Interesting

This was an entertaining story and I liked the premise and the basic plot. The characters were also fun (loved Aunt Mabel!). The Beauty and the Beast trope has been used often in romances but I still like reading them. Towards the beginning, this one did feel a little too similar to another book I had read recently but it did feel more unique as the story went on. My biggest issues with this book were that after about halfway through, I felt like the story kept repeating itself: Astrid and the Beast connect emotionally and physically, Astrid and the beast have distance between, repeat. It happened several times and for similar reasons. My other issue was that story was a little too feminist, and Astrid was a little too perfect. She could ride, she could shoot, she knew about valuable art, she could do pretty much everything. I did like the moment when she realized she was wrong about something and accepted she was wrong. I really liked Thane. I loved his possessive jealousy and I really don't think he was over-reacting about his lot in life. His injuries, however, were kind of vague. Yes he was scarred but the story about how he became that way was not very specific and I felt myself wondering how it exactly happened. The love scenes were well written and not over the top or unbelievable. You could actually feel Astrid and Thane bonding through them. I loved the side characters (especially Mabel and the valet) but some of them just kind of disappeared and you never hear what actually happened to them (i.e. the Scottish groomsman). I loved how Astrid stood up to the villain at the end of the story in front of everyone, but I also wish he got more of a comeuppance, along with the uncle and aunt.

To recap, I really did like this story but there were a few issues that kept the rating down a bit for me. But if you like beauty and the beast types of books then you should enjoy this one.