All Evie wants is to be a healer. In fact, she’s running quite a fruitful apothocary for her village in Jenn with her best friend, Wormy as her first patient and bookkeeper.

But much to Evie’s distress, Wormy likes her far more than a friend. Even though they’re way too young in Evie’s opinion but Wormy proposes to her, and when she turns him down, the meddlesome fairy, Lucinda turns her into an ogre!

Evie’s even more distressed than the original marriage proposal as this transformation prevents her from living with her family or continuing her work as everyone wants to kill her and her new ogre instincts make everyone so edible.

And the only way to reverse the curse before it becomes permenant is to find someone else to propose to her and accept it.

Levine brings a delightful new take to this Beauty and the Beast tale by expanding on the lore of ogres in the kingdom of Kyrria from the ogres’ side when Evie meets up with a band and comes to see their sorta-humanity and their individuality that she had been too terrified to see before. She even learns ogre persuasion so she has some hope of getting clients again.

But the troubles of being an ogre don’t care compare to the troubles of love. Evie is totally uninterested but now that she’s forced to find someone, she’s forced to think quickly of what she’d be able to tolerate in a man and how she may be able to convince the man of her civility and humanness when the curse prevents her from telling anyone about it.

Levine creates a riveting tale of three potential suitors, the smooth-talking charmer, a noble long lost prince, and the loyal, steadfast friend that each represent potential hope for Evie but is she willing to settle for potential love just to get rid of the curse?

I like how that is a continuing thread (admist a barley blight epidemic and constant mob formations) in Evie’s mind, keeping it realistic despite the fairytale. In fact, Evie’s reservations and contingency plans/acceptence of her potential fate of ogress is what makes the eventual proposal even more romantic because you can see her slow realization that the man is truly someone she wants and not someone she’s settling for.

There’s also the exciting side-plot of court intrigue and ursurpers highlighted by those who want Evie gone and those who do their best to have her accepted by society, showing the kindness of strangers and those willing to look beyond appearences.

This was a delightful return to the kingdom of Kyrria with a sweet love story at its core with fun cameos from Ella Enchanted like Lucinda, Mandy and the like. A worthy sequel.

4 stars.