By the Book

Isabelle has been working at A Tale as Old as Time for a couple of years, but she's already burnt out from often being the only person of color in the room and having to put on a happy face in a job where she's overworked and underappreciated. One of her duties is emailing Beau Towers, a notoriously spoiled celebrity who promised a memoir and then ghosted the publisher. Then she suggests to her boss she show up in person to give him a pep talk and offer some advice getting his memoir off the ground. They get off on the wrong foot, but soon Izzy is attracted to a man who turns out to be much nicer than his reputation.

What a fun ride! I am picky about my romances, but this Beauty and the Beast retelling hit all of what I enjoy: enemies show more (well, almost) to friends to lovers, complex characters, and a few nods to the original while standing very much on its own if you're unfamiliar with the source material. A couple of times Izzy's assumptions of what Beau must be thinking and consequent hurt feelings annoyed me a little, but overall it was such a joy to read that I'd pick it up again. show less

Oh my. I _love_ this story. There were predictable bits - I knew who was sabotaging her long before she figured it out, and I knew Beau's secret as soon as he told the Oscar story - and Michaela's, too. But the how and why, and the richness of the characterization, made even the predictable bits fascinating. The way they worked together, the way both of them pushed through hard and scary choices, and again, the rich characters - I dove in and didn't surface except when I had to. I can see the Beauty and the Beast bits - so could they, both Beau and Izzy made references to the story - but like the first book in this series, the story wasn't confined to those limits. I loved the sneaky bits, like the titles of the other books. And I only show more wanted to shake them once, near the end, for failing to communicate. So now I have _another_ new author to look for... Oh, there's lots of kissing and spending the night, but no details at all. Very non-explicit. That was part of what I loved - that they had lots better reasons for their relationship than simple physical attraction. show less

There are many books about books, roo many about writers, quite a few about bookstores and libraries and book clubs, but book publishing: not so much. There's got to be some, but I can't think of any off the top of my head.
This is a good one, showing the drawbacks, to a job in publishing, particularly for the damn few POC. But also, the joys.
Plus there's the Beauty and the Beast easter eggs, so many easter eggs. As a fan of the Disney animated film I wouldn't say barely just enough of those, but every single magical one made me smile, despite my antipathy for the entertainment behemoth itself.

Library copy, natch

NOTE: I am a librarian and I received a free paperback ARC of this book from the publisher.

A contemporary re-telling of Disney's "Beauty & the Beast?" Yes, please!! I loved the way Guillory adapted the fairy tale to a modern setting, turning Belle into a stressed-out publisher's assistant and The Beast into a reclusive starlet who is trying to pen his memoir. Anyone who has ever worked as an office assistant, or attempted to write a lengthy piece of prose (or both!), will find the main characters and their struggles relatable. To my delight, much of the plot development and character building actually took place in the "The Beast's" Library. This made for a very intimate sort of retelling of "Beauty & The Beast," in which most of the show more conflict plays out in the form of getting-to-know-you struggles and bouts of writers' block. The cast of characters was small enough to create some background tension, but most of the book's focus was on Isabelle and Beau (the protagonists and romantic leads). I found myself missing some of the magic of the Disney version (namely, the enchanted furniture and housewares). I also thought that Guillory could have turned Gavin (the Gaston-like character) into a bigger villian than the book made him out to be. Nevertheless, this was a fun retelling of a Disney classic. show less

Apparently this is a retelling of “Beauty and the Beast” although I didn’t really see that as being a dominant theme.

As the story begins, Isabelle Marlowe, or Izzy, has just gotten a job at Tale as Old as Time Publishing, or TAOAT. She has a stereotypically intimidating boss, Marta Wallace, and a stereotypically cut-throat coworker pretending to be her friend, Gavin Ridley. In fact, much of the plot could fall under the category of “predictable.”

Over a year ago, Marta had given Beau Towers, a former child star, son of two celebrities, and notorious “bad boy,” a splashy book deal for his memoir. But then Beau had pretty much disappeared from view, with no book in sight. When Izzy and her BFF at work, Priya Gupta, go to show more California with others from TAOAT for a book conference (mostly to serve as go-fers), Izzy impulsively offered to go see Beau Towers in Santa Barbara and check in on his progress. Improbably, Marta agreed.

Izzy, 25, is almost blindsided by how handsome the slightly older Beau is, but he is also “beastly” and that helps Izzy to focus on her goal, which is to get him to write.

Izzy talks her way into staying on at Beau’s mansion to help him produce a book, and pretty soon, the plot moves predictably into romance territory, with only a few minor snags to somewhat unsuccessfully add “interest” to the story.

Mostly what Izzy and Beau do, besides writing exercises and occasional forays to the beach, is share snacks. The author is apparently into food, and apparently so is Izzy, who eats high caloric food all the time, although she remains tiny and gorgeous in Beau’s eyes. Of course.

It all ends pretty much as you would expect, with a slight deviation from the usual fairy tale arc to let Izzy be a successful woman as well as starring in a Cinderella story.

Evaluation:: The book wan’t terrible, but only barely held my interest. It was far too predictable and unrealistic, even for a “fairy tale.” show less

Isabelle, an editor’s assistant, is sent to visit the reclusive Beau Towers, whose memoir is long overdue.

This is book-ish, sunny and low-key. I prefer a little more intensity in Beauty and the Beast retellings -- and stories which grapple with, rather than side-step, some of the problematic aspects of the tale. But I’ve also had the privilege of multiple versions of this story about people who look like me. As a fluffy retelling with Black characters, By the Book is absolutely bringing something new to the table, something that’s arguably long overdue. Film version please?

3 Stars from me.

The Plot:
Isabelle is overworked and underpaid at her new publishing job and to make matters worse, one of her high-profile authors is missing all his deadlines.
Beau Towers has been contracted to write his autobiography and he is dodging every single email from Tale as Old As Time Publishing.
After offering to stay in Santa Barbara with Beau to help him finish his book, Isabelle fears she may have bitten off more than she could chew.

My Thoughts:
I am really enjoying this series so far and I liked the premise of this book. It does great with the retelling in the way in incorporates cooking instead of talking furniture, grumpy writer beast to calm and fun author, and Isabelle figuring out her path in life. It even show more incorporates the misogynistic Gaston character. The main reason it got three stars is because of Beau Towers. Not him specifically, his name. I hate when an MMC is only referred to by his full name. It makes it feel like the characters have already placed him on an untouchable pedestal or that the author really needed to hit their word count. I almost returned the audiobook early because of it.
Other than that, this book still captured the whimsy and originality of the fairy tale reimagining. show less