Book Review: Beast by A. Zavarelli

Title:  Beast

Author:  A. Zavarelli

Series:  Twisted Ever After – Book 1

Release Date:  May 16, 2017

243 Pages

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Wow! What an ending! I’ve experiences ALL the emotions while reading this one, folks! My feelings mirrored Bella’s. I started out curious and ended up in love. It was a tough journey at times, but one I enjoyed and will likely revisit time and again. Beast is not your grandmother’s version of the story. Twisted Ever After is an apt description here.

For those considering diving in and wondering how dark is dark, I can’t really help you there. It’s out of the box, unorthodox, and has situations/circumstances that are outside the lines of what we see in typically romance, but isn’t that what you expect when you pick up a dark and twisted tale?

Here’s the breakdown: Javier is a monster. He’s been lied to and abused most of his life. After undergoing intensive training and conditioning he sets out to get revenge on the one man he feels betrayed him. Bella is trapped. She’s a wilting flower in a shiny cage. Believing her father to be missing in action, she attempts to gather information about the case he was working before disappearing. Her search leads her to true cage, she never expected.

“I was looking in the wrong direction. Because monsters don’t always come from the darkness. Sometimes, they hide in broad daylight.”

What I loved: The parallels to the original story. This story is contemporary and contains dark and sexual elements, but follows a similar pattern as the original tale. I loved seeing how the author modernized elements of the story using contemporary romance. It’s really ingenious! The storyline is the true stay – the twists and turns are unbelievable! I didn’t see them coming. The story is intricate, well planned and plotted, and totally captivated me. Whew! It was a wild ride! I’m ready for more NOW! While the characters aren’t my top faves, I enjoyed learning more about them over the course of the novel. Their interactions and indiscretions, relationships and betrayals, and overall development and transformations are all satisfying. I can’t wait to find out more about River and his love! My main critique is that I wanted more relationship development between the MCs. If sweet Javi had a little more time to shine, it would have helped to cement the love story. The shock of their early coupling would have felt a bit more organic with just a smidge more sweet Javi.

Overall, I really enjoyed it! This was one of my most anticipated dark reads of the year and it did not disappoint! A. Zavarelli never fails to bring me to my knees. If she truly feeds off the tears of her readers, I just offered up so many. The ending is the BEST!

═══ ABOUT THE AUTHOR ═══

#AZavarelli is a romance book junkie, cat lover, and traveler when plagued by intense cases of wanderlust. She likes all things chocolate, books that come with warnings, and pretty much any kind of characters that are dark and gritty. You can find more about her on her website.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/azavarelliauthor

Website: http://www.azavarelli.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AshZav

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