A Curse So Dark and Lonely
Brigid Kemmerer
4/5
In the grand scheme of fairy tale retellings, I'd say this was pretty good. It's fantasy, but also kind of paranormal because the main character is like your classic paranormal heroine with the kind of humor she's pushing. It's a beauty and the beast kind of retelling but it also has a ton of different elements that make it a much more elaborate story, it goes beyond the curse placed upon Rhen. I think it's very similar to The Bird and The Sword, probably just the line with the best friend and the monster and all that.
I loved that Harper had a disability, that she wasn't ashamed of it, she never tried to hide it. This book was great because Kemmerer was so direct about things, like if a real person from our generation was placed in some fantasy world, there would definitely be some questions asked. I know that this is YA, but I was also feeling like Harper should have been nineteen or something because bro I think the truancy officer would be after her she was a minor who just straight disappeared. That was one of the things I found questionable, along with a couple other points where I was just annoyed with how listy the writing felt. I hate it when I feel like I'm being given character attributes rather than seeing them. I read this book super fast and didn't take note of enough, but I highlighted a few lines where the attitude was just off.
The absolute best part was the plot twist at the ending. I did not see the whole brother thing coming, and I'm usually pretty good about that. That's also why I'm relating it to The Bird and the Stone but wow, I'd recommend this book just based on that. Don't count it out just because it's a retelling, it has a lot more to offer.
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