Hunted by Meagan Spooner (Spoiler-Free Review)

I loved Hunted. It was a hauntingly beautiful and romantic retelling of that extraordinary fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. 

The novel follows Yeva, the daughter of a merchant who loses everything. After she moves with her family to the woods, her father begins to disappear for weeks on end, until one day, he doesn’t come back. Yeva goes after him, only to find herself the prisoner of a monstrous beast who seems to have caused her father’s disappearance. 

I found Yeva to be very, very relatable for me. She wants something more- something that’s not just a day-to-day life. She doesn’t know exactly what she wants, either. She thinks she does, but she goes through a lot before she finds out what she’s really been searching for. 

The Beast is both terrifying and so incredibly human all at once. The brief bits in between chapters from his point of view were stunning. I loved it. 

The setting is unique- Russia, I think- and I enjoyed the infusion of Russian folklore. It added depth and was a marvelous addition to the world building. 

The writing read almost like an actual fairytale. It was elegantly simple, giving the story in a quiet manner. 

I did feel like it told a lot- I would have preferred more showing, even if the book would have been substantially longer. I think the romance could have been developed more, but it was one to root for all the same.

I’d give it 4/5 stars. It was a beautiful book, with a relatable heroine and an interesting world. 

Have you read Hunted? Did you like it? Hate it? Tell me in the comments!

–Clara