| St. Rosetta’s Academy Book 1 |
From the New York Times bestselling author of When Dimple Met Rishi comes the first novel in a brand-new series set at an elite international boarding school, that’s a contemporary spin on Beauty and the Beast.
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.
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My Review: 5/5 Stars
Absolutely loved this book! It was an excellent retelling of Beauty and the Beast as a young adult contemporary romance. Done absolutely beautifully and I expected nothing less from Sandhya Menon. Brilliant, talented author that she is. Of Curses and Kisses follows Jaya and Grey. Jaya and her sister have come to St. Rosetta’s to escape the scandal that surrounds their family back home. But Isha has other plans, to get revenge on the Emerson family, their family rival for generations. Little does she know and realize that Grey Emerson is the last person who wishes to hurt the Raos. Jaya is convinced she knows the “truth” and she plans to make Grey fall in love with her and break his heart. But, that proves to be a challenge since Grey is the most antisocial person at the academy. The rivalry between the Raos and Emersons dates back to when the Emersons stole a ruby from them, in retaliation, the Raos curses the ruby and the family. Though it’s been a long time the Emersons took the curse to heart. Especially Grey’s father who knows the prophecy and has passed it to on Grey the moment the kid could understand the words. Grey has shut himself from the world. Convinced he is cursed and that to protect everyone, he has to stay away from them. He thinks he is destined to die on his eighteenth birthday and has just about accepted it...until Jaya walks into his life. Let’s just say things get complicated between them. Jaya can see how unlikely it is Grey was the one who told the press about her sister, yet she can’t let it go. As you can guess nothing goes according to plan. Especially when the two of them begin to fall in love for real.
So what I loved about this book was that it wasn’t totally predictable. Some parts I’m sure you can guess, like truths are revealed. But getting there? No way to predict it. The Beauty and the Beast parallels were pretty brilliant. I loved them. And seeing Jaya and Grey’s relationship grow was so sweet. It didn’t feel rushed and fake. Despite Jaya’s ulterior motives at first. And the curse was a nice touch. Again, had the parallel but it touched upon the supernatural, especially when it came to Jaya’s rose ruby necklace. Overall, I adored this book. The characters were all great and interesting. And I’m so glad there are two more coming! I cannot wait to find out who the main characters are for the next two books. There were honestly a lot of good side characters whose stories i would love to read. Two books doesn’t sound like enough! Great, great story. If you love her previous books, then you definitely want to read this one.
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