Book Review ~ How Beauty Met the Beast

How Beauty Met the Beast (Tales of the Underlight #1)
by Jax Garren
published by Carina Press
genre: Adult, Urban Fantasy

**received from publisher via netgalley in exchange for honest review

Summary (Goodreads): The Beast

Scarred. Damaged. Living with a terrible secret. Agent of the Underlight Wesley "Hauk" Haukon has nothing left but the fight for liberty against the oppressive Order of Ananke. He's starting to lose hope…and then he sees her.

The Beauty

Despite her night job as a burlesque dancer, grad student Jolie Benoit has always played the mostly good girl. That all changes following a scorching sexual encounter with a stranger whose face she doesn't see. After she's kidnapped by thugs and rescued by a man with a very familiar voice, Jolie becomes a pawn in a struggle she never knew existed.

Hauk knows he cannot have her, and resolves to protect his heart and his secrets. But as they work together and grow closer, he finds new reason to keep fighting. Dare he risk hope in a new life, one where Jolie can see past his ravaged face and where their friendship can grow into something more?

My Thoughts: This wasn't a bad story, it just did not feel like the first book in a series. While reading this I continually felt like I was reading a prequel to a well established series. One where I should know more about the characters and world than I did going into this.
I still enjoyed the story. I liked Hauk and the Underworld. I can definitely see myself reading more about the goings on in this world. I just wish the first book was longer and gave us more of the world and characters so I felt like I HAD to read the next book rather than just being curious.

Rating: 3