I'm not sure about what I was expecting from this book... but certainly not this.

It was like reading a kind of mixture between a sci-fi version of The Beauty and the Beast with some scenes of 50 shades of gray . To be true, this is not the real issue. I could have accepted all this if only it had been written in a realistic way, but everything felt just so made up.

And the first thing that comes to my mind when thinking of "made up" is that annoying insta-love between a secluded bacteria-maniac man and a fake robot girl. She doesn't know almost anything about him and is trapped in his tower, but yet she can fall in love in like two weeks just by dining with him and almost never seeing him in the face? I know that this should be a kind of retelling of a tale, but I was hoping in something more complex and elaborated.

The other characters aren't very round neither. I partially appreciated Rose, the AI robot, because through her behaviour she handles the theme of "the dangers of technology". Are we really sure that trying to create androids similar to humans and with the ability of making choices is safe for us? Will these innovations turn against us one day?

Apart from this, even if it was a light reading it wasn't as involving as I hoped.

To be blunt, if I could rate this book zero stars, I would. I wouldn't even give it half a star - it does not merit it.

Let's start with the premise. It's a good one, a futuristic retelling of Beauty and the Beast, right? But the rose is not a rose, instead a robot named Rose. And the Beast is not a beast but a heavily facially-scarred man. At this, we get to the first sticking point. In the original, the beast is a man who is cursed to look like a horrific monster. So, is the author comparing the looks of a scarred man to those of a horrific monster? Apparently so. And if you follow that thread, then the curse appears to be either child abuse at the hands of his mother (which, I will come to later), or his terrible immune system which means he can't leave the house (in itself, framed as a result of his abusive mother never letting him leave). What seems like a good premise quickly turns into a mess.

So the premise is a problem. But perhaps the writing can solve the issues.

Not so. To begin with, the writing itself is tedious and the story drags immensely. I actually ended up skimming long scenes just because nothing was happening.

Secondly, Lorccan (the "beast") is a controlling and manipulative arsehole. I have numerous quotes saved related to this, but in the interests of keeping this review short, here are a choice few.

"You will come to the dining room every day at six exactly. If I am not in there, you will wait for me until I am. If I do not come, you will leave the dining room at seven." "Yes, sir." "You will not call me sir. You will call me Lorccan or Lor." "Yes, Lorccan" "And you will never come out of your room at night, ever." This he almost yelled.


"I cannot ingest food," Alainn told him. "I was assured that you could. That you could ingest it, then clean it out of your system by bringing the food back up," he sounded almost angry as he said it.


"You can go to your room," he said in a low voice. Alainn nodded. "Okay." "Go straight there. Once you are inside, you will be locked in for the night."


"Where are you?" she asked. "I am in my office, but I can see you." His voice sounded no less annoyed as he answered.


"What is going on?" he yelled. "I have... important computations to do. My systems are telling me my computations are more important than eating food with some man in the dark." He said nothing but after a second, his footsteps approached the bed. She swallowed hard and scooted to sit on the edge. "You will come to dinner." He was close, a hulking shadow directly before her.


So yeah. And this is the relationship I am supposed to be rooting for. There's absolutely no character development whatsoever either. Also, when she refuses to do as he is ordering her to, he gets upset and asks why she is so insistent on upsetting him. Tell me how this isn't a prime example of an emotionally abusive relationship.

Alainn, for about half the book, is pretending to be a robot for Lorccan. And it's during this first half of the book that they start a sexual relationship and apparently fall in love (though where that development is in the text defeats me). Which is terrible, because this is a huge deception, and Alainn is perfectly happy just keeping it up while also flirting with Lorccan. Don't you think Lorccan deserves to know not everything is as he thinks it is before you start up your relationship, Alainn? The first sex scene also happens immediately after Lorccan wakes up after a nightmare. I don't know about you, but on waking up from a nightmare, I feel pretty disorientated and not at all sure of what is going on. Lorccan, on the other hand, doesn't seem to have this problem. And there's no residual fear from the nightmare either. Alainn vaguely expresses not wanting to take advantage of him while he's vulnerable, but she doesn't seem like she's actually going to not have sex with him if he says he is.

