Reviews

The Beasts We Bury by D.L. Taylor

izzys_internet_bookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Wow, it felt like it took me a month to finish this book. Not that it was the books fault, I was just busy 😅. Ok, for starters, my favorite part about the book was its magic system. I just found it to be so different. Second, was the characters, I enjoyed Mancella and Silver a lot but I could just barely see them as a couple. I liked the battle between the Prime and Mancella and the heist, the most. My biggest issue with the story is that I really wanted more world building. I felt like I kind of knew the characters and the world but I never felt like I was really there. With that said I felt like Alects character wasn’t as impactful for me as some of the others, and I wish there was more time with him. With that I also wish there was more scenes of Mara and Mancella as well, whether it was flashbacks or in the beginning.

solostars123's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

matharoni's review against another edition

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.5

justellie's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

3.75

daniobsessivelyreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional medium-paced

3.0

**𝑨𝑹𝑪 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘** 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝑾𝒆 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒚 𝒃𝒚 𝑫.𝑳. 𝑻𝒂𝒚𝒍𝒐𝒓 (𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝑪𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒍, #1)

Release Date: February 4, 2025

3⭐️n/a🌶

I DNFed this a few chapters in. I wasn't engaged with the characters. The characters seemed rather simple, and the world building was not what I needed it to be. I like the premise of the FMC collecting the souls of the beasts she kills, but I needed more depth to the rest of the story.

Thank you to @netgalley for this ARC read!

kieranfinn's review against another edition

tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

chrstn's review against another edition

dark funny sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

akacya's review against another edition

3.0

2025 reads: 31/300

2025 tbr: 13/111

i received an advanced listening copy from the publisher as part of their influencer program. this did not affect my rating.

content warnings: animal death, child abuse (forced to train as soldiers, punishment resulting from this), abusive parent

mancella cliff yearns for a life without bloodshed. as the heir to the throne, though, this is not possible. to strengthen her power, her father forces her to kill animals with her bare hands.

silver is a thief struggling to survive in a world torn by mancella’s father’s reign. when he receives a chance to rob the castle, he sees it as an opportunity to have a real future and get his revenge. as the two work toward their own goals—silver with the heist, mancella with saving her realm—they must decide how much they’re willing to give.

this seemed like such an interesting book. i’ve never read a book featuring powers like mancella’s. (on that note, if you are highly sensitive to animal cruelty/death, i would avoid this book.) i also typically like when there’s a thief/rebel who ends up falling for the royal they were sent to take down. while i did end up enjoying these aspects of the book, unfortunately, the plot just did not do it for me. it was okay, but pretty basic, so it didn’t quite captivate me like i’d hoped it would. with that said, i can see the author’s potential. i’d be willing to give her another try should she write more books.

narration: there were two narrators, brenda scott wlazlo and jake chronister, to reflect the dual pov in the book. i thought the narrators did a good job of narrating this book!

aliciareadz's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

textiles4you's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Song: Beast Within by In This Moment