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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Gr 7 Up. In debut author Ayana Gray’s new Pan-African fantasy trilogy, Koffi, an indentured servant at the Night Zoo, and Ekon, a promising candidate for the elite warrior class, are both tasked with finding the dreaded Shetani, a nightmare creature that lurks in the Greater Jungle and kills indiscriminately. Can they trust each other enough to work together? Lush world-building, a gripping, fast-paced story, and interesting character arcs make for an entertaining read.
As for objectionable content, there is a romantic subplot is present (it’s YA, after all), but no mature romantic content beyond kissing is present. Recommended for fans of Black Panther and Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone.
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC of Beasts of Prey.
As for objectionable content, there is a romantic subplot is present (it’s YA, after all), but no mature romantic content beyond kissing is present. Recommended for fans of Black Panther and Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone.
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC of Beasts of Prey.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Overall this read was just okay for me. The characters were fine but nothing about them really stuck out to me aside from the minor OCD representation. Ultimately, I just couldn't really come to get invested into any of them. The plot did present a fairly interesting tale of magic and adventure although in my case was just not gripping enough. While the author tried to throw in some twists, everything was just too predictable. One of my bigger critiques for this book was how it handled jumping from one character's perspective to another. I have read many books where authors have the perspectives of multiple characters and love it, this book was disappointing on the writing front. One character would be doing something and there will be a moment when their perspective intersects with the other. But then the chapter ends and switches perspectives, the book would go backtrack and redo the same lead up. While there are times when having the perspective of each character for the same event can be nice, having it done each change just gets repetitive quickly.
I will not be continuing this series and would not actively recommend it.
I will not be continuing this series and would not actively recommend it.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a beautifully written book. Rich in ”Pan-African fantasy” and cleverly spins a tale filled with cultures, mythos, and folklore.
I wish I had read the Author's note before reading the book itself. Ayan Gray writes in her author's note about the inspiration behind the books and addressed the mythologies that aspects of this book was based on and it was intriguing to read it. It's always so wonderful to learn so much about another culture. I love reading stories that have historic value, or something that tells something about a time on earth when I wasn't around. It's always so fascinating. I've never sought these out, but whenever I'm presented with a tale I'm always completely engrossed in it. And I'm so grateful to Ayana Gray for so seamlessly weaving this novel, that's so richly tale-full.
The story follows Koffi and Ekon who've coincidentally got the same goal— find the Shetani (that's been hunting and hurting humans and is considered the worst kinda beast). They make their journey to the jungle in hopes of finding the Shetani and that's precisely where the story gets so full with adventures and happenings. The kind of creatures and obstacles they have to face in the jungle is nothing short of fascinating. Somewhere along the lines the two also end up catching feelings for the other, despite the fact that they've both got a secret agenda of what they personally hope to do upon claiming the Shetani. There's a great betrayal on the horizon from both the ends, that neither of them are aware of.
I liked Koffi. And I liked Ekon. Since I'm primarily a romance reader, let me just shamelessly (I'm desperate, I'm sorry lol) speak in terms of tropes. These two have got an opposites-attract thing going on and I love it. Koffi's this unhinged, wild, lively, full-of-life kinda character despite having faced so many disappointments upon disappointments. And Ekon's this put-together, calm and orderly, and disciplined.
Where Koffi's street smart, Ekon is book smart. And they complement each other so well. Which made their journey into the jungle all the more engaging and adventurous.
I devoured their interactions. More often than not, Koffi left Ekon reeling from her bluntness and scandals and it kept me thoroughly entertained and amused.
The plot was good and the plot twists were even better.
The reason for my low rating is because, despite the book being epic, it just wasn't for me. I started reading this in like April of 2023 and finished it only by December of 2023. It's a miracle I didn't dnf it. Throughout the period I tried to resume reading this on multiple occasions and just couldn't. The book failed to hold my interest. Even in December, I had to force myself to read this book bcoz I bought this hardcopy some time ago and I hate to dnf hardcopies simply coz I've got very few and selective hardcopies and they're super expensive— so I hate leaving them unread and cannot make a profit out of selling them. Now, I could jot this down to I just wasn't feeling it. But then again since I tried reading it on multiple occasions, I believe I tried reading it during many variations of my mindset. And it didn't work out. I personally felt like the story started out super slow. I really don't like slow-paced books. It really wasn't happening enough for me, in the beginning. And tbh I was genuinely bored out of mind and had to force myself to look at all the best parts and tried to hold on to it. The writing was seamless— true. But I, personally, had to force myself to stick to the book. Towards the end I did genuinely like the book, so I might read the next book but I'm not sure.
