"You're nothing but an ugly old witch. I wish I could leave this flock and go back to hunting and being surrounded by pretty things and attended upon, as is my right. I hate the life of a shepherd."
"You would prefer, then, to be the wolf?" she asked, waving her hand about in the air. "Very well. You can have what you want . . . and your outward appearance shall reflect your inner heart. As you wished it to be, so it shall be."
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An Apt Punishment for the Boy Who Cried Wolf . . .
When a spoiled boy is forced to watch over a flock of sheep, he finds himself more interested in catching the eye of a girl with lovely ground-trailing tresses than he is in protecting his boring charges. But after he cries "wolf" twice, a determined fairy decides to teach him a lesson once and for all. She will give him what he desires, and perhaps he shall learn that some things are worth more than simply getting what he wants; some things are worth making sacrifices for.
In this reimagining of “Beauty and the Beast,” first in the Smothered Rose trilogy, Eye explores the beast’s perspective, providing a window into the thoughts and fears of the wolflike protagonist. The story follows a boy of noble birth forced to live among commoners as a shepherd before being bewitched to inhabit an enchanted castle in the body of a beast. In Eye’s version, the beast gets more of a backstory, lending a deeper look at his inner turmoil and motivations, including the primal and sometimes desperate drive to be near the woman he loves. The story is peppered with sly references to other fairy tales, including some slated for the spotlight as the trilogy progresses. Beauty (here, called Labelle) and the protagonist are locked in a guessing game over his name for much of the book, à la Rumpelstiltskin; Beauty’s long golden locks require a servant to carry them, evoking a free-roaming Rapunzel; and Labelle’s stepmother is so wicked her father would rather she lived with a beast, crossing into Cinderella territory. Eye weaves a fun tale as she pieces together several well-loved fairy tales. Ages 12–up. (BookLife)
