Book Review: Lost in a Book by Jennifer Donnelly

Lost in a Book Summary

Smart, bookish Belle, a captive in the Beast’s castle, has become accustomed to her new home and has befriended its inhabitants. When she comes upon Nevermore, an enchanted book unlike anything else she has seen in the castle, Belle finds herself pulled into its pages and transported to a world of glamour and intrigue. The adventures Belle has always imagined, the dreams she was forced to give up when she became a prisoner, seem within reach again.

The charming and mysterious characters Belle meets within the pages of Nevermore offer her glamorous conversation, a life of dazzling Parisian luxury, and even a reunion she never thought possible. Here Belle can have everything she has ever wished for.

But what about her friends in the Beast’s castle? Can Belle trust her new companions inside the pages of Nevermore? Is Nevermore’s world even real? Belle must uncover the truth about the book, before she loses herself in it forever.

Lost in a Book Review

I’m a huge fan of fairy tale retellings so when I heard about this new Beauty and the Beast book I had to get my hands on it! Lost in a Book revisits the story of Belle and the Beast. The story begins when the Beast grants Belle access to his amazing and full library. However, this time Belle is lured into ‘Nevermore’ – a trick by Death herself.

Death is trying to thwart the blossoming romance between Belle and the Beast so not to lose a bet she made with her sister, Love, but she uses underhand tactics to get her way. Belle, tired of the dusty (castle) and missing her father dearly, is taken in by Nevermore immediately and sucked into Death’s evil plan. But will she manage to escape from Death’s clutches in time to get back before the last rose petal falls and seals Beast’s fate?

It was lovely to see more of the story behind Belle and the Beast’s relationship and I think the Beast appears a lot softer and more human in this version. Interestingly in Donnelly’s Lost in a Book I sympathised a lot with the Beast and not so much with Belle, whereas my feelings towards the original story are the complete opposite.

However, my favourite characters in the end (and those that I felt we knew the most about!) ended up being Chip and the other transformed household objects. These characters really tugged at my heartstrings and for me they stole the show.

I wasn’t such a fan of the stuff that actually takes place in ‘Nevermore’. These parts reminded me a lot of the story ‘Coraline’, which is just thoroughly disturbing and it gave me the creeps! Death is a horrible character who is much more sinister than some of the other ‘baddies’ in fairytales because she actively tries to manipulate people’s lives in such a way that she may even cause their deaths.

I found it hard to sympathise with Belle when she was in Nevermore because I thought her terribly naive but this is actually only a small part of the story. Furthermore, the climax of Lost in a Book is a little predictable too but I suppose with this sort of novel it almost always is.

I love reading books about books and this one was no exception. It’s the perfect time to read this to tie in with the Disney live-action film release starring Emma Watson.

What’s great about this retelling is that it doesn’t rewrite the original story, but instead it could actually be placed into the original without changing it. This short story is probably categorised as a young adult book, however, I think that Lost in a Book is primarily aimed at younger teenage girls.

The story isn’t particularly complex and it’s very easy to read so this would’ve been absolutely perfect for me around 7 years ago. It’s a story of friendship, bravery, love, family etc. so a really lovely tale for YA readers.

Of course, if you’re a massive Beauty and the Beast fan, you’re sure to enjoy this story at any age, but I thought that was a point worth noting! All in all, Lost in a Book is a heart-warming tale that will no doubt please Disney fans. It’s a quick, easy read that’s perfect for a lovely spring afternoon 🌹

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Buy Lost in a Book:
Amazon

Many thanks to Paragon Books for providing me with a review copy of Lost in a Book!

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Laura

Founder & Editor of What’s Hot?

Laura is an award-winning travel and book blogger based in the UK. She studied French literature at Oxford University and is now an IP lawyer at a top law firm in London. She was named UK Book Blogger of the Year in 2019 and loves to combine her passion for books and travel with literary travel.