At Bookview Cafe, Sherwood Smith reviews Rosmund Hodge’s Cruel Beauty and goes on to discuss the history and the many variations on the story of “The Beauty and the Beast.” “At my age, I find that the more interesting versions of the tale are not just about heroine versus sexy-but-dangerous hero/villain. Though that can be fun! Ambivalence about violence, anger versus love, fear of the Other, dealing with strife in the family and the weirdness of the unknown, all have been duly explored within the familiar tropes of the tale.”