I enjoyed this a lot - but it's kind of a mess. There's not a lot of character development and there's very little in the way of world building. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be modern or historical or what the rules of this universe are. Only some people have magic? Some people are fairytale characters?

But the plot is action packed and funny.

Courting the Beast begins with an introduction to Princess Jay, a tomboy and the bane of her fairy godmother's existence. Princess Jay would rather play basketball than dance. She can't sew, she doesn't clean and she stages mock battles with her pet dragon. Which is problematic because she is a princess and as a princess her fairy godmother needs her to undergo trials to find a husband. Or maybe not a husband but love? Honestly I'm not entirely sure - the world building was kind of iffy in this respect - you kind of just have to roll with it. Anyway so she can't be tested by the usual methods - the sleeping princess curse, the seven dwarves, dragon captive which frankly brings up another point because later, Winstead explains that Alex's biological mother was a failed Red Riding Hood? Which is interesting but confusing and not very well explained. - so her fairy godmother is stuck and left feeling like a failure. Enter Winstead - a fairy godfather. He comes up with a plan - if the princess won't be a princess - maybe she should undergo a prince trial. So he changes the story and Princess Jay is turned into the beast from Beauty and the Beast.

Jay isn't really all that bothered. Sure the claws and hair kind of suck, but her basketball game has really improved with her ability to jump high enough for slam dunks. If it was just her, she could be happy. Unfortunately part of the curse also has the rest of the castle staff turned invisible and she feels guilty that her staff are suffering. I liked Jay. She was sweet and caring and funny. And I loved her passion for sports, all sport, any sport. And she was smart and logical. I liked that if she had to pick a husband she was going to pick one she liked - one who shared her interests so they'd have something to talk about/do. Not just the first pretty face she sees.

Alex is the handsomest man in the kingdom - and he hates it. When he hears a rumour about the old castle on the hill being haunted by a werewolf he thinks this might be his chance to break free of his reputation as a beauty and become something else - a werewolf slayer. Or a tough hero - he's not really fussed. He finishes up work at his parents flower shop and then takes off to the castle.

I'm not really sure what the deal is here because Alex is also required to marry a princess? Or participate in a fairytale story? As I said world building is iffy. And I mean sure he's Winstead's (the fairy godfather) son but it still doesn't really explain anything - shouldn't that mean he becomes a fairy godfather? Anyway so he heads up to the castle to slay a werewolf, meets a fairy godmother who tells him it's not his story (and if that's what he's been avoiding why on earth does he continue on?), runs into a disembodied voice who tells him to go away and finds a lovely rose just lying on the ground.

Jay forgets her lovely rose and goes back for it only to find Alex hasn't left the clearing and he would like a picture of her to prove he's met a werewolf. He's upset to find she's not a werewolf but a princess and so begins Alex's quest to help her break the curse. Not because he wants to - but because when she visits his place to get her rose back his parents make him.

I'm not sure how I feel about Alex. I didn't really like him. He had some funny moments and remarks but he was kind of a jerk. I didn't understand the romance between them - there was no real basis but I liked that they didn't just get married at the end. They have only known each other for a few weeks. I did like that she makes him beat her at basketball because she has "high standards".

I'm not sure if the author was trying to argue for women's rights or argue against them. There were some strange comments about females needing men and society's ideas of beauty. It was odd. But it fitted with the plot which was also a bit of a mess of mixed messages, ideas and characters. A good editor should be able to tighten the plot and world building - there are some interesting ideas and a lot of potential it just slightly misses the mark. That said, it is really enjoyable and I liked it. So 3 stars but a great editor could get this above 4. ( )