By the Book

Isabelle lives with celebrity Beau Towers while trying to force him to finish his memoir.

Isabelle "Izzy" Marlowe loves to read and leaves her bookstore job for her dream of working in publishing at Tale as Old as Time (TAOAT). Her job ends up being less than ideal and she hides her unhappiness behind a super sunny, upbeat mask. Her dream job is at publishing rival Maurice.

Izzy's hopes of promotion after two years seem bleak, which makes her daring. When her boss says they need a new tactic to deal with nonresponsive celebrity Beau Towers, she volunteers to visit his house in Santa Barbara to convince him to finally finish his memoir.

When Izzy offers to give Beau a pep talk to help his creative process, Beau accepts and says she can stay with him and give him daily encouragement. Izzy is floored but agrees to impress her boss and enjoy the warm Santa Barbara weather. As the memoir is written, Izzy and Beau feel their attraction intensifying.

By the Book is the second novel in the Meant to Be series, which are modern retellings of Disney fairytales. This novel is a reimagining of Beauty and the Beast and reading the first book in the series is not necessary to enjoy this one.

Belle and Beau literally both mean beauty, so here the beast is a super hot guy with a gruff and antagonistic demeanor. Izzy feels like she is imprisoned in a hostile environment while living with Beau at first, but she has her freedom and isn’t subject to Beau’s whims. Her parents are safe in New York City. Izzy’s job could also be considered a prison of sorts. Minus Stockholm syndrome and magical singing household items, the story didn’t feel much like a retelling of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.

Recommended for romance fans who enjoy a diverse cast and the forced proximity trope.

Jasmine Guillory is the bestselling author of The Wedding Date series. She lives in Oakland, California.

Series: Meant to Be, #2

Publisher: Hyperion Avenue

Length: 320 pages

Release Date: May 3, 2022

Representation: African-American main character, Indian-American

I received an electronic galley copy of this title from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.