Review: a Curse So Dark And Lonely

Title: A Curse So Dark and Lonely
Author: Brigid Kemmerer

Blub:

Fall in love, break the curse.

Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year, Prince Rhen, the heir of Emberfall, thought he could be saved easily if a girl fell for him. But that was before he turned into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. Before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.

Nothing has ever been easy for Harper. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, Harper learned to be tough enough to survive. When she tries to save a stranger on the streets of Washington, DC, she's pulled into a magical world.

Break the curse, save the kingdom.

Harper doesn't know where she is or what to believe. A prince? A curse? A monster? As she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what's at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.

Review:

So I was in the mood for something different, and decided to pick up my copy of a Curse So Dark and Lonely.
Rhen was cursed by a powerful enchantress, to repeat Autumn of his eighteenth year over and over again. At the end of every season he turns into a monster, hell-bent on destruction. Killing and destroying everything and everyone in his path. After hundreds of years of the same thing, Rhen has given up hope of ever breaking the curse.
Harper is just a girl from Washington DC, barely able to survive the cruel world she lives in. Until she appeared in Emberfall. Now she doesn't know what to think or believe. Surely the prince in front of her isn't real. Not is the curse and monster that she learns about. Rhen realizes Harper isn't a girl like any of the others he has tried to charm to help break the curse. And Harper realizes what is truly at stake for the kingdom of Emberfall. But as Rhen fills with hope, that maybe Harper can help break the curse, Harper fills with dread of never being able to see her family again. But there is more than just the wretched curse standing in their way, will Harper be able to save Rhen and his people from utter ruin, or will the kingdom of Emberfall finally meet it's demise?
I love retellings, and this was no different. It's a beauty and the beast retelling, and crossed between two worlds- the world we know,- with cities, technology, and cars- and the world of Emberfall- with Castles, royalty, and magic. Harper is taken from the world she grew up in, and thrust into this new world and must figure out how to not just cope, but how to survive. But Harper is brave, strong and resilient. She stands up for what she believes in and stands up to not only Rhen but to everything coming her way from the enchantress, to a war. She doesn't let anyone tell her no- not even her own body.
Rhen is an arrogant prince. He has spent years trying and failing to break the curse, charming the women who show up. But Harper is different. She doesn't care about the fine dresses, or the magical castle. She don't care about the riches or that Rhen is a prince. Rhen is used to planning and strategizing everything out. But Harper is unexpected. Hope that maybe this is the year the curse will finally be broken begins to form. But before they could break the curse, Rhen must get Harper to trust him.
I loved this book, and twist on Beauty and the Beast. If you love retellings, and fantasy novels about princes and strong female characters then you should definitely pick up a Curse So Dark and Lonely. 5 cursed ⭐ out of 5 ⭐