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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
emotional
lighthearted
slow-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
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-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
funny
hopeful
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
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:
Complicated
My first five star read this year!! I cannot believe this is Maclean’s first book. So freaking good. This book sucked me in from the very first page and I gobbled up every single page of magical zoology and modern magical world building. The ending was a bit predictable and the second Connor asked Aila out I was like oh he’s in on the poaching job and then when he talked about magical creature supply stocks I was like oh there’s no way he didn’t sell his own dragons. But even though I saw the end coming with who was the poacher, I still loved the book and my heart was beating so fast when they were trying to escape from the zoo! So good. I wanted more as soon as I finished the book!
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
*3.5 stars
What I loved:
The fantasy creatures (mostly birds) were absolutely the stars of the book; the cozy zoo setting; the friendship between Aila and Tanya, and Aila's parents too; the endgame romance once it did eventually begin; the diversity of the characters (including Aila's clear neurodivergence coding); the central story of conservation and Aila's love of the phoenixes.
What I struggled with:
Although Aila at her core, or perhaps what she is intended to be, is relatable if you have had any brush with anxiety (and social anxiety) and an all-consuming passion, I found it quite difficult at times to feel for her the way I wanted to in the first half of the book. Although I rooted for her, I wanted to be more on board with her 'misbelief', but what she was wrong about was way too obviously illogical (. Generally though, I chose to turn a blind eye given I was loving the other aspects of the book and decided to feel about Aila the way the author presumably intended (especially as I can relate to her to a certain extent), then after the halfway mark I could get on board with her much more easily.
With regards to what a few reviewers have said about this feeling more like a YA than adult, I understand that, there are a few tweaks the author could have made to avoid that - more subtlety and maturity in the prose, more maturity in Aila in the first half - but it's not really something that bothered me too much other than in regards to what I've already said about Aila. Perhaps if you enjoy some YA like I do, you're more likely to enjoy this book, but it's understandable that people who don't may not.
As for romance -. I will say that romance is not the main point of this story, and judging by a few reviews, anyone going into it expecting a full on romantasy style book might be disappointed. For me (not a fan of romance) the book jumped out at me due to the phoenixes, and the fact that it's queer, and it delivered on both aspects. That I liked the endgame romance on the whole is just a bonus.
My edition is the beautiful Illumicrate edition and I am absolutely keeping it and will happily reread it.
What I loved:
The fantasy creatures (mostly birds) were absolutely the stars of the book; the cozy zoo setting; the friendship between Aila and Tanya, and Aila's parents too; the endgame romance once it did eventually begin; the diversity of the characters (including Aila's clear neurodivergence coding); the central story of conservation and Aila's love of the phoenixes.
What I struggled with:
Although Aila at her core, or perhaps what she is intended to be, is relatable if you have had any brush with anxiety (and social anxiety) and an all-consuming passion, I found it quite difficult at times to feel for her the way I wanted to in the first half of the book. Although I rooted for her, I wanted to be more on board with her 'misbelief', but what she was wrong about was way too obviously illogical (
Spoiler
anyone with an ounce of common sense would understand the purpose and benefit of all the zoo was doing for conservation, and even though she works for the zoo and is passionate about conservation of the phoenixes, Aila seems completely blind to that?! Like, that's the whole point of being there! And at times she's vitriolic about patrons, and other keepers such as Luciana, which unfortunately overshadows her struggle with anxiety. If those moments had been written more like a defence mechanism, perhaps thanks to a more nuanced insight into her internal thoughts alongside, it might have come across better.With regards to what a few reviewers have said about this feeling more like a YA than adult, I understand that, there are a few tweaks the author could have made to avoid that - more subtlety and maturity in the prose, more maturity in Aila in the first half - but it's not really something that bothered me too much other than in regards to what I've already said about Aila. Perhaps if you enjoy some YA like I do, you're more likely to enjoy this book, but it's understandable that people who don't may not.
As for romance -
Spoiler
I actually liked the stumbles over her failed relationship with Connor, as I could relate to it somewhat, and I really liked the romance with Luciana once it got going, though in the first half there is something of the miscommunication trope, and Aila's reason to dislike Luciana mostly being due to the way she doggedly clings onto the way Luciana laughed at her in college is a bit thin. But, all's well that ends well and I did quite enjoy the way they both needled each other.My edition is the beautiful Illumicrate edition and I am absolutely keeping it and will happily reread it.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
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
lighthearted
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
tldr; a heart-warming, low-stakes romantasy that didn’t move my cold heart
Idk why but I wasn’t expecting it to be in an urban setting. Zoo yes, but I was thinking more Harry Potter concept with lots of adventure.
I love the love the fmc has for magical creatures and her job as a zookeeper. But I kept waiting for something more to happen–a plot twist, a jaw-dropping entanglement, a forbidden love. SOMETHING, ANYTHING. 40% in and I finally soft dnf-ed and had to take a break. Things were becoming predictable.
Overall, this book is well suited for fantasy readers who gravitate towards slow-paced, straightforward plots with little fluff.
adventurous
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced