Title: “Beauty, Beasts & Blood Bargains - I Couldn’t Put It Down!”

Kept me up till 4am? Absolutely. This book devoured me.

I'm a sucker for a good retelling, and Crown of Briars delivers a fresh, dark, and utterly addictive twist on Beauty and the Beast - fae-style. We’ve got:

✔️ Arranged marriage

✔️ Enemies to lovers

✔️ Slow burn that sizzles

✔️ Shadowy fae courts

✔️ Blood bargains, curses, and secrets

✔️ A DRAGON (yes, please)

✔️ A castle with attitude

✔️ Political intrigue

✔️ That sweet, sweet 🌶🌶🌶 tension


Varius, the brooding Wraith King and ruler of the shadow court, had me hooked from the start - all danger, mystery, and those dark haunted eyes. Sybelle, our Earthen Court princess, is strong, stubborn, and smart -exactly the kind of heroine I love to root for. Their chemistry? Electric. Their banter? Sharp. Their growth together? Chef's kiss.

The dual POV gave great emotional depth, and the worldbuilding was immersive without ever dragging. I felt like I was right there, unraveling ancient contracts and secrets with them. And that ending? Beautifully bittersweet and full of heart.

I flew through this story. If you’re into morally grey fae, enchanted castles, dragon besties, and magic layered with romance and danger -this one’s for you.

Highly recommend for fans of: 💀 Romantasy with actual romance 🖤 Fae lore with teeth 🔥 Smart, sexy, emotional storytelling

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (and a bonus star for Varius, the dark darling of my bookshelf)

This book really sucked me in and had me captivated! We follow the arranged marriage of Sybelle and the Wraith King. I really enjoyed all of the characters (even the castle) and how they played a part in the story. Sybelle was so intelligent and I loved it! The plot and romance were really good, too! My one complaint is that I felt like at one point I was shocked at how far the romance had progressed, almost as if I had missed a couple of chapters. I would definitely recommend this to readers who like a non human MMC, arranged marriage, and enemies to lovers! Thank you to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First of all I want to say thank you to the author and NetGalley for allowing me to read an ARC copy of this book! This in no way influenced my review!

I absolutely loved this book! It is a Beauty and the Beast retelling but it's such a fresh take on it that it feels like a completely different story within itself!

The FMC is such a badass and the MMC is just excellent. I love the use of the gemstone magic as I've not come across this in any books I've read yet! This was also a true enemies to lovers, slow burn romance but that had so much of a fun, fast paced, mystery fantasy story embroiled in it that it kept me engaged the whole way through! The perfect mix of romance and fantasy!

There were fae, dragons, witches, gemstone magic and spice... Literally what more could you want?!

This was okay, nothing crazy but not bad by any means. I could have used more world development. The characters were interesting but the romance felt a bit forced and didn’t complete keep my attention.

I really enjoyed this book — it’s an easy, engaging read that blends fantasy and monster romance in a fun and interesting way. The FMC is strong-willed and determined, and I appreciated how she faced fear with quiet courage. Her stone-based magic was a unique and creative element that stood out to me. The MMC was stern but respectful, and their dynamic felt natural and well-balanced. I also enjoyed the enemies-to-lovers arc between the main characters — it added tension and depth that developed nicely over the course of the story. The unseelie forms were imaginative and visually striking, adding a lot to the atmosphere of the story.

There were a few moments that felt familiar if you’ve read other books in this genre, but the author brought a distinct voice and world that kept it feeling fresh. I was curious to learn more about the FMC’s dragon and would have loved to see that explored further. The pacing slowed down a bit in the middle, but overall, the story kept me interested throughout.

This is a great pick if you’re in the mood for a light fantasy read with an original magic system, a touch of romance, and strong character moments. I’d definitely recommend it to fans of romantasy looking for something enjoyable and easy to get into.

When I finished the book I had to sit down and put my thoughts in order for a bit.

The book is a Beauty and the Beast retelling with a dark twist, mixing magic, fae, secrets, curses—and an excessive number of times the word "stones" is used.

While the concept was genuinely intriguing, the execution fell short for me. The enemies-to-lovers dynamic between Sybelle and Various felt unearned, as their “enemy” status seemed more told than shown. They are enemies only because they are told they should be since they are different creatures.

