This twisted turn on the classic story of Beauty and the Beast finds the tale from the witch’s point of view. The Witch, Saraphina, has been angered by Prince Amir and has turned him into a beast for not returning her love. The Witch has used the dark side of her magic to take away all that is dear to the Beast in hopes that he will turn to her. While keeping watch on the castle, she sees a fair maiden given to the Beast as payment, and he intends to keep her and wed her. The Witch will stop at nothing to see the Beast want her as she wants him. By using the oldest tricks in the book, will she be able to lure the Prince into her bed and make him want her as much as she wants him? Will it be forever?

This book has a decidedly wicked twist on a classic and is definitely not any storybook fairytale. Ms. Howell has taken a naughty turn on the classic, and this isn’t for the faint of heart. Though as with all fairytales, there is a lesson to be learned, it takes the erotic road in getting there. The Witch is a notable character. Even though she uses dark magic, she realizes that she must atone for that and does so in quite unusual ways. The Beast was hard to understand at times, not in a bad way, just due to the fact that I was never sure what to expect next and his actions surprised me most of the time. The sex scenes are unique and racy. If you are looking for a hot read, this is for you.

--Teagan