Rosie did not think that the result of going to the ExcelsiCon convention would be meeting the boy like a fairy tale and having a romantic date with him (and dressed like her beloved Ambrose Sond from Starfield !). It is a pity that the perfect chosen one decided to disappear with the new day, and only an amazing memory remained for the teenagers. But maybe it’s better? If he found out that she had just lost her job, and was additionally drawn into at least a strange situation with a rising internet star (who insisted on inviting her to the graduation ball and did not understand the refusal), he would probably quickly feel disappointed in her.
Vance Reigns did not expect that at the next of many events in his life he would meet the girl he would open up to. Of course, he did not give her his name and surname, and he hid his face behind the mask for fear that the teenager would reveal his secrets to the press – nevertheless, he would remember her and her birthmark in the shape of a rose. The memory of the meeting is the only one that makes his time in the castle-like house to which he was sent by his father-producer after the last scandal he caused. Being the star of a show as famous as Starfield has never been easy, but even so, he did not expect his mother and stepfather to condemn him to be in some hole at the end of the world.
Fate, destiny, or maybe total chance causes Rosie and Vance to cross their paths again. As a consequence of an unfortunate accident, the girl is tasked with organizing a large library full of book versions of stories from the Starfield world , and the young star is to help her in this. Teenagers, unaware that they have already met, do not like each other, but it changes over time …
Belle and the Beast in a modern version? I take this!
I’ve never been a fan of a story about a beautiful girl who sacrifices herself for her father and agrees to live in a castle with a monster. However, loosely based on this story, Ashley Poston’s book turned out to be a great, light reading, perfect for a former convent who understands that you can make love in characters from movies or series. The author of the classic Beauty and the Beastshe drew several elements: there is a house that resembles a castle, a large library full of books, a rose (in the form of a name and a mark on the main character), and even a kind of sacrifice for her father (Rosie works off the damage she caused instead of letting her father pay for it) ). Also, the characters of Rosie and Vance are similar to those of Bella and the Beast. The role of annoying and self-confident ass … Gaston, in turn, is played by the insistent adolescent Garrett Taylor (trust me, he is really annoying). I liked the way the writer translated these borrowings into contemporary figures and realities. I must admit that it was just fine for her.
Princess Amaro, who are you exactly?
The background to the book’s events is Rosie and her friends’ fascination with the Starfield series . Even short fragments of scenes from it are inserted between chapters. Unfortunately, because I have not read other books in this series, meeting the references to this production was quite difficult for me at the beginning. I didn’t know the names or characters, so I had to search the internet for a few explanations. Knowing them was not the key to understanding the book, but it cleared me up a bit on issues such as whether this is a real series at all and whether the actors mentioned are real characters.
Contemporary references
What surprised me a lot in that novel was the character that describes himself as non-binary and the linguistic solution adopted in connection with it. Quinn, one of Rosie’s friends, talks about herself in an impersonal form, e.g. I saw. I had no idea that this is how it could be solved in literature, so it was also interesting and informative for me (although it also reminded me of Lich from Marta Kisiel’s books).
“I wrote this book for myself”
I must add that the author’s deputies were also very interesting, in which, in addition to the standard acknowledgments for support, she also explained why she reached for motives from Beauty and the Beast or a standard small-town romance. Also, her admitting that she wrote this novel primarily for herself, in order to be able to include in it elements that she herself likes (such as a scene with characters caught in the rain or an excerpt from Howl’s Moving Castle ) made me feel a lot of sympathy for her.
A little more honey
Don’t get me wrong, this is not an outstanding read. There is no deep message or lofty language here, and no complicated, multi-threaded plot with suspense that no one expects. In turn, it is predictable, on well-known motifs and sprinkled with scenes that have been seen more than once in the cinema or on television. Still, it’s a great book because it doesn’t try to be more than it actually is. Even the author herself admits that she wanted to use these specific elements to create it, because she simply likes them. Simple plot, pleasant and non-intrusive romance, not annoying drama and likable characters – that’s what I would answer if someone asked me about this title.
