Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
Tried first to listen, then to read a physical copy. I could not stay with this book and avoided picking it up again. I’m sparing it a star rating because I don’t think I got through enough of it to actually rate the quality of the work. I think I’ve just aged out of YA books, sadly.
This book was so good! So many times I was like! OH MY GOSH!!! So good!!
Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of Beasts of Prey!!
This is an incredible YA fantasy debut! It is quite simply a beautifully woven story about two characters from different places in their society who struggle to figure out their place and who come to realize that they have been lied to about some key features of their world throughout their lives. It also features some super awesome magical animals (a whole Night Zoo full of them!) and some really breathtaking world-building. The characters, both main characters and side characters, are very deep and well-crafted, and I was left wanting to know what happens next. I also really loved the weaving of past and present throughout the book, and though I'm usually bothered a lot when there are random first-person parts in a mostly third-person novel, I didn't mind it here, and I actually thought it worked very well due to Ayana Gray's incredible writing ability. I also really loved all the African influences in the story, and it made me want to learn more about African mythology.
Beasts of Prey is one of my favorite YA fantasy novels of the year, and I highly recommend it!!
This is an incredible YA fantasy debut! It is quite simply a beautifully woven story about two characters from different places in their society who struggle to figure out their place and who come to realize that they have been lied to about some key features of their world throughout their lives. It also features some super awesome magical animals (a whole Night Zoo full of them!) and some really breathtaking world-building. The characters, both main characters and side characters, are very deep and well-crafted, and I was left wanting to know what happens next. I also really loved the weaving of past and present throughout the book, and though I'm usually bothered a lot when there are random first-person parts in a mostly third-person novel, I didn't mind it here, and I actually thought it worked very well due to Ayana Gray's incredible writing ability. I also really loved all the African influences in the story, and it made me want to learn more about African mythology.
Beasts of Prey is one of my favorite YA fantasy novels of the year, and I highly recommend it!!
I liked this book- it was a really quick read- when I forced myself to sit down and actually read it. I liked the first plot twist, I guessed the second and the cliffhanger wasn’t too awful.
Damn, this book was hella long to end up just being okay. I feel like any time I find myself watching the clock on an audiobook and seeing how much time I have left, it's just really not that fun of a read.
Koffi is an indentured servant at the Night Zoo along with her mom - a position they've been in for the last literal 11 years. The Night Zoo is a sort of touristy attraction with some scary beasts, and Koffi and her mom help handle them. They're super close to paying off their debt until something bad happens.
Ekon is a kid with either anxiety, OCD, PTSD, or just a mix of all of it. His dad was a Son of the Six, part of the sort of militia where they live, and he died in the jungle when Ekon was a kid. Ekon was there, and since then, he suffers from some personal issues, obviously. Ekon's older brother is a Son of the Six, and Ekon himself is working towards becoming one. He feels it's the best way to get approval from his community, his brother, and maybe even prove himself in his dads' memory, as well.
The night something goes down at the Night Zoo, Ekon is there with the Sons of the Six stopping chaos, but also stopping the indentured servants from running away in the clamor, because legally they're the property of the Night Zoo's owner. Ekon and Koffi have a moment as Koffi's running off, and they both see the deadly legendary beast, the Shetani. The Shetani killed Ekon's father, and lots of other people, and Ekon is so stunned that he ends up letting Koffi go. It gets him a lot of scrutiny, and oh yeah, cancels his chances of joining the Sons of the Six.
Not to be anymore spoilery, but essentially they both find themselves in a position in which hunting down the Shetani is just about their only chance of their life paths turning back to remotely what they were before that night at the Night Zoo. They end up teaming up, because logically it just makes sense to go with a buddy into the deadly jungle that literally no one goes into because they die.
Now, I was told this story was enemies-to-lovers. Not that I need that in my stories to survive, but if you promise it to me, I'm going to look for it. They weren't ever really enemies - they just didn't get along that well. Like, if anything, they kinda just aggravated each other. And, frankly, they weren't really lovers either. They ended up liking each other romantically, yeah, but I just felt a lack of depth needed to really be convinced that it was actual chemistry, and wasn't just because they survived a bunch of scary stuff in the jungle together.
