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Taming Demons for Beginners by Annette Marie
5.0

"What other clauses did you two agree on?"
"None."
"What do you mean none?"
“He protects me in exchange for baked goods. That’s … that’s the whole contract.”


Once in a blue moon, an ad gives me a great recommendation. That's right, I saw Taming Demons for Beginners on an Instagram ad. I usually skip past these but the art really caught my eye. The book was free at the time and I'm so glad I picked it up.

After the death of her parents, Robin moves in with her uncle's family. All she wants is her inheritance and her mother's grimoire, then she's out. But she soon discovers her uncle has been illegally summoning demons and suddenly things go from bad to deadly. Now Robin is tied to Zylas, a demon with a love of baked goods who only wants to go home, and they're both on the run.

The book is a NA urban fantasy. It's honestly one of the best UF books I've ever read and I'm shocked more people aren't talking about this. Robin is the definition of "smol." She's an adorable cinnamon roll with social anxiety and I can relate to that! XD The demon Zylas is a bit harder to read, playing the stoic observer more often than not, though he still made me laugh out loud with his narcissism and general lack of understanding regarding the human world.

The plot took a while to draw me in, but the writing style kept me engaged until the hook finally set. The writing was comfortable which made for a relaxing read. There were equal parts action and downtime creating a nice balance between quiet Robin and the more violent Zylas. Speaking of these two, for those wondering there is no smut in this book. I believe the series is a slow-burn romance, but this book is more about establishing the partnership between the two.

I wish I'd known more about the author before I started reading; this series is standalone in a much larger magical world and I think my experience would have been enhanced by having read the other series. Although by no means do you have to read the other books in order to understand this one. There were some references here and there, but it didn't come across as punishing if you haven't read the rest of The Guild Codex.

I can't wait to read the next one!