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iantrevor's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
treagon's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
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? It's complicated
4.25
angelamarieks's review against another edition
5.0
Penguin teen, I absolutely adore you guys for giving me this arc. Beasts of Prey is one of the best fantasy books I’ve read in my LIFE. Every single aspect of it was perfect and I’ve fallen so in love with this world and the people in it. I’m honestly mad as hell that it’s a trilogy cause I don’t know if I can handle waiting for the next book. Y’all better read this I stg
nicodehaan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
berbs's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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
3.5
emilysreadingbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation
Moderate: Genocide, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: War
juiceyb79's review against another edition
4.0
Feels like 4⭐️ but will re-read to confirm this.
Just wasn’t paying enough attention sadly.
But the bits I did catch I liked.
Just wasn’t paying enough attention sadly.
But the bits I did catch I liked.
bookishbasma's review against another edition
5.0
WOW. This book. What a debut.
The cover and the title are a fantastic indication of the kind of story you're in for. This book was a whirlwind of an adventure with some of the coolest worldbuilding. It's a Pan-African fantasy, and I fell immediately in love. If you read the author's note, it details where the inspiration for the world/languages came from and seeing the intricacy and the thoughts behind the worldbuilding was a definite highlight for me.
Our main characters (Koffi, Ekon, and Adiah) were well developed, and the multiple POVs (as well as timelines) were balanced really well! I did partially call one of the twists from early on, but even then, the full story behind the plot twist was still surprising. I truly loved the dynamic during the jungle adventure and it took everything not to read ahead during my buddy read. This was an absolutely incredible read, and I cannot recommend it enough! Now, I just need book two IMMEDIATELY because that ending was insane.
Content warnings from the author: Physical/Verbal Abuse (Minor)
Blood (Minor)
Bodies/Corpses (On Page)
Bones
Death/Dying (Referenced; On Page)
Drug Use (Referenced; On Page)
Forced Captivity/Kidnapping
Murder (Referenced)
Sexism/Misogyny/Toxic Masculinity
Sexual Content (Mild)
Slavery/Indentured Servitude
Spiders
Violence (Mild)
I received an e-arc of this title from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
The cover and the title are a fantastic indication of the kind of story you're in for. This book was a whirlwind of an adventure with some of the coolest worldbuilding. It's a Pan-African fantasy, and I fell immediately in love. If you read the author's note, it details where the inspiration for the world/languages came from and seeing the intricacy and the thoughts behind the worldbuilding was a definite highlight for me.
Our main characters (Koffi, Ekon, and Adiah) were well developed, and the multiple POVs (as well as timelines) were balanced really well! I did partially call one of the twists from early on, but even then, the full story behind the plot twist was still surprising. I truly loved the dynamic during the jungle adventure and it took everything not to read ahead during my buddy read. This was an absolutely incredible read, and I cannot recommend it enough! Now, I just need book two IMMEDIATELY because that ending was insane.
Content warnings from the author: Physical/Verbal Abuse (Minor)
Blood (Minor)
Bodies/Corpses (On Page)
Bones
Death/Dying (Referenced; On Page)
Drug Use (Referenced; On Page)
Forced Captivity/Kidnapping
Murder (Referenced)
Sexism/Misogyny/Toxic Masculinity
Sexual Content (Mild)
Slavery/Indentured Servitude
Spiders
Violence (Mild)
I received an e-arc of this title from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
penguinlovesbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
4.0
carissatheluca's review against another edition
4.0
The cliffhanger was the best part of the book.
In all seriousness: Beasts of Prey was good. I honestly only kept reading because of the incredible worldbuilding. The plot itself lacked… oopmh. I wasn’t super partial to any of the narrators, which it made it difficult for me to care about their constant, pages-long emotional asides. They were fine, as far as protagonists go, but their voices were so indistinguishable that it hardly mattered whose POV had come up.
This is a great example of why multiple POVs should be used far more sparingly. Even though they were supposed to be completely different sexes, classes, and on opposite sides of a culture war, Koffi and Ekon talked like the same narrator. You’d think that would mean the book would be a bit more omniscient then, written like JRR might. Nope, third person limited for two and first person for the third that just pops in every once in a while to throw in a completely unnecessary century-old backstory!
I’m a bit more disappointed by the novel than I thought.
Anyway, it is well written. I really loved the world building; the history of their religion and region kept me interested during most of their endless trekking. Even though Koffi and Ekon were stylistically indistinguishable, they were both charming characters with fantastic motivations. The last quarter was thrilling and FINALLY escaped the snail’s pace- plus the conflict finally got more complex and therefore riveting.
I think this is a just a case of the First Book. I’m really confident the sequel (please God let it be just a duology) will be better. Perhaps I was expecting too much from a book I saw on booktok… it was good but not great.
In all seriousness: Beasts of Prey was good. I honestly only kept reading because of the incredible worldbuilding. The plot itself lacked… oopmh. I wasn’t super partial to any of the narrators, which it made it difficult for me to care about their constant, pages-long emotional asides. They were fine, as far as protagonists go, but their voices were so indistinguishable that it hardly mattered whose POV had come up.
This is a great example of why multiple POVs should be used far more sparingly. Even though they were supposed to be completely different sexes, classes, and on opposite sides of a culture war, Koffi and Ekon talked like the same narrator. You’d think that would mean the book would be a bit more omniscient then, written like JRR might. Nope, third person limited for two and first person for the third that just pops in every once in a while to throw in a completely unnecessary century-old backstory!
I’m a bit more disappointed by the novel than I thought.
Anyway, it is well written. I really loved the world building; the history of their religion and region kept me interested during most of their endless trekking. Even though Koffi and Ekon were stylistically indistinguishable, they were both charming characters with fantastic motivations. The last quarter was thrilling and FINALLY escaped the snail’s pace- plus the conflict finally got more complex and therefore riveting.
I think this is a just a case of the First Book. I’m really confident the sequel (please God let it be just a duology) will be better. Perhaps I was expecting too much from a book I saw on booktok… it was good but not great.