Book Review: The Beast is an Animal by Peternelle Van Arsdale

Release Date: February 28th, 2017
Read: February 26th- March 6th, 2017
Publisher: McElderry Books
Series: Standalone
Format: ARC, 352 pages
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Description from GoodReads:

   Alys was seven the first time she saw the soul eaters. Twin sisters, they radiated an energy that excited Alys. Through them she felt the wildness of the fforest, and The Beast within it. Too late, she learned of their power to destroy.

   By the time she is fifteen, Alys knows too much about both the lure and the danger of the soul eaters. She lives in a world of adults who are terrified of their power, and who cower behind high walls and grim rules. Fear of the soul eaters—and of The Beast—rules their lives. Even more, they fear the ways in which The Beast may lurk among them—and within a girl like Alys.

  For Alys has a connection to the soul eaters, and The Beast. And she hides a truth about herself that she can reveal to no one, for fear she will be called a witch. As the threat posed by the soul eaters grows, Alys must undertake a journey through the wild danger of the fforest. But the greatest danger is not outside her. Alys’s secret about who—and what—she is terrifies her most of all. And in order to save her world, she must also risk losing herself.

Review:

    You think you're safe in your snug bed.
    I hadn't really known what to expect when I had picked up The Beast is an Animal. I had heard some whisperings about it, but otherwise it was a mystery to me. When the book popped up on the blogger request form from the publisher, I knew it was my chance to give the book a go!
   The Beast is an Animal was odd, but I really enjoyed it. The book takes place in a world where you are burned if you have anything slightly 'witchy' about you. The book felt like a good old witch hunt book, except with some changes. In this story, we got The Beast and the Soul Eaters. I found them intriguing, yet somewhat terrifying all at once, almost like our main character Alys.
   Alys is one of our protagonists in the book, along with the Soul Eaters. Their point of views rotated depending on if the Soul-Eaters had anything to had to the plot. Having Alys as our protagonist was something new for me, we first get to know her when she's 7 years old, and she continues to age as the book goes on. It was really interesting to see her character development from over a span of years rather than a few weeks like some YA books.
   There was only a few things that I didn't like about the story, one being the way the people of Dafaid treated the children of Gwenith, but that was purposefully done by the author, and the plot holes where our Soul-Eaters and The Beast were concerned. I felt like there was no plan when it came to resolving the story and getting rid of the villains, in the end it felt as if the author just threw in a random thing/way to complete the story.
   The Beast is an Animal was an interesting new take on witches and monsters, with a unique writing style that was unlike anything I've read before. I can't wait to see what Peternelle Van Arsdale has in store for us next! 

Rating:

Favourite Quote:

"Is one of them singing to you, Alys?"

Recommend to People Who Enjoy:

Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Monsters, Villages