This is a spoiler-free review!
I have and always will be a fan of Beauty and the Beast retellings, and with a billionaire, enemies-to-lovers twist, I knew this book would check all of my boxes. Since I have been on a romance kick for months and it does not look like it will be ending any time soon, this was the perfect book to keep the ball rolling.
In true Beauty and the Beast fashion, Haley offers to save her father from Leo in order to dissolve the contract they made together about the future of his inventions -- but she must sign a contract of her own. Thirty days with Leo in his home, giving him full access to her whenever and however he pleases. We get a decent amount of background information on Haley and Leo, with the sprinkling of side characters that very much resemble our classic fairy tale characters filling the roles of Gaston, the Enchantress, and Mrs. Pot.
The plot moves fairly quickly and the author wastes no time on filler chapters, putting readers right into the story and introducing the key characters. We really get to see the personalities of Haley and Leo, and with dual POVs, the author gets right into their minds and we get to see how they view one another and the lovely situation they have found themselves in together through this contract. I do wish that we got to see Haley in the house longer with Leo -- the book's pacing is great, but in just over an hour I finished the book and found myself wanting to see more of their early stages.
Haley and her brother, Cash, have been looking after their father as he continues to create inventions and fulfills the role of the black sheep in the family. As Constantines, their family is nowhere near the level of importance of their other family members -- but once a Constantine, always a Constantine, and means they are monitored by family no matter what. Ronan, own very much plays into the role of Gaston, wants into the family and has his sights set on Haley, whereas she is just focusing on finishing her undergraduate degree.
Leo is ruthless, to put it plainly. He is riddled with anger and past trauma that has led him to transform into the Beast of Bishop's Landing, and Haley is the one left at his mercy. Right off of the bat, she is thrown into his home and he makes it perfectly clear that he makes the decisions and she needs to wise up before her stay becomes even more haunting than it already has been. The harsh way he treats her in the beginning is to be expected, but oh my god their sex scenes were so god and literally had my jaw dropping left and right. I was left wishing this first installment was longer solely for the reason that I wanted to see much more between them, but it leaves me so excited to jump into the second book.
The tension between Haley and Leo is off the charts and basically radiates off of the pages. I will say that this book definitely caters towards us dark romance lovers, so be warned if that is not your cup of tea. I enjoyed every minute of it, and would recommend this as a great gateway into the genre if you are not too sure where your threshold lies when it comes to dark romance and spicer books with mature scenes.
If you love Beauty and the Beast retellings, this is definitely the book for you, especially if you are looking for plot riddled with great sex scenes. This is a super quick read and will definitely leave you wanting to continue with the series.
You can add Secret Beast and the rest of the trilogy on Goodreads now, and follow the author to stay up to date on releases and publications.
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