The novel, “A Curse So Dark and Lonely” written by Brigid Kemmerer is the first book in the “Cursebreakers” series. This novel is sort of a Beauty and the Beast remake, in the sense that a Prince by the name of Rhen is cursed to the same autumn of his eighteenth year until he finds someone who loves him as much as he loves him/her. But with this curse, the wicked enchantress implemented a catch, and that catch is him turning into a monster who kills and destroys. But Rhen doesn’t know that he is a body trapped. Through every season, his only companion is Commander Grey who is allowed one hour into the “human world” to try to find girls to break the curse. While in Washington D.C. Grey grabs a female in hopes of ending this horrid curse that is haunting not only Rhen but affecting the whole kingdom of Emberfall, when he is attacked by Harper who sees him trying to kidnap the girl. The attack catches him off guard and they both stumble back to Emberfall. During her time in Emberfall, Harper finds her place – she has created hope for Rhen and for his kingdom even though there are some rather dark and horrible events and villains.
I would recommend this novel to ages 13 years and up, but with caution as this novel has some gory scenes. I have to say it took me a little more than half way to get into the novel. This could be because I just finished reading another book series, but honestly it wasn’t bad. I appreciated the character growth of Harper despite her condition with her foot (Harper has cerebral palsy and walks with a limp). I also appreciated Grey’s loyalty, and Rhen’s mind. I definitely had a strong disdain towards the enchantress because even though she wanted to hurt Rhen, she not only hurt his family but his whole kingdom and that was extremely unnecessary. Because the last half of the book is so interesting, I can’t wait to read the next novel in the series, “A Heart so Fierce and Broken”. I really love these book titles!
Written by Julia, Teen Volunteer
CBPL Reviews 