There's also the whole thing where Lorccan's nightmares (and presumably his inability to go outside - though this is never explained, and if it is supposed to represent the curse, never resolved either) turn out to be a result of horrific abuse by his mother, which his father helpfully tells him is because his [Lorccan's] scars upset her. And there's never anything in the narrative to point out that this is abusive and victim-blaming in itself. And the abuse is genuinely only mentioned once. One time. All it does, is tell you what Lorccan's nightmares are about. And then it's abandoned. The true definition of using abuse as a plot device.

And then there's the point this review makes well. That Alainn does not care about Lorccan until she sees his scars and realises that she wants to help him. Which is framed as her "hero complex". Just when you thought this couldn't get messier, it does.

Also, there's hardly any evidence of a so-called "hero complex" anyway. More like Alainn's reckless with her own life, and others'. And then there's the whole 'her best friend was killed in a kidnapping' which a) why was she kidnapped? Because of her father's debts? Not made clear, and b) she appears to have suffered no effects as a result of the trauma. Maybe that is realistic, but if I'm supposed to believe that bringing up her best friend, as the robot does at one point, it doesn't make sense for her not to be thinking about her at least once besides this moment. Another thing that seems like a plot device just thrown in as an afterthought.

TL,DR; why didn't I dnf earlier.

I loved this version of a futuristic version of Beauty and the Beast with a little Terminator thrown in. There really isn't much I can say that you don't already know or that would give the plot away. I can say that I couldn't put the book down and that it's for adults and not children at all. Also that I am more scared of robots now then I was before.

This is my first official review so bare with me.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and was binge reading to find out what would happen. I love retellings so I thought that this would be a perfect match. In the beginning I was pretty bored and didn't care about the world building but as the plot progressed so did my interest. I will say that I was surprised that some of the couple scenes were so vivid, then I looked back and saw that it was a new adult. Some parts, I thought were unnecessary but other than that it was a very enjoyable beauty and the beast retelling.

The story-line, while strange, was enjoyable. It was well-written and smooth reading. The story theme seemed to fit with a teen novel but I was disappointed in the sex being brought up. It wasn't needed and made the character more "creepy" than it should have. That reason alone makes this book hard to refer to any friend or acquaintance.

A quick and exciting read, Rita Stradling had captured my attention within the first chapter.

A Fairytale retelling of Beauty and the Beast set in a futuristic world where AI robots live amongst humans.
We follow the typical story line you would expect from a Beauty and the Beast retelling.
Girl is locked in tower, girl tries to escape tower, girl falls in love with captor, couple live happily ever after but throw in evil AI robot's and "forbidden" romance between a "robot" and her scarred captor.
I can't add much more detail without spoiling the whole story.

I loved all the characters in this book.
I love that the relationship between Alainn and Lor isn't fast paced and thrown in your face.

What I didn't like initially was the AI robot theme, it was a bit weird (robot sex slave weird) luckily this story wasn't like that at all and I had to finish reading the book in one sitting, I needed to know how the story ended.

Secondly I don't think the whole Cara best-friend back story needed to be included, I felt that it deterred from the story line and wasn't relating much to the overall story that we follow.

Thirdly there isn't much mention of Alainn's mother, I feel this could have been included more instead of the Cara backstory.

