A Curse so Dark and Lonely review

​Fall in love, break the curse. 
It once seemed so easy to Prince Rhen, the heir to Emberfall. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, he knew he could be saved if a girl fell for him. But that was before he learned that at the end of each autumn, he would turn into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. That was before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.
Nothing has ever been easy for Harper Lacy. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother barely holding their family together while constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, she learned to be tough enough to survive. But when she tries to save someone else on the streets of Washington, DC, she's instead somehow sucked into Rhen's cursed world.
Break the curse, save the kingdom. 
A prince? A monster? A curse? Harper doesn't know where she is or what to believe. But as she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what's at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.

BUY HERE

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My review

~I was sent a copy from the publishers - all opinions are my own~

I give it - 5/5

My review - One of the best Beauty and the Beast retelling's I have ever read. It is a big book, just under 500 pages but I wish there was more. I was instantly gripped from the beginning and I just didn't want this story to end. The characters, the story, the descriptive way Brigid writes just, I adored every second of it. 

In this book we have Harper. She hasn't got the best home life. Her mother is sick and her brother is making sure they get the money by doing dangerous things and Harper will do what she can to make sure he doesn't get caught. 

Rhen is a prince. He is forced to repeat each season as 18 to find love from a curse that was put on him. It has been hundreds of years and nothing has ever came close enough to break the curse and stop from him reliving those moments over and over again. Grey his commander is bringing a girl to their world to see if this time they could find someone to love him when Harper stops it from happening and finds herself getting taken instead and her life is never going to be the same because of it.

Harper instantly has her walls up. She isn't allowed to leave for another 3 months and she is worried about her family and how they are coping. Rhen has to deal with the seasons ending and he turns into a different beast each time killing everything in his way before he wakes up and has to relive those moments over and over again. 

Rhen is at a point where, with what he has done in the past haunts him and he's not even sure if he wants to break the curse anymore and just give up. But Harper surprises him, angers him, taunts him and impresses him. She has cerbal palsy but she does not let that define her and is very badass. She makes him think about other things and even about breaking the curse. This is the last season and they have nothing to loose. As weeks fly by they find themselves opening up to each, sharing things they have never shared before but, time is running out and there is an enchantress who will do what ever she can to torture Rhen and make sure the curse is never broken. 

The kingdom on the brink of war, finding love, friendship and trying to break a curse. This book is one you won't be able to put down.

I really love all of the characters but one who stole the show for me was Grey. He is Rhen's friend and commander. He is just a character that is fantastic and you can't help but not love. He is loyal and just overall a fantastic character.

​I really love Harper. She is a strong, brilliant woman who I enjoyed reading about. She is a brilliant main character and you just want to fight with her along the way throughout this story. She is willing to do anything she can to get back to her family to save them and to the people of the kingdom who are in need. She is caring, fun but, she doesn't let anything get in her way. She will fight for what she believes in. She is very head strong and inspiring. 

Rhen is dark. He's been through so much with this curse and it's haunted him for all of these years. But as the book goes on you get to learn so much more about him as he opens up. He has his flaws but I'm glad he's not a squeaky clean character.

Overall, one of the best books I've ever read. The best BatB retelling I have ever read and I really love the twists and turns that Brigid has thrown into this book that just kept me gripped from the very beginning. This is a world I didn't want to leave and I cannot wait for more!

Brigid is a fantastic writer who just knows how to draw the reader in with her writing. It is beautiful, it flows nicely and the plot was just everything.