Review: Of Curses and Kisses

A Beauty and the Beast retelling at a boarding school? Sign. Me. Up. Check out my review: Of Curses and Kisses.

Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon.

To be published on February 18 2020 by Simon Pulse. Thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.

Synopsis: For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and she knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. Lord Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existence—until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can’t shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…

Review: Of Curses and Kisses

Of all fairy tale retellings, I think Beauty and the Beast might be my favorite source material. There’s just something about the tortured beast and the brave, loyal beauty that works for me.

I also love Boarding School books – in fact, I have made a whole list of my favorites – you can find it here.

So, how did Of Curses and Kisses measure up as a retelling and a boarding school book?

I thought the retelling angle was really clever. During the British colonization of India, Grey’s family stole a ruby belonging to Jaya’s family. In revenge, Jaya’s great-great-grandmother cursed Grey’s family. In the present day, Jaya is furious that Grey leaked embarrassing stories about her younger sister to the tabloids. When she learns she and Grey will be attending the same boarding school, she decides to get her own revenge.

I was expecting some kind of ruthless revenge plot, but Jaya’s revenge is not to embarrass him or destroy his life. It’s to break his heart. So she shows up at St. Rosetta’s Academy In Colorado with her young sister Isha in tow and wearing a gorgeous new rose necklace made of rubies that was given to her by her father.

I was excited about the boarding school setting (and also excited about Colorado because it reminded me of St. Vladimir’s in Montana!)

What I did like most about Of Curses and Kisses? The sister relationship. The bond between Jaya and Isha was my absolute favorite part of the story. My second part was the story of the two royal families and the curse. There were also couple of school galas that felt very fairy tale!

Overall this was a creative retelling that put a contemporary spin on the classic fairy tale. I could have used a tiny bit more swoon in the romance, but this series seems like it will be a lot of fun. Jaya’s met a bunch of St. Rosetta’s kids, so I’m wondering about the pairings in future books and if different fairy tales will be used, as in the Lunar Chronicles.

Stay tuned later this week for my list of YA Beauty and the Beast retellings!