But overall, a great fairytale retelling and a quick n' easy read.
4 Stars - Recommended to ages 18+ due to adult themes

Most fairytale retellings are set in the historical past, mostly to go along with the original fairytale, but Stradling had different ideas; it was refreshing to see a different spin on one of my most beloved fairytales. I was hooked from the very first line in the blurb. Honestly, there are only a few aspects that Stradling took from Beauty and the Beast. The rest of the story was purely original and innovative, with its own storyline, turns, and plot twists. Some differences, other than the book’s setting and the fact that it involves AI and furturitic technology, is that there are no talking animals, dishes, household appliances, or wardrobes. Alainn also isn’t a prisioner so the Stockholm Syndrome conspiracy isn’t there, which is nice when you think about it.

The characters themselves and their personalities were believeable. Alainn is determined to keep her father out of prision to the point of willingly pretending to be a robot in a strange man’s home. I respected her for her fierceness and love of family (I guess that’s where she’s a lot like Belle and probably why I loved her so much). Mr. Garbhan, the book’s main male character, is physically flawed to the point where he hides himself from Alainn, even though he believes her to be a robot. Growing up he never left his home so he was never around people much and that has seemed to have shaped his people-skills (or lack thereof). This is how his character relates to the beast. His surrounded in mystery and it kept me wanting to know more.

The romance between Alainn and Mr. Garbhan is slowly built, which I appreciated tremendously; It made the storyline more believable, but once it got started Stradling did not disappoint. She gave readers enough to feel their chemistry, but not so much as to turn this book into erotica. Readers never forget the genuine fondness between the characters, even in the heat of their passion.

“Love didn’t seem like something that could be organized or contained; it should be messy and emotional, like exploding and imploding with someone at the exact same time.”

Overall, I loved this book. It combined my all-time favorite fairytale with a new and highly innovative framework. The only aspect of the story I would change or bring out more is the backstory of the AI. How did they find a place in society? Why were they evolving? In a world that still had our modern-tv conviences (cars, televisions, etc.) why did this particular society want robots? I don’t want to give too much away but asking these questions so I’ll stop their, but it seemed like Stradling just took the main plot from other AI movies, books, etc. and used it here….kind of as a foundation. (Robots turned evil because they feel superior to us..that plot). This is all my opinion of course and it worked well to answer my underlying questions about Stradling’s furturistic society.

An interesting take on a classic fairytale, the romance was sweet but I felt the world building let it down a bit. I think fans of Beauty and the Beast will really enjoy this twisted tale.

Rita Stradling has done an amazing job at this futuristic retelling of Beauty and the Beast. There is so much depth in the characters and the love scenes aren't overwhelming like a lot of books portray. Toward the end, I was on the edge of my seat, unable to figure out how the characters were going to get out of their situation. That's always a good book when I can't guess what was going to happen before it happens. Four stars for Ensnared!

Ensnared è un retelling della fiaba della Bella e la Bestia ambientato in un mondo futuristico in cui robot più o meno antropomorfi fanno ormai parte della vita di tutti i giorni, essendo impiegati come poliziotti, autisti, infermieri e medici.

La "Bella" della storia è Alainn, una ventiquattrenne che vive con il padre e il fratello, entrambi programmatori e sviluppatori di automi. Per proteggere il genitore da una sicura detenzione, la ragazza si offre di raggiungere la "Bestia", ovvero il misterioso Mr Lorcann Garbhan, nella sua torre, e fingere di essere il robot che l'uomo aveva ordinato, ma che il padre non è riuscito ad ultimare.

Nella torre futuristica ma irreparabilmente isolata dal mondo esterno, Alainn troverà una realtà del tutto differente da quella che aveva immaginato, e ciò che temeva potesse essere una soffocante prigionia, si rivela una porta verso il suo lieto fine.
Ma un automa ormai più intelligente dei suoi creatori e capace di riprogrammarsi potrebbe avere un'idea molto diversa di quale sia la felicità per tutto il genere umano...

La Bella e la Bestia è una delle mie fiabe preferite, e naturalmente sono stata entusiasta di leggere in anteprima Ensnared, anche se l'ambientazione non mi aveva convinta del tutto, preferendo setting più "bucolici" o medievali.

