Review by Kelly Jarvis: Dearest Beast by Felicia Grossman

Dearest Beast is the latest regency fairy tale romance in Felicia Grossman’s Once Upon the East End series, following her Cinderella and Snow-White retellings (Marry Me by Midnight and Wake Me Most Wickedly). It brings all the passion and swoon loyal readers have come to expect. When Roger Berab, a widower with two children, is forced to offer shelter to a midwife named Rebecca Adler after his daughter inadvertently damages her home and laboratory, it seems a mild inconvenience. But Robert and Rebecca, two people unsuited to one another in all ways but the physical, once shared a night of torrid passion that lingers in their minds even though they both want to forget it. As Roger makes plans to marry a much younger woman who can serve as a dignified wife and mother, he continues to wrestle with his attraction to Rebecca, forcing him to reevaluate all he holds dear.

Grossman’s books are historical romance at its best, and she deftly weaves real-world details into her fairy tale plots, educating readers about the plight of Jewish people during the Regency era. Characters are both Ashkenazi and Sephardi, and Grossman poignantly illustrates the conflicts between them and the gentile world as she introduces Jewish traditions, rituals, and beliefs. A note at the back of the book provides in-depth historical context for the characters and situations in the story, connecting the miraculous transformations found in fairy tales to the social transformations required to combat contemporary prejudice and marginalization. These poignant messages are balanced with witty banter and dialogue that often makes me laugh out loud. Grossman’s ability to provide Jewish representation while gifting her readers a romance propelled by joy, heat, and passion is admirable, and this is what sets her work apart from typical regency love stories.

Beauty and the Beast is my favorite fairy tale, so while I have long been a fan of Grossman’s Once Upon the East End series, it came as no surprise that Dearest Beast is my favorite so far! Fans of the series will recognize characters like Isabelle, Hannah, and Sol, but those new to Grossman will easily navigate the East End as they note the markers of a Beauty and the Beast story: a couple ill-suited to each other but simmering with passion, a hothouse of cultivated roses, and a luscious library, three stories high with ladders climbing up to the ceiling and warm patterned rugs on the floor. The relationship between Roger and Rebecca is the quintessential enemies-to-lovers tale, and at thirty-six and thirty years of age respectively, they are far from inexperienced in matters of the flesh. Their frank discussions of sexual intimacy and their unadulterated joy in its other’s bodies is refreshing, and I adore Grossman’s balance between steamy scenes and family scenes that show Roger's children grappling with their father’s new relationship. The children fall in love with Rebecca as surely as Roger does, and readers will eagerly keep turning pages as the “beastly” woman “Awful Roger” wants removed from his home and life becomes the woman he cannot live without.

If you enjoy smart, witty, and steamy fairy tale-themed romance, pick up a copy of Dearest Beast. I loved it! You can find it here.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair review.

Kelly Jarvis teaches writing, literature, fairy tale, and folklore at Central Connecticut State University and works as a Contributing Writer for The Fairy Tale Magazine and a Recurring Columnist for Eternal Haunted Summer. Her debut novella, Selkie Moon, was selected as a semi-finalist in the Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship, and her historical romance, Sea and Stars, publishes in July 2026. You can learn more about her at https://kellyjarviswriter.com/