Because survive it all, they did. And there was quite a bunch of it. Scary spiders, a scary man-spider, a weird scary dream fog, a poisonous tree, a really fucking odd elephant-headed snake... basically, my pals went through it out there. And to avoid spoilers yet again, I'll just say it didn't get any easier when they got home.
I think I'll read the sequel, because I did like the way it ended. And there was nothing offensive about the story at all, nothing I hated or thought was awful. It really just was a lot of pages that left me not disappointed, just unimpressed. But I definitely think the story has a lot of space to expand in the next installment and think we could see the characters finding themselves more and also exploring their relationship a little deeper.
Koffi is an indentured servant at the Night Zoo along with her mom - a position they've been in for the last literal 11 years. The Night Zoo is a sort of touristy attraction with some scary beasts, and Koffi and her mom help handle them. They're super close to paying off their debt until something bad happens.
Ekon is a kid with either anxiety, OCD, PTSD, or just a mix of all of it. His dad was a Son of the Six, part of the sort of militia where they live, and he died in the jungle when Ekon was a kid. Ekon was there, and since then, he suffers from some personal issues, obviously. Ekon's older brother is a Son of the Six, and Ekon himself is working towards becoming one. He feels it's the best way to get approval from his community, his brother, and maybe even prove himself in his dads' memory, as well.
The night something goes down at the Night Zoo, Ekon is there with the Sons of the Six stopping chaos, but also stopping the indentured servants from running away in the clamor, because legally they're the property of the Night Zoo's owner. Ekon and Koffi have a moment as Koffi's running off, and they both see the deadly legendary beast, the Shetani. The Shetani killed Ekon's father, and lots of other people, and Ekon is so stunned that he ends up letting Koffi go. It gets him a lot of scrutiny, and oh yeah, cancels his chances of joining the Sons of the Six.
Not to be anymore spoilery, but essentially they both find themselves in a position in which hunting down the Shetani is just about their only chance of their life paths turning back to remotely what they were before that night at the Night Zoo. They end up teaming up, because logically it just makes sense to go with a buddy into the deadly jungle that literally no one goes into because they die.
Now, I was told this story was enemies-to-lovers. Not that I need that in my stories to survive, but if you promise it to me, I'm going to look for it. They weren't ever really enemies - they just didn't get along that well. Like, if anything, they kinda just aggravated each other. And, frankly, they weren't really lovers either. They ended up liking each other romantically, yeah, but I just felt a lack of depth needed to really be convinced that it was actual chemistry, and wasn't just because they survived a bunch of scary stuff in the jungle together.
Because survive it all, they did. And there was quite a bunch of it. Scary spiders, a scary man-spider, a weird scary dream fog, a poisonous tree, a really fucking odd elephant-headed snake... basically, my pals went through it out there. And to avoid spoilers yet again, I'll just say it didn't get any easier when they got home.
I think I'll read the sequel, because I did like the way it ended. And there was nothing offensive about the story at all, nothing I hated or thought was awful. It really just was a lot of pages that left me not disappointed, just unimpressed. But I definitely think the story has a lot of space to expand in the next installment and think we could see the characters finding themselves more and also exploring their relationship a little deeper.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
This book is nothing short of spectacular.
It sparks the reader’s imagination to life.
I have never read a prologue like the one in BoP. It was bewitching, and from that moment, I knew this would be a story that would hold me captive until the very last word and beyond.
The language is breathtaking. It conjures up such a magnificent world, a world steeped in vibrancy & grandeur. Beautifully rich in culture and history. An immersive landscape so alive you can almost feel the rough terrain underfoot and smell all the intoxicating scents that fill the air.
For me, the writing is as beautiful as the story itself.
I could gush about this book for the rest of my life (or until book two comes out). It is marvellous.
I adore the correlation between Koffi & Ekon and Adiah & Tao. Especially Koffi and Adiah. Centuries apart, but it is like they are the same person.