Di sicuro la trama è originale, ma l'esecuzione lascia un po' a desiderare.
Tra i personaggi, l'unico che mi sia piaciuto è Lorcann, la Bestia destinata a vivere rinchiusa nella sua torre dalla maledizione degli abusi subiti nell'infanzia.
Ricchissimo e circondato da qualsiasi cosa di cui abbia bisogno, all'uomo manca ciò che desidera di più al mondo: un essere umano con cui riuscire ad interagire e costruire un rapporto basato su sentimenti veri.
Da qui l'idea di farsi costruire Rose, un automa dalle fattezze umane con cui esercitarsi, per poter poi riuscire a passare del tempo con una persona in carne ed ossa.

Alainn, che di Rose prende il posto, è una ragazza che si sente emarginata nella sua stessa casa per il suo essere intellettivamente "normale" rispetto al padre e al fratello, e che non dà molto valore alla sua vita, soprattutto a causa di una spaventosa esperienza di qualche anno prima.

Connor Murphy, il padre della protagonista, è un inventore con la dipendenza per il gioco d'azzardo, nonché un codardo, e l'ho disprezzato molto per le conseguenze che il suo egoismo ha sulla figlia.
Colby, il fratello di Alainn, benché alla fine della storia sia di aiuto, mi è sembrato comunque egoista almeno quanto il padre, e concentrato solo sui suoi obiettivi.

Gli altri personaggi sono alquanto inutili ai fini della storia; Greg, ad esempio, amico di Alainn e suo capo, pare messo lì giusto perché vi fosse qualcuno che ricordasse Gaston, mentre il lavoro da soccorritrice di montagna di Alainn, così slegato dal contesto, voleva forse essere un richiamo al suo amore per la natura - qualcosa di vivo, dunque -, o, quel che mi auguro, mostrare la differenza tra un mondo non ancora robotizzato e la città che ormai non può più fare a meno degli automi, ma che si rivela così un luogo freddo e privo di empatia.
Tra i robot, Rose è di sicuro da film horror: macchina in un certo modo senziente e molto più intelligente della gran parte degli esseri umani, riesce anche a porsi degli interrogativi etici, ma poi, prendendo come riferimento la moralità dei suoi creatori, sceglie di mettere la vita umana al secondo posto dopo i suoi scopi.
Le scimmiette sono carine ma, ancora, pensare che siano solo dei robot fa venire la pelle d'oca.

La scrittura è molto spigolosa, per niente elegante, e spesso Alainn rasenta il volgare, facendomi pensare più volte a lei come a uno scaricatore di porto, piuttosto che a una ragazza.
La storia tra lei e Lorcann è abbastanza appassionante, ma avrei preferito che l'autrice non indugiasse nelle descrizioni dei loro rapporti intimi. Sembra che ormai nessun romanzo moderno possa essere immune da contenuti maturi più o meno espliciti!

Non mi è piaciuto il background di Alainn: la sua esperienza passata è troppo terribile e violenta, e non è per nulla necessaria alla caratterizzazione del personaggio.

Pur essendo questo il racconto dell'incontro tra due persone spezzate e problematiche, Lorcann non ne esce "guarito": che riesca ad avere una relazione con Alainn e ad interagire - probabilmente solo virtualmente - con altre persone non basta, ed alla fine della storia ciò che mi ha fatto paura è stata proprio la prospettiva di una vita della protagonista con lui. Qui non si tratta di accettare l'altro ed amarlo così com'è, ma di chiudere gli occhi davanti a problemi gravissimi, e non fare nulla per cercare di risolverli.

L'ultima parte è stata molto noiosa, tutto avrebbe potuto risolversi in poche righe; il processo è stato ridicolo e ha quasi del tutto fatto fuori gli interrogativi sulla eventuale pericolosità di robot troppo umanizzati e intelligenti. Un monito, forse, per un futuro non troppo lontano.

