very immature...

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙨:
▶ Childhood Best Friends
▶ Touch Her You Die
▶ Burn the world for you
▶ Second Chance Romance
▶ Friends to Lovers
▶ Obsessive MMC
▶ Billionaire Romance
▶ Hidden Powers
▶ Always been you
▶ Mine
▶ Vampires and "Sirens" (Voice Control things)

While there were some unexpected aspects of the plot - it very much followed the course of where I thought it would go. Overall I enjoyed this but it's not taking any of the top spots that previous books I have read by RFK currently hold.

I love a good retelling. And then you give it a beautiful ending after all. I'm sold. this is the great gatsby as i think we all wanted it to be.

I throughly enjoyed this book. It was a good reimagining of the Gatsby story and well adapted to the modern fantasy. I had the right amount of mystery, suspense and steamy scenes. I highly recommend this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! I've never read The Great Gatsby, I've seen at least parts of the Leonardo DiCaprio movie, so I have a bit of a grasp of the story. This modern day retelling of the story-but with vampires, yeah, I loved it!

That this book is set in the modern day, means modern day standards, like the fact that Daisy's parent's don't want her to get married and only see her to fulfill that purpose. They were actually pretty fantastic and got along with Gatsby. Which was easily shown in the chapter at the end, set in the same time as the original, but still with vampires. Loved it!

This book covers maybe a third of the original story, and condenses it down, because the whole kill Gatsby thing, well, doesn't really work when he's a vampire and you didn't know. So there was a whole bunch of story left after that and I loved seeing them have that time together! It also meant that this story was not predictable to following the story beats of the original story, since it had already gone past that, and had it's own original story plots because of the whole vampire thing. Which was so fascinating to read, this take on vampires!

One thing that was brought up in this book was the idea of checking your privilege, which is an idea that more people should embrace, this idea that hey, maybe you have enough, you don't need this and someone else does, then even though that's not the best move for you, you give it to them. Which is a really good idea!

This book was really fun and enjoyable, and I loved this take on these characters and this world! I loved their romance, and how close they were after their shared past, and I'm excited for the sequel! I'm not sure if it's going to be set in the same world, or if there's going to be stand alone stories, since it has a different kind of magic. But since this one had a few varieties, I think it could be set in the same world! We'll see!

Loved reading this book, and I can't wait to read the sequel!

A very unique spin on the popular tale of Gatsby with a much happier ending! Full of fun, danger, wit and thrills!

Rebecca Kenney delivers again! There is nothing I’ve read or listened to by her that I didn’t enjoy. Love the narration.

What if The Great Gatsby was reimagined as vampires???

Love. Everything abut this. Inject this into my veins. Tattoo it on my heart.

GIMME MORE.

I truly had no idea what to expect from this book so everything about it (besides the Gatsby elements) was a surprise. I listened to the audio narrated by Ruby Cherise who does a beautiful job with it. She's clear, easy to listen to, and everything flows so well throughout the audio. It's The Great Gatsby supernatural edition but with a bit of science to it. It is a bit instalove but Daisy and Jay have a history so it doesn't feel all that unrealistic. I think fans of new adult/vampire romance will really enjoy this one and if you've read The Great Gatsby as well that'll add to the experience. It's steamy and fun, with some action scenes and interesting plot aspects -- like why Gwen's voice is so alluring. I'd definitely recommend listening to the audio version because Ruby does a great job and really brings Daisy to life.

Thank you Dreamscape Media for the digital ALC via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The great gatsby and immortals! Read it, you will not be disappointed. Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape for the audio arc of Beautiful villain by Rebecca Kenney another author to add to my ever growing list. 4/5

Thank you NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️.5

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this book, the description was basically just “Great Gatsby but with a supernatural twist” but I did really enjoy it.

