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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The author’s creativity with bird species is impressive and was the best part of the book. I had to keep reminding myself that these animals don’t really exist but I know a lot about their nutritional needs.
Beyond the birds, the world building was pretty thin. Everything seemed the same as contemporary real life, just different names that are hard to keep straight because we don’t actually leave the zoo very often.
The human characters were a little tiring, which was a shame. The best friend character was by far the most interesting and likable. The main character has intense anxiety, but unfortunately this makes her very self centered? Which is a bummer because I didn’t care what happened to such a selfish person? Just because someone loves animals doesn’t make them a good person?
The “villain” is very obvious from 5)3 beginning which takes out some of the tension. And the zoo plot goes suddenly off the rails in the last 5% with poachers holding everyone up a gun point which is a GREAT ESCALATION!!!
I hope to never read “the skies and seas” as an exclamation ever again. Finally, the word “witch” was used far too many times in a book with no witches.
Beyond the birds, the world building was pretty thin. Everything seemed the same as contemporary real life, just different names that are hard to keep straight because we don’t actually leave the zoo very often.
The human characters were a little tiring, which was a shame. The best friend character was by far the most interesting and likable. The main character has intense anxiety, but unfortunately this makes her very self centered? Which is a bummer because I didn’t care what happened to such a selfish person? Just because someone loves animals doesn’t make them a good person?
The “villain” is very obvious from 5)3 beginning which takes out some of the tension. And the zoo plot goes suddenly off the rails in the last 5% with poachers holding everyone up a gun point which is a GREAT ESCALATION!!!
I hope to never read “the skies and seas” as an exclamation ever again. Finally, the word “witch” was used far too many times in a book with no witches.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Grief
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
lighthearted
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
I received an ARC copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest review. Thank you, NetGalley and Orbit Books, for the opportunity.
Aila is the head phoenix keeper at a zoo dedicated to magical creatures. From a young age, she wanted to be part of conserving the population of the endangered phoenix. With the help of her best friend, Aila faces challenges to bring the breading program back to the zoo; obnoxious guests, debilitating anxiety, and her longtime rival/head griffin keeper, Luciana.
I almost DNF around 30%, but continued on, hoping it would get better (it did around 2/3rds of the way through). Written in 3rd person, this book reads way more like a textbook for the first 50% than a fantastical zoo, with less dialogue than needed. There is no real romance until the last third (not a make or break for me personally).
Aila is (I think) supposed to be written as a neurodivergent 28 year old. However, I could only see her as a 28 year old woman who never mentally grew up from college, who holds grudges for things that happened in college, and never once puts her friends’ feeling first. I know everyone processes things differently, but some of the things Aila says/does are so unlikable and downright mean and selfish that it made it a real struggle to continue on. Near the end, Aila does (somewhat) grow as an adult, but the way it is written feels forced.
Yes, yes, main character has flaws and learns and grows from it, but how… unlikable Aila was in the beginning, almost made this a DNF.
3 stars, only because the last quarter was really cute and made it worth the read.
Aila is the head phoenix keeper at a zoo dedicated to magical creatures. From a young age, she wanted to be part of conserving the population of the endangered phoenix. With the help of her best friend, Aila faces challenges to bring the breading program back to the zoo; obnoxious guests, debilitating anxiety, and her longtime rival/head griffin keeper, Luciana.
I almost DNF around 30%, but continued on, hoping it would get better (it did around 2/3rds of the way through). Written in 3rd person, this book reads way more like a textbook for the first 50% than a fantastical zoo, with less dialogue than needed. There is no real romance until the last third (not a make or break for me personally).
Aila is (I think) supposed to be written as a neurodivergent 28 year old. However, I could only see her as a 28 year old woman who never mentally grew up from college, who holds grudges for things that happened in college, and never once puts her friends’ feeling first. I know everyone processes things differently, but some of the things Aila says/does are so unlikable and downright mean and selfish that it made it a real struggle to continue on. Near the end, Aila does (somewhat) grow as an adult, but the way it is written feels forced.
Yes, yes, main character has flaws and learns and grows from it, but how… unlikable Aila was in the beginning, almost made this a DNF.
3 stars, only because the last quarter was really cute and made it worth the read.
funny
lighthearted
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
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
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
tense
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
This book was wonderful. The writing was great and I loved the characters. She was a little too self centered but she was able to adjust. The Connor thing felt a little too obvious but it was still fun. Overall a really fun series.
The MC's entire thing is "animals are better than humans" and how she has too much anxiety to interact with people and I get that we're setting up a character arc but ugh
adventurous
funny
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