Monday 3 February 2014

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Excerpt: 
The same kind of fool as I was, I supposed, because I knew he was my enemy and yet I, too, was taking comfort from the touch.His breath tickled against my neck. I took his hand in mine, weaving our fingers together; I told myself that I was here only because of my debt, that anyone, any warm body, would make me feel such peace. And wrapped in that peace, I fell asleep.

SUMMARY: 
Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.

As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love.


Nyx have always known that she was the sacrifice for her father's deal with the Gentle King. A demon who asks for a daughter in exchange for her father's bargain. In one day, she broke her sister's heart and was whisked away into a castle with a mind of it's own. She met her new husband and as she explored the castle she realized what it truly was where she is really living. As she learned more about her husband and the secrets of her land she discovered the way to make everything right again.

I haven't read a good paranormal/fairytale in a while, and right off the bat I knew this will be one story that will pull me in. I started off slow and sweet... but with a sense of bitterness. Nyx is such a strong character that you get pulled in to her emotions right away. I turned page after page, unable to stop and when I did it left me breathless. There was suspense and action throughout the book. Mystery at every corner and of course, romance. I was able to watch as Nyx slowly fall for Ignifex and this mysterious love triangle in there may have muddled me a bit. This is definitely a good book to read by the fire or on a slow day. One that you would want to rush through to see what happens, however you need time to absorb every detail Hodge wrote down as many of it will lead up to the end.

I adored Nyx and how her relationship with her sister played out, I pitied and was annoyed by Astraia (Nyx's sister) then I was consumed by her thought of revenge and it led to me despising her. Nyx's family was complicated and what I liked about how Hodge wrote it out was making it not fully everything us, the readers, may want. Yet, there is still the sense of a good happily ever after ( not completely... ). In my opinion many books that affect me are those with a strong and unique ending that fit the book and I found this one to be the case.

I would highly recommend this to any one who adores fairytales and retellings. Paranormal and romance. Fantasy and mystery.

AND YES THERE IS A BOOK TRAILER BY HARPERTEEN.
  I hope you all enjoy this book as much as I do!

Happy READING! :)

-Kay xoxo