Koffi & Adiah are strong, independent young women following a predetermined path, one they are trying to escape and find their way, free from the shackles that bind them.
Ekon & Tao are the silent, book-smart friend. The sensible ones, using their heads and not their hearts. Logical, but strong in their way.
These are characters you love and walk with side by side as they make their perilous journey.
Honestly, I could go on and on, but if you are yet to discover this Mary Poppins of a book (practically perfect in every way), then I shall add a few more wonderous things that await you.
*Creatures and beasts equally terrifying as well as beautiful.
*Intricate & divine descriptions/imagery.
*Revelations that I knew/hoped would be revealed along with others that took me by surprise.
*The Night Zoo = Majestic.
And finally, a beautiful friendship that gradually builds, but not one that overpowers the story, yet still, your heart has hope for what is yet to come for Koffi & Ekon.
I wanted to mark this down, even if just by 0.5, for a scene involving certain eight-legged things, but I cannot do it. I love it too much.
Thank you, Ayana Gray, for my introduction to Pan-African Mythology and, of course, to @NetGalley & Penguin Random House, for the arc ebook in return for my honest review.
It sparks the reader’s imagination to life.
I have never read a prologue like the one in BoP. It was bewitching, and from that moment, I knew this would be a story that would hold me captive until the very last word and beyond.
The language is breathtaking. It conjures up such a magnificent world, a world steeped in vibrancy & grandeur. Beautifully rich in culture and history. An immersive landscape so alive you can almost feel the rough terrain underfoot and smell all the intoxicating scents that fill the air.
For me, the writing is as beautiful as the story itself.
I could gush about this book for the rest of my life (or until book two comes out). It is marvellous.
I adore the correlation between Koffi & Ekon and Adiah & Tao. Especially Koffi and Adiah. Centuries apart, but it is like they are the same person.
Koffi & Adiah are strong, independent young women following a predetermined path, one they are trying to escape and find their way, free from the shackles that bind them.
Ekon & Tao are the silent, book-smart friend. The sensible ones, using their heads and not their hearts. Logical, but strong in their way.
These are characters you love and walk with side by side as they make their perilous journey.
Honestly, I could go on and on, but if you are yet to discover this Mary Poppins of a book (practically perfect in every way), then I shall add a few more wonderous things that await you.
*Creatures and beasts equally terrifying as well as beautiful.
*Intricate & divine descriptions/imagery.
*Revelations that I knew/hoped would be revealed along with others that took me by surprise.
*The Night Zoo = Majestic.
And finally, a beautiful friendship that gradually builds, but not one that overpowers the story, yet still, your heart has hope for what is yet to come for Koffi & Ekon.
I wanted to mark this down, even if just by 0.5, for a scene involving certain eight-legged things, but I cannot do it. I love it too much.
Thank you, Ayana Gray, for my introduction to Pan-African Mythology and, of course, to @NetGalley & Penguin Random House, for the arc ebook in return for my honest review.
An easy, wonderful read that I enjoyed. Captivating, engaging, and full of suspense, this book is one I can’t wait to recommend my students. With two emotionally flawed characters, and references to African mythology, this is an amazing read!
4,25 ⭐️ J’ai passé un agréable moment en lisant ce premier tome de Beasts of Prey. La plume est fluide et facile à lire. J’ai d’abord eu peur en voyant l’âge moyen des personnages, qui sont plutôt jeunes, mais à aucun moment je n’ai eu le sentiment d’un livre trop jeunesse. Au contraire.
Le world building est très bien amené, on y rencontre des être vivants assez surprenants. Beaucoup de plot twist sont présents, certains étaient quelques peu prévisibles mais plus on avance dans le livre et plus l’autrice arrive à nous surprendre.
Au final, une très bonne lecture. J’achèterais la suite.
Le world building est très bien amené, on y rencontre des être vivants assez surprenants. Beaucoup de plot twist sont présents, certains étaient quelques peu prévisibles mais plus on avance dans le livre et plus l’autrice arrive à nous surprendre.
Au final, une très bonne lecture. J’achèterais la suite.