The Beast and the Bethany

By Jack Meggitt-Phillips, Isabelle Follath (Illustrator)

Part of the The Beast and the Bethany series

An immortal man must choose between beauty and a child's life when a beast demands a new meal.

4.0/5 Goodreads · 2,956 ratings

240 pages· 36,578 words· Est. 4 hour read

$18.99Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

Ebenezer Tweezer has stayed young for centuries by feeding a beast in his attic. But when the creature demands a child, Ebenezer targets the unruly Bethany. As he prepares to sacrifice her, he discovers she might be more friend than feast. Can Ebenezer defy the beast and save Bethany, or will his vanity cost him everything?

From the publisher

Lemony Snicket meets Roald Dahl in this “wickedly funny” (James Ponti, New York Times bestselling author), deliciously macabre, and highly illustrated tale of a hungry beast, a vain immortal man, and a not-so-charming little girl who doesn’t know she’s about to be eaten. Beauty comes at a price. And no one knows that better than Ebenezer Tweezer, who has stayed beautiful for 511 years. How, you may wonder? Ebenezer simply has to feed the beast in the attic of his mansion. In return for meals of performing monkeys, statues of Winston Churchill, and the occasional cactus, Ebenezer gets potions that keep him young and beautiful, as well as other presents. But the beast grows ever greedier with each meal, and one day he announces that he’d like to eat a nice, juicy child next. Ebenezer has never done anything quite this terrible to hold onto his wonderful life. Still, he finds the absolutely snottiest, naughtiest, and most frankly unpleasant child he can and prepares to feed her to the beast. The child, Bethany, may just be more than Ebenezer bargained for. She’s certainly a really rather rude houseguest, but Ebenezer still finds himself wishing she didn’t have to be gobbled up after all. Could it be Bethany is less meal-worthy and more…friend-worthy?

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