This was a charming cozