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abby_can_read's review against another edition
- 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
I thought this was a good book. I had a good time reading it. I liked the characters, Koffi and Ekon. I thought the pacing was off at times. I like the worldbuilding. I'm excited to see what happens in the sequel.
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Drug use, Slavery, and Violence
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Fire/Fire injury
emilysreadingbooks's review
- 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
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
anjasfairylights's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Slavery and Death of parent
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Violence
scrubsandbooks's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Drug abuse and Drug use
Minor: Animal cruelty
queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Beasts of Prey by Ayana Gray is book one in the Beasts of Prey trilogy and is a pan-African inspired fantasy. I wasn't so sure about this in the beginning, the pacing was a little weird and I felt like we didn't learn enough about the characters. The last third really brought it up for me.
We have dual povs between Koffi, a Gede girl who inherited her father's debt and discovers she has magic while working in the Night Zoo; and Ekon, a Yaba apprentice to the Sons of the Six a group of warriors. We also get interludes from the perspective of someone called Adiah, where we get a bit more context about the magic they call "splendor" and the social structure and it is the way it is for Koffi and Ekon. They end up working together on a similar goal: find the Shetani, bring it back to Lkossa, and stop the killings that keep happening near the jungle.
Most of my issues with this book are around pacing and character development. I thought we didn't learn enough about the type of person Koffi was before she met Ekon. They seemed pretty one dimensional: Koffi the headstrong one that has to argue about everything, and Ekon the anxious wreck that is constantly trying to prove himself. I thought they spent too much time wandering around the jungle encountering various monsters from myth and legend. They were cool, I guess, but didn't really add anything to the plot. The story around the Shetani is was sold me on it. A classic things are not as they seem message. I also didn't think Koffi and Ekon had much chemistry, but that could just be a me thing.
I love that Gray used so much Swahili and myths and legends from all over Africa. The author's note was really worth the read for further context as to why she made the decisions she did for the book. I'm optimistic that I'll like book two more than this one.
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Violence, and Death of parent
meghansarmiento97's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
wizardingwisteria's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Slavery
Minor: Blood
nutmegandpumpkin's review against another edition
- 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
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Dialogue: 3/5
Setting: 5/5
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What I Didnât Like:
⢠In my opinion it took a bit too long for the characters to get into the Greater Jungle (which seems to be the main plot point in the synopsis).
⢠There were a lot of names being dropped in the very beginning which made it a bit hard for me to keep track of
⢠I think the authorâs clutch phrase is âCharacter A started to [blank] then thought better of itâ (there were so many times that phrase was used that it became distracting)
â˘
⢠Not a fan of when conflict could be solved if characters JUST COMMUNICATED
⢠A bit confused by the end:
What I Liked:
⢠The first few chapters definitely intrigued me and although it took me quite a bit to get all the way through, I was interested in finding out what was going to happen next
⢠The writing was both easy to read and has some beautiful lines
⢠The world building felt well-developed and thought out (probably the highlight of the book for me)
⢠OCD rep
Graphic: Mental illness, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Alcohol
book_loving_dragon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Drug use and Violence
Minor: Animal cruelty
sophiesmallhands's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty and Murder