In the beginning I wasn’t a huge fan of the FMC or the MMC, which does go well with the whole Great Gatsby thing, but they did grow on me a lot as the book went on. They were both flawed in what felt like very honest honest way. There were secrets kept, but the FMC thought through it logically which I really enjoyed.

I really liked the scientific explanation for the supernatural part (not saying what kind of supernatural to avoid spoilers) and I think that was a really interesting twist on the genre. I do think it was a little weird that things like TikTok and Twilight exist in the story, yet apparently The Great Gatsby doesn’t since the FMC and MMC have the exact same names as in the original.

The spice was really well done, and while it was kinda insta-love I did also like the romance a lot. I’ll definitely read more from the author in the future.

Beautiful Villain is the Great Gatsby meets Twilight, a steamy new adult retelling of the classic. Readers might recognize the characters' names and some plot points, like Gatsby's parties of legend, but that is where the similarities end. Daisy has just graduated from college and broken up with her terrible boyfriend Tom, so she moves back in with her parents and reconnects with her friend from high school, Jordan. Jordan brings Daisy to a party at Gatsby's, where she learns he is the same Jay Gatsby who was her best friend from childhood. Now he is a wealthy, attractive man, who seems to be keeping some secrets about where his money comes from. I listened to the audiobook version and the narrator did a good job with voicing all of the characters. I thought the vampire lore was interesting, but the writing was about what you would expect for the new adult genre. It was definitely an entertaining book, but I think it could have pulled a bit more from the source material and the ending felt like it was too long and it wrapped up a bit too tidily.

A steamy paranormal retelling of The Great Gatsby

Beautiful Villain is the first book in Rebecca Kenney's Gilded Monsters series of modern day retellings with a paranormal twist. Here we have The Great Gatsby retold with vampires.
I was so curious about this paranormal retelling & was quickly taken in by the vampire aspect. We see all the characters and lots from the original plot as well with some clever changes that suited the paranormal aspect well. This definitely has more action, chemistry and steam than the original. I also enjoyed that Daisy was a badass in her own way here.

The audiobook was well narrated by Ruby Cherise and I definitely enjoyed listening. Thank you to Netgalley for the gifted audio.

Seven years have passed since Jay and Daisey last saw each other. Both have changed, but one more than the other. Jay is selling vampirism as a preventative health cure. Can you love someone from a young age and through life's changes?

In what world, this is actually a retelling of "The Great Gatsby". Fitzgerald would be higher disappointed and I will share his feelings.

I'm a classic reader, the great Gatsby is definitely not my favorite classic but yet I have a space for it somewhere in my brain (not my heart because I hated almost every character in the book). I get it why it is a classic.

Now the question is — has the author really read the great Gatsby or just the synopsis of it because this book is no where near retelling of it. That's the huge problem I had with this book. It's spicy, with smut quite often on the pages. To be honest it is rather sad and even embarrassing to can this a retelling of a classic.

I will rather say it's a twilight fanfic, the names are from great Gatsby but they behave like they would in a twilight world. They are immature, with definitely dull and boring dialogues. Daisy is annoying and Jay is I don't know, three obsession he had with Daisy was quite unhealthy which was similar to great Gatsby. These characters, they do not behave like they are adults. They behave more like teenagers with raging sexual libido. The character development is non existent. Overall the idea just felt meh.

The audiobook narration is quite enjoyable and it made me finish the book otherwise this was a definite DNF for me.

It wasn't badly written but I will say it was false advertising. The way it describes the plot, I dived in with totally different expectations just to get opposite stuff. I did enjoy some bits and pieces but that is all the good things I can say for it.

Thank you dreamscape and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review.

Book rating : 2 stars
Audiobook rating : 3 stars

I have read the book in physical form.
Loved the audio book.
Good pace and very unique voice.
The story is also one of my favorites

No. No no no. I'm so sorry, Dreamscape, but what were you thinking? Beautiful Villain was so uncomfortable it actually kept me up last night with secondhand embarrassment.

Insipid. Twilight. Fanfic.