I wish I had read the Author's note before reading the book itself. Ayan Gray writes in her author's note about the inspiration behind the books and addressed the mythologies that aspects of this book was based on and it was intriguing to read it. It's always so wonderful to learn so much about another culture. I love reading stories that have historic value, or something that tells something about a time on earth when I wasn't around. It's always so fascinating. I've never sought these out, but whenever I'm presented with a tale I'm always completely engrossed in it. And I'm so grateful to Ayana Gray for so seamlessly weaving this novel, that's so richly tale-full.
The story follows Koffi and Ekon who've coincidentally got the same goal— find the Shetani (that's been hunting and hurting humans and is considered the worst kinda beast). They make their journey to the jungle in hopes of finding the Shetani and that's precisely where the story gets so full with adventures and happenings. The kind of creatures and obstacles they have to face in the jungle is nothing short of fascinating. Somewhere along the lines the two also end up catching feelings for the other, despite the fact that they've both got a secret agenda of what they personally hope to do upon claiming the Shetani. There's a great betrayal on the horizon from both the ends, that neither of them are aware of.
I liked Koffi. And I liked Ekon. Since I'm primarily a romance reader, let me just shamelessly (I'm desperate, I'm sorry lol) speak in terms of tropes. These two have got an opposites-attract thing going on and I love it. Koffi's this unhinged, wild, lively, full-of-life kinda character despite having faced so many disappointments upon disappointments. And Ekon's this put-together, calm and orderly, and disciplined.
Where Koffi's street smart, Ekon is book smart. And they complement each other so well. Which made their journey into the jungle all the more engaging and adventurous.
I devoured their interactions. More often than not, Koffi left Ekon reeling from her bluntness and scandals and it kept me thoroughly entertained and amused.
The plot was good and the plot twists were even better.
The reason for my low rating is because, despite the book being epic, it just wasn't for me. I started reading this in like April of 2023 and finished it only by December of 2023. It's a miracle I didn't dnf it. Throughout the period I tried to resume reading this on multiple occasions and just couldn't. The book failed to hold my interest. Even in December, I had to force myself to read this book bcoz I bought this hardcopy some time ago and I hate to dnf hardcopies simply coz I've got very few and selective hardcopies and they're super expensive— so I hate leaving them unread and cannot make a profit out of selling them. Now, I could jot this down to I just wasn't feeling it. But then again since I tried reading it on multiple occasions, I believe I tried reading it during many variations of my mindset. And it didn't work out. I personally felt like the story started out super slow. I really don't like slow-paced books. It really wasn't happening enough for me, in the beginning. And tbh I was genuinely bored out of mind and had to force myself to look at all the best parts and tried to hold on to it. The writing was seamless— true. But I, personally, had to force myself to stick to the book. Towards the end I did genuinely like the book, so I might read the next book but I'm not sure.
Don't know why the book's tagline is "the hunt begins" when there's next to no hunting. Does it actually mean "begin" as in the beginning of a trilogy? Doesn't matter. I'm not reading the rest of the series.
this was way too long and moved too slowly to truly keep me engaged. I saw all the plot twists coming as well
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love that we’re getting more African fantasy YA novels, unfortunately though this is not an example of a good one.
It is a cool universe and I actually really like Koffi. Outside of that, the romance is completely useless and the chemistry between the 2 main characters has nothing romantic. Stop putting romance in YA fantasy just because there’s a boy and a girl in the main cast, Koffi and Ekon’s dynamic would’ve been much more compelling if they were rivals/companions.
The writing is quite sloppy making the actual reading experience a drag. For the story it told this could’ve been 150 pages smaller.
Finally a lot of things don’t make sense, some character dynamics feel odd given the circumstances and the magic system doesn’t look interesting plus very important interactions with it are a big question mark.
This was a great idea, though this debut really shows the lack of experience from the writer. There’s better Black and/or African inspired fantasy YA novels out there. Read them instead
It is a cool universe and I actually really like Koffi. Outside of that, the romance is completely useless and the chemistry between the 2 main characters has nothing romantic. Stop putting romance in YA fantasy just because there’s a boy and a girl in the main cast, Koffi and Ekon’s dynamic would’ve been much more compelling if they were rivals/companions.
The writing is quite sloppy making the actual reading experience a drag. For the story it told this could’ve been 150 pages smaller.
Finally a lot of things don’t make sense, some character dynamics feel odd given the circumstances and the magic system doesn’t look interesting plus very important interactions with it are a big question mark.
This was a great idea, though this debut really shows the lack of experience from the writer. There’s better Black and/or African inspired fantasy YA novels out there. Read them instead
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A