Before Midnight: Blood Prince Series Book 1

Title: Before Midnight

Author: Jennifer Blackstream

Published: November 30, 2013 by Skeleton Key

Purchased: February 17, 2015, free on Kindle.

☆☆☆☆☆/5

Blurb: Loupe always dreamed of getting married. She yearned for a caring husband who would take her away from her servant-like existence at home with her stepmother and two stepsisters, a man who would love her forever. Those dreams ended the day she was bitten by a werewolf. Now she’s a mindless beast on the night of the full moon—a condition that forever prevents her from sharing a marriage bed. Not even the attentions of a handsome and endearingly strong prince can convince her that the life she wants is still possible.

Etienne is a prince in need of a werewolf. A werewolf himself from birth, Etienne and his family have protected their kingdom with tooth and claw—literally—for thousands of years. Unfortunately, the spell of a well-meaning witch is slowly turning him human. Only the bite of a cursed werewolf, one who was not born with the beast inside, can save him from becoming human. He has no time for anything that will not lead him to a cure for the curse. Not even the beautiful maiden whose gentle nature soothes his soul can take his mind from his goal.

Love cares little for the best laid plans or the impossible. A grand ball. The stroke of twelve. A magic “slipper.” All kinds of things can happen when you don’t leave the ball…Before Midnight.

Review: This, honestly, has to be my favorite retelling of the classic Cinderella story. The story doesn’t start off right away as the Cinderella story, you’ll actually get to meet the other guys from the next stories which I thought was a great idea. Give the readers an idea of what’s to come. All I’m going to tell you is that this is the Cinderella story with werewolves.

When I saw this on Amazon and saw that it was a retelling of the Cinderella story, I admit, I judged it a bit. I thought it was going to be like the others I’ve read and this reader will gladly admit that she was wrong. It was, at the risk of sounding cliché, magical. I felt like the werewolf element gave this story, which has been retold over and over again, a special little something and that it was a stroke of genius.

You’ll never guess how the fairy godmother is portrayed and how the shoe gets put into the story but I can guarantee that you will be shocked; especially the step-mother and step-sisters. I will tell you, it has more of the Grimm feel to it than a Disney feel.

This book was written so well and kept such a strong hold on my attention that I could not put it down and I finished it the same day I started it. I can’t wait to start on the second book, which is the retelling of Snow White, but with vampires. Five stars and I would definitely recommend this to anyone.

Thank you for reading my review.