I also struggled to believe Sybelle’s reputation as a highly trained assassin, since her actions never really supported that.

Overall, it had a lot of potential, but I wish it had delivered more on what it promised.

As a standalone romantasy story, I thought this was really good!

I am a sucker for enemies to lovers and forced proximity. Maybe I’m just shallow and don’t need chapters and chapters of dialogue. I thought the author progressed through the story at a good pace to keep me engaged and not wanting to put it down. But still adding enough detail that I could picture the setting. There was other relationships and friendships outside the main couple that I appreciated.

The main couple’s relationship progressed quickly and a little cliche but this is a fairy tale retelling! We know how Beauty and the Beast ends. I want to kick and giggle and I did lol. I knew there would be a twist and was trying to guess who it would be about. Safe to say I guessed wrong and was surprised at the ending.

Thank you NetGalley and Willow Haven Press for the ARC

3.5/3.75 ⭐️

“To all the readers who were disappointed when the beast transformed into a human.”

What to expect:
Arranged marriage
Monster romance
Shadow daddy
Enemies to lovers
Spice
Beauty and the beast retelling
Enchanted Sentient castle
“Your mine” and “My wife”


Beauty and the Beast has always been, and will always be, my favorite fairytale. So of course, I couldn’t pass up the chance to read this retelling—especially after enjoying the first book in the Crowns of the Fae series. The great thing about this series is that the books are interconnected standalones, each focusing on a different retelling, so you can read them in any order.

I really enjoyed how elements of the original tale were cleverly woven into this version. Sybelle’s use of gemstones to access her magic was a unique and intriguing twist! The writing was easy to follow, which made it easier to immerse myself in the world, and the pacing kept things moving without feeling rushed.

I found the FMC, MMC, and even the side characters likeable, and I especially loved the dual POV—it added depth and helped me connect with both leads.

Thank you NetGalley, R. L Perez and the publishers for an eARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.

Absolutely devoured this book! I could not stop reading it! Love how quick paced it was, the plot kept me intrigued and the spice was done very well!
Also the dragon? My love. Great characters and character development! Definitely recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in a monster/fae romantasy!!
Thanks to NetGalley, Willow Haven Press and R.L. Perez for the e-arc💗

Firstly thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the digital arc. This is a Beauty and the Beast retelling but with fae. I devoured this book. It took me on a wild ride of emotion and caused me to chuckle (barbed penis 😂) in a few places. It was quick paced and the FMC and mmc were both likeable characters. Perfect slow burn romance.

#CrownofBriars #NetGalley

Epic, romantic, and full of magic—Crown of Briars absolutely delivered on the fantasy feels. Strong heroine, rich world, and just enough danger and heat to keep me flying through the pages.

✦ Beauty & the Beast Retelling Rec & Review ✦

Crown of Briars
by R.L Perez

Book 2 ✦ Crowns of the Fae series
Interconnected Standalones
547 pages

Pub Date: Aug 04 2025
ARC: @negalley

𝐷𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑃𝑂𝑉
𝐴𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑔𝑒
𝐸𝑛𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑡𝑙𝑒 🏰
𝐷𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑒
𝑀𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑐 & 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑠
𝐵𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟

I saw this one on NetGalley and didn’t hesitate to request an early copy. I mean, (1) I enjoy R.L. Perez’s writing style, (2) I couldn’t resist a Beauty and the Beast retelling with a twist and (3) look at that cover!

Crowns of the Fae is a romantasy series set in the world of Valora filled with deadly fae courts, dark magic, and steamy romance. Each book in the series is a standalone novel that can be read in any order and features a different fairy tale retelling with a unique twist.

Every generation, a human royal princess is given to the Wraith King to marry to help the deadly shadows recede. No one really knows what happens once the human princess goes to the unseelie kingdom and that is where the mystery lies, and the story begins.

I enjoyed Sybelle and Varius’s journey. 🔥 I was captivated from the start. It was hard not to be with strong, likeable, flawed MCs with all the banter and tension, cool magic, a dragon bestie, amazing cast of side characters, blood bargains, dark secrets, an enchanted castle that runs the show 🏰 (seriously!), political intrigue, and serious heat! I thought the dual POVs added great depth to the story and that ultimate sacrifice scene… 😲. I flew through this. It was an easy read that I couldn’t put down.

