Ever since reading Fairest of All by Serena Valentino, I had longed to read a similar type of book but that was better written and with a more interesting story So, thankfully, I came across Liz Braswell's Twisted Tale Disney series on amazon. The premise of the books looked very interesting and they seemed to be more aimed for teenagers on up (even though I'm 26 that didn't stop me!) I immediately decided to purchase the third book in the series first as it's the one with the premise I was most interested in. That book is As Old As time, which as you can probably guess is about the Beast and Belle, and of course, with a little twist in the tale. The book cost me €8.00 including delivery which was excellent! Not only because it would be very difficult to find in a book shop near me, but also because even if I did, it would probably cost between €15-20.00! The cover of the book is paperback, and I really do like the design and font used for the title. There is a hardback one available which has an amazing cover so if anybody is getting this as a collector's item, I would highly recommend splashing out and hunting for that one. The condition of the book was brand new and it even came with a little paperback book mark. It is a good long read at about 485 pages, however the text is medium sized as are most young adult books so it doesn't take too long to get through.
Now, onto the book itself. The premise of the story as it states on the front cover is "What if Belle's mother cursed the Beast?". When I first saw that it really intrigued me. The story itself begins on the night that the Enchantress (now whom we know as Belle's mother) places the curse on the Beast and all the people in his castle. We are then taken back to when Belle's father Maurice met the enchantress and how they came to fall in love and give birth to their daughter. We also get to see how Belle's mother came to curse the young prince and all of the lovable objects in his castle. This part of the book, part one, is probably my least favourite of the entire story. Ironically, the aspect that I found so intriguing in the premise, i.e. Belle's mother being the enchantress, was actually not all that interesting to read about. That is, her back story is just a bit too long and wishy washy for me.
The second part of the book which I would consider to have a sort of mystery vibe to it was my favourite and the most enjoyable to read. I won't give too much away but mainly it focuses on the Beast and Belle and how they came to get to know each other. It is also the section in which what I consider to be the real twist occurs. As a side note, I read this book out loud to my boyfriend as he played a video game and he found this to be the best section of the story also, so there's second opinion for you! I really was fond of how Belle's character was portrayed in this also. She was given a bit more of a realistic personality while still having the same sweetness and likability as she had in the animated classic. The Beast is also given a more multidimensional personality. The lovely way in which he behaves in the ballroom scene of the film and his sweetness is brought out more as well as the darker more beastly sides to his curse.
The third section of this book is also quite good but I have to say, not at all suitable for younger kids to read. There are elements of torture, violence, mental health issues etc... very heavy stuff for anybody younger than at least 15 to be ready in my opinion. I did appreciate the way they took the story and the ending that is what given, although I do really wish the author would have tightened it up just a touch as it did feel, as the beginning did, a little drawn out.
Ultimately this was an extremely enjoyable read for me as a Disney fan and actually I have to say as a lover of Mystery/Thriller novels. As I previously said there are some elements of violence and slightly adult oriented subject matters so I wouldn't exactly be rushing to purchase this for a child as a gift or anything but maybe that's just my age showing and I'm being a bit too Mrs. Potts like about it! There are two other books in this series, one is about Sleeping Beauty and the other Aladdin. I actually cannot wait to settle down with a cup of tea and get stuck into those two soon, because as Walt said, "There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on treasure island".
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