Confused by the assertion that it's a "retelling of The Great Gatsby". This book gives me the impression that our Becca has not, in fact, read Fitzgerald's original work. (The 2013 film doesn't count, babe.) I've reviewed some incredible stuff published by Dreamscape; unfortunately, Beautiful Villain was anything but.

Somewhere in the beyond, Zelda Fitzgerald is raucously laughing.

The Great Gatsby with vampires? Seeing that was all it took to make me pick this book up! And what a fun read it was! Daisy had some cool compulsion speech thing that was a fun twist as well. Really enjoyed this one!

I'm glad it's not a standalone, though, because I have so many questions...

I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley,

Daisy Finnegan is home after graduating from college. Although, she isn't sure what's next. When her cousin Nick gets an invitation to an exclusive and lavish party, she takes him up on the offer. When she finds the host, she discovers that the host of the party is Jay Gatsby, a her childhood sweetheart that she misses dearly. But soon Daisy discovers that Jay isn't the same boy she knew. After being shot in the heart, he survives. When Daisy learns the truth of his immortality, she has to decide if she can make a life with him or if the safety that she knows is more important.

I'm gonna start out by saying I have neither read The Great Gatsby or watched the movie. So take what I'm saying with as much salt as you'd like. I found the characterization of Daisy really bland. As our main character who's voice and POV we follow throughout the novel, I was looking for someone a little more exciting, I don't think it has anything to do with the narrator, who was wonderful and brought a different voice to each character. The level of cringe I also felt at some of the moments in the book was also heavy. The intimacy wasn't part of it. I'm pretty used to it by now, but the places where Jay said something along the lines of "you should have waited for me" just kill me. It felt really weird to then have a huge feminist take on bits of the end that I will not spoil. However, it just left a sour taste.

I will say if you like the source material that this book is based off of, you might like this better than I did. I just felt that the entire thing felt flat and not very memorable. The best parts of the book had to do with the way that vampirism worked, even if it did cater more towards elite society, but it is based on The Great Gatsby, so I'll take it.

3.75 stars

Great Gatsby with vampires. Since I technically can't give anything other than a full star review on here so I rounded this up to a four. I really enjoyed this book for the most part. I thought this was a pretty good and interesting retelling except for the spiciness. I am not a person who enjoys heavy spice and this had a pretty good amount so that is why I didn't give it a full four stars.

Around 3-4 hours into the ALC of Beautiful Villain, I was enjoying it so much that I went and preordered the physical copy with the pretty green sprayed edges 🥰

This is my very first Gatsby retelling and I was not disappointed! Adding the vampire and siren twist to it was so unique!

Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Quantity of spice: 🌶️🌶️.5
Quality of spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
**There were 6 spicy scenes - 1 of which was in the bonus scene that was technically not part of the same story, but a 20s style Jay and Daisy spicy scene.**

Daisy and Jay were childhood best friends. Both of their families didn’t have much money, until Daisy’s father was offered an excellent job and they moved away.. leaving behind poor Jay to his alcoholic mother.

Flash forward several years, Daisy has graduated college and she’s taking the summer off because she has no idea what she wants to do with her life. An old friend from high school invites her to this extravagant party and all she knows about the host is that his name is “Gatsby”. Well, who else has the last name Gatsby? None other than Jay! Could it be the same man??

Jay has made a name for himself; he’s now incredibly wealthy and throws these crazy parties for the town every weekend. But there is a reason for these parties.. one Daisy is dying to find out 😉

I loved the story as a whole, my only dislike was Daisy’s immaturity. I’m not sure if it was the way her character was portrayed in the narration or if it was the way it was written, but she seemed more like a character in high school versus having just graduated college.

Something I loved about Daisy was her siren-like abilities. I was so happy she got to explore it more during the story & we got to learn about her history!

I’d recommend this book and am looking forward to Rebecca’s Dorian Gray retelling!