Book 1, Crown of Slumber, is a Sleeping Beauty retelling. I haven’t read this one yet but added it to my tbr. Book 3, Crown of Poison, will be a Snow White retelling about Sybelle’s best friend, Princess Eira (set to release in June 2026).

✦ Thank you Willow Haven Press and Netgalley for an early read!
Rating: 4.5/5

This book has been a fun one to read, as it contains a lot of character development and action that I found quite interesting. It was not my favorite read as I felt that the romance scenes to be a little bit overly written and it could have been shortened a little bit as I felt it was a bit unnecessary to describe what they did in a lot of detail.

I did appreciate the writing style though, it was very thorough and I like reading back and forth the different POVs that the story had to offer. The character development was great on both of the main characters, and I had guessed who was the culprit that had made the curse exist to this day. I also believed that the relationship bonding between the different characters were proven to be enemies to friends and I found that quite heartwarming.

However, I would give this book a 3-star rating due to the character development, and I felt it was a good read. Thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing of the ARC for my honest review!

If you want a steamy fae re-telling of Beauty and the Beast you will LOVE this book. It has everything of the fae combined with the Beauty and the Beast story curse and all. This Beast definitely isnt as cuddly as the Disney version , but he is steamy with a heart. Sacrifice, magic, loyalty, and love rolled into a wonderful story.

This book had me at "Beauty and the Beast" and fae. I really enjoyed this book and the shape the narrative took. Sybelle and Varius were both very headstrong characters, and I enjoyed watching them butt heads and slowly warm up to each other.

Thank you to NetGalley and Willow Haven Press for the ARC.

Plot 4.5/5
Characters 4.25/5
Ending 4.25/5
Interest 4.5/5

Overall 4.25/5

-This was such a fun and entertaining read. I flew through it and barely saw the pages turning (partly because it’s an ebook). The plot line of separate realms with a marriage pact, fae, magic, curses and all the betrayal in world. It really was a great book. At first I was quite confused about many things in the world, involving the contract, the why but as I read on, everything started to unfold and it was quite satisfying to start understanding everything.

-I liked the characters. I was a bit apprehensive at first but eventually I started warming up to them but by bit as they loosened up and I got to know who they really were. I didn’t like their relationship at first, it truly was hatred but not cute hatred. It was done in a way that I didn’t really want to see them together. But ultimately I came around and they convinced me. Where I had issues were the sexual discussions and scenes. If anyone knows me, they would know I don’t really like anything involving sex in a book, so I really don’t need to know how his thing is different from a human one.

-I had expected the ending to turn out the way it did. There were moments of surprise that kept me on my toes but as a whole, I understood quite quickly what should happen. But it was still satisfying to see it come to an end, in a way I was hoping for something a bit more extreme in difficulty. But I can’t say it must have been easy for the characters.

Absolutely obsessed! This book was so good. Retelling of Beauty and the Beast but in a complete different way. Dark and secretive. Fae, different courts. Secret identities. DRAGON! Enemies to lovers. Magic. The beast is the shadow king. Who said that the beast as a human was better? Beauty loved books but she takes nerd to a whole new level I love the way her brain works like she needs to solve every puzzle and find out what makes everything tick. I love the characters and storyline. The world building was absolutely amazing and I ate up every single page. There is spice. But the slow burn is wickedly good! Would definitely recommend reading this book! -Kerin Ray

Jaw dropping, sexy, intriguing, rollar coaster of a book! This is beauty and the beast for fantasy loving adults. The magic systems using gem stones was refreshing, the curse placed on the fae was intriguing and the mischievous castle is a favorite!

Highly recommend this story for vibes and a good time. The things you'll find sexy will make you question yourself but just enjoy the ride!

This book was a 4,5⭐️ read for me! I absolutely loved everything about it!
The characters and their relationships, the world, the curse and the magical system! Everything was so well developed and you can definitely tell the plot was well planed and a main focus! And the twist at the end? Did not see it coming! Who knew he was behind it all??
The relationship between the dmc and the mmc was *cheff's kiss! The yearning, the enemies to lovers, the mixed feelings! The party?? 10/10!
I was unable to put it down! So so so good!

This book was amazing. I absolutely loved it. Put me in the library anyway and I will be happy. This retelling was one of the best ones I have read. I think it needs to be on everyone shelfs.