Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon

**I WAS GIFTED AN ARC OF ‘OF CURSES AND KISSES BY HODDER & STOUGHTON IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW AND ALL OPINIONS ARE COMPLETELY AND HONESTLY MY OWN**

 

 

Will the princess save the beast?

For Princess Jaya Rao, nothing is more important than family. When the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s little sister, nothing will keep Jaya from exacting her revenge. Then Jaya finds out she’ll be attending the same elite boarding school as Grey Emerson, and it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. She knows what she must do: Make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But much to Jaya’s annoyance, Grey’s brooding demeanor and lupine blue eyes have drawn her in. There’s simply no way she and her sworn enemy could find their fairy-tale ending…right?

His Lordship Grey Emerson is a misanthrope. Thanks to an ancient curse by a Rao matriarch, Grey knows he’s doomed once he turns eighteen. Sequestered away in the mountains at St. Rosetta’s International Academy, he’s lived an isolated existence—until Jaya Rao bursts into his life, but he can’t shake the feeling that she’s hiding something. Something that might just have to do with the rose-shaped ruby pendant around her neck…

As the stars conspire to keep them apart, Jaya and Grey grapple with questions of love, loyalty, and whether it’s possible to write your own happy ending.

18th February 2020.

I love retellings, especially when it comes to Beauty and the Beast retellings, so I knew instantly I had to read this one. Of Curses and Kisses was unlike any retelling I’ve ever read before. Jaya and Grey both had their own POV’s which I love, it helps us readers really understand and connect with the main characters more.  None of the characters we met were perfect people, they all had their flaws which made them feel so realistic, they were honestly amazing characters. You can tell Sandhya took her time really fleshing out all of her characters not just our main two. I feel like even though we have already learnt so much about them all in this first book, we are going to learn so much more throughout the series! I adored Jaya’s love for her sister Isha, and her willingness to do whatever she needs to do to fully serve her people was phenomenal.

The romance was beautiful, from the moment they met, right up to the very end of the book. It was simply phenomenal; I don’t know how Sandhya does it but all of her romances are the best. They are different but in a perfect way. Seeing Jaya and Grey’s emotions flow through the pages was pure delight, but also heart-breaking at certain points. I do think the pain and heartbreak we experienced was necessary to fully sculpt the beautiful story and romance Sandhya made. I’m still honestly so amazed at how well she does with sculpting her stories so perfectly, she never falls down your typical romance plot holes and they always feel so realistic!

I adore the fact that all of Sandhya’s books follow multicultural representations. Other than her books I haven’t read many books that focus around Middle Eastern/Indian cultures. It really hits at any misconceptions, while also showing us a lot about the fight for equality and modernization. Having St. Rosetta set as an international boarding school is going to play put perfectly, I think. I can’t wait to see how the series continues and what cultures/retellings we are going to see next.

I highly urge you all to pick up Of Curses and Kisses as it’s a fast paced read that you will honestly struggle to put down. You’ll feel all the emotions as you read the story of Jaya and Grey, how their romance blossoms, how hatred and revenge turns into a beautiful love. I’m going to leave my review here, but I could honestly go on and talk about this book for hours! GO READ IT!!!!!!!