Beauty and the Beast Parallels in “Wicked Abyss” by Kresley Cole

Wicked Abyss is the latest stand-alone instalment in the Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole. It follows the story of Princess Calliope “Lila” Barbot of the Sylvan Fey line and the Primordial Demon King, Abyssian “Sian” Infernas of Pandemonium or otherwise known as Hell.

Yes, you read that right. These are new characters. It’s not Munro’s or Kristoff’s or Balery’s or Furie’s or Nix’s or any other character in the series whom we are all waiting for to have their love stories told. When I first learned this, I was as frustrated as a lot of other fans.

Once I started reading Wicked Abyss, though, I didn’t mind so much. It’s got all the characteristics that made me love Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark books: the alpha male hero, the headstrong heroine, sexy scenes, and a whole lot of fun.

One unique element that stood out to me was the many parallelisms to the fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. It’s probably my 2nd favourite Disney movie (my 1st is Moana) and I was pleasantly surprised at how it was incorporated into Lila and Sian’s story.

Haven’t read the Immortals After Dark series yet? Get them on Book Depository today:

1. The Warlord Wants Forever
2. A Hunger Like No Other
3. No Rest for the Wicked
4. Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night
5. Dark Needs at Night's Edge 
6. Dark Desires After Dusk
7. Kiss of a Demon King
8. Deep Kiss of Winter (Untouchable)
9. Pleasure of a Dark Prince
10. Demon from the Dark
11. Dreams of a Dark Warrior
12. Lothaire
13. Shadow's Claim
14. MacRieve
15. Dark Skye
16. Sweet Ruin
17. Shadow's Seduction
18. Wicked Abyss

Beauty and the Beast gets an Immortals After Dark Twist

Outcast Belle vs. Outcast Lila

In Beauty and the Beast (BATB), Belle is a bookish young woman living in a small village that doesn’t understand her love of books. Lila, on the other hand, is a fey princess who was exiled to the human world by King Saetth because of the crimes of her parents. Like Belle, she doesn’t have any friends and spends all her time speed reading books and learning new languages.

A Prince cursed to be a Beast vs. A Hell-cursed King becoming a Beast

Prince Adam in BATB was arrogant and vain which is why an enchantress transformed him into a beast. While Sian does have his own faults, his personality is not the reason for his cursed appearance. He ascended the throne of Pandemonium after his brother, the late King Gourlav, was killed in Book #13 Shadow’s Claim. As the new king of Hell, he is now “hell-cursed” which means his appearance will slowly reflect his terrible environment. The more time passes, the more beastly he becomes.

READ: Top 6 Couples in the Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole

Fairy Enchantress vs. Valkyrie Soothsayer

Unlike BATB’s enchantress who was behind Prince Adam’s transformation, the person behind the plot to bring Lila and Sian together is none other than Nix the Ever-Knowing, also known as Nucking Futs Nix. She is a Valkyrie Soothsayer who is pretty much in all of the books because she’s been pairing up all of the couples in her bid as the Goddess of Accessions. While she only had a couple of scenes in Wicked Abyss, her influence is very much there.

Enchanted Home Decor vs. Enchanted Castle

While there were no talking clocks, candles, or pots in Wicked Abyss, Sian’s residence is an enchanted castle. It reminded me of the Room of Requirement in the Harry Potter series because it seems to know what you need when you need it and it will give it to you at the right time. The castle’s name is Graven and it meddles (in a good way) into Lila’s and Sian’s love life quite a bit in this book.

The next one is a little bit of a spoiler. I, personally, don’t think it is because we all know what happens in Beauty and the Beast. But here’s a warning anyway.

True Love’s Kiss vs. True Love’s Remorse

Before the last rose petal fell, Belle kissed Prince Adam and he transformed back to his human self. In Wicked Abyss, Sian is transformed- not by a kiss- but by his remorse of all the bad things he’s said and done to Lila. I mean, this wouldn’t be a Kresley Cole book without a healthy dose of grovelling from either the hero or the heroine. In both cases, an act of true love sets the man free from his curse and the couple have their happily-ever-after.

Final Thoughts

Wicked Abyss was an amusing read. It’s may not be the best in the series, but it does have a lot of the elements that make this story world so much fun to revisit. It’s the 18th book already and I haven’t missed a single one.

I’m crossing my fingers for the 19th story to be Munro MacRieve’s. It’s about time we get another Lykae novel! Who would you like to star in the next Immortals After Dark book?