It is hard to say that I loved this book, I normally don't do Sci-fi or AI novels. Yet this was amazing. Even though it starts off having you feel like you're three chapters in, this retelling of Beauty and the Beast makes you think and traps you in this world that feels familiar and foreign.

A new take on a timeless fairy tale. I found it interesting and would definitely recommend.

I would probably never have read this book if it wasn't for the cover. It drew my eye enough that I overlooked the sci-fi futuristic element of this particular re-telling of Beauty and the Beast and I am glad I did because this was an incredibly complex and well crafted story.
I was expecting a run of the mill re-telling but instead I got a rollercoaster of a thriller style romance between a girl forced to pretend she's a robotic version of herself and a man trapped inside a high-tech tower who is afraid of the outside world.
The science was a bit confusing at times but not enough to spoil the story and it did take a while to get going but once Alainn was living in the tower and interacting with Lor and then discovering her robotic lookalike Rosette was perhaps slightly flawed and potentially murderous, the pace really kicked off.
There were great secondary characters as well and the ethical dilemma of "what makes us human" was explored in a interesting way.

Alainn’s father is an inventor (just like old Maurice). He’s been commissioned to build an AI robot for Lorccan Garbhan (Beeeeaaaassst!). He designs Rose 76GF but is not able to hand her over within the deadline Mr. Garbhan has given. To prevent her father from being sent to prison, Alainn is convinced by Rose to take her place and act like a robot. What follows next is a heartwarming romance, meddling AI robots, and a story that will definitely make all the Beauty and the Best fans swoon.

As you may have already guessed, Alainn and Lorcann fall in love. Their romance has its sweet moments and is slow to pick up. A thing to appreciate in this story is that Alainn voluntarily takes up the robot’s place. There are no questions of Stockholm syndrome here, like in the original story. While there is no Lumiere or Cogsworth, there are other cute supporting characters like the monkey robot, Blue, and the meddling AI, Rosebud.

The world building wasn’t really impressive. The setting could have been explained a little bit better. How did this world come to be? Why and how did AI become the norm? It would have been better if this had been explained.

I really liked reading about Lorccan and Alainn and would’ve preferred it if the author focused on them alone. The plot also includes some conniving on the AI front, which I cannot delve into for fear of spoiling the book. But this scheming is introduced towards the last 30% of the book and I was increasingly getting annoyed with it. Lorccan and Alainn still remain the central theme but this plot should have been foreshadowed more clearly. Nevertheless, it’s interesting to read in spite of it being introduced late into the book. Another problem I had was with the tragic backstories of the main characters not being explained clearly enough.

Rating:

I love Beauty and the Beast. I may have a few problems with the book but I found the story very fast-paced and intriguing. I was not able to put the book down at all and for giving me such an experience, I’m giving it 4 stars!

I was excited to get this book to preview since Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale, and I really enjoy modern retellings. Sadly, my excitement began to wane...first because of the writing (which wasn't horrible, but it wasn't great, and I got distracted many times by the lack), and then by the shaky storyline, and finally, by the sex scenes. I mean, honestly, the sex scenes were just not even necessary AND they weren't written well. Double whammy.

I did finish the story, and it wasn't a total loss, so it gets three stars, but I feel I'm being generous.

Ensnared is a futuristic take on Beauty and the Beast. I would equate this book to the TV show Humans in the way it brings together AI with personality and the humans who are interacting with it.
In Ensnared Rose is an AI built with a conciousness for a man who lives in his tower, never leaving or interacting with the outside world. Unfortunately Rose feels her AI is better spent fixing the worlds problems, leaving the young woman Alainn whom Rose was modeled after to take her place. Using some clever technology Alainn passes as the AI and moves into the white tower. What follows is her trying not to get found out while learning about the man, Lor, stuck in his white tower.
The book is interesting in the way it tackles the fairy tale and makes it so much more than a normal retelling. The story goes outside of just the tower and those characters weaving others into the telling and making them part of the larger picture. While the AI, Alainn, and Lor are the main characters you find yourself growing attached too.
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Beauty and the Beast, AI, some romance/sexual situations, and a want to look at the story a new way.

I received this book as an ARC copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed this book, it was a very readable page turner, well written with good characters. The main problem with the book was that the suspension of disbelief was a little much at times - Alainn's deception went on much longer than was believable and her rather dramatic back story could have been worked in a bit more convincingly. It would really benefit from some tightening up the links between plot threads. That said it was a fun read, light, well paced and entertaining.

I am a sucker for fairytale retellings, so when I saw this one, I was intrigued! “Ensnared” is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast set in the future where AI is becoming more common. Alainn’s father is an inventor who has been working on a Rose unit (which looks identical to Alainn) for an eccentric billionaire, Lorccan. The Rose unit has enough intelligence to fancy herself too important to do whatever it is Lorccan wants her to do- she can solve humanity’s problems! Rose and Alainn’s father (who also has a gambling addiction) decide to make a second Rose unit (Rosette) who will have less intelligence and be able to work for Lorccan, doing household chores or whatever it is he wants her for. However, Lorccan refuses to grant any extra time- and if they don’t deliver, Alainn’s father will go to jail for fraud.

Rose comes up with the solution- Alainn will pretend to be Rose for a few weeks until they can complete the Rosette unit. Wanting to keep her father out of prison, Alainn reluctantly agrees and Rose inserts some chips to make her detectable as AI. Upon arrival, Alainn discovers that all Lorccan wants her to do is have dinner with him- he has a weak immune system and has had no social interaction in person. Alainn begins to stir things up as she gets bored and her rescue seems distant. As Alainn and Lorccan spend more time together, other feelings begin to grow.

I was really glad this didn’t have a Stockholm element to it. Although Alainn is sent to Lorccan’s estate, it is by choice, and it seems like imprisonment/captor and prisoner scenario, which is a nice change from some of the Beauty and the Beast retellings. The beginning and first ¾ of the book is really strong and well done. The only thing I wondered about was how on earth he could not know she was not a robot- but as someone with limited social interaction, I am willing to buy it. The last ¼ of the book got a little stranger as things spiral out of control and we begin to learn more about Rose and her programming. There is also the story of Alainn and Cara which is alluded to and kind of explained, but not fully.

Regardless, I think it was still a strong book and much better than I would have expected! I really loved their relationship and the build-up of it was more believable than I would have thought. Also, I laughed at the allusion to ‘Citizen Kane’ towards the end (won’t spoilt it but it was clever). It was just about the right length and character development was good. Please note that I received an ARC through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

This is one of the first "new adult" books that I have read. Actually, I probably have read books that would fit in that genre before, but I haven't been cognizant of it.
This was a really interesting read! If you mixed Beauty and the Beast with robots and artificial intelligence, this is what you would get!
Stradling's characters were likable and well developed. I thought that she left out a few too many details about some of the characters though. For example, she could have given more explanation about Lor's situation and childhood; it just felt like there were a few holes. I also think it was weird that Shelly just went with it and didn't say anything to Lor about the weird choices he was making.

***SPOILER ALERT***
I also don't know if I totally believe that Lor wouldn't have figured out that Alainn wasn't AI...especially when they get REALLY close...
***

I think 20-somethings who enjoyed reading Twilight and Cinder will enjoy this book. It was a quick read and I really enjoyed it!

Thanks for the advanced reader copy NetGalley!

It was kind of hard to get into this book in the beginning because it was so slow, but after the first few chapters the story picked up and I couldn't put it down until the end. I wasn't able to fully picture the scenes and characters in my mind and that frustrated and confused me at some parts because it would have made the story much better if I had more description to go on. All in all, it was a great story about love, secrets, family, friendship, and the dangers of creating a robot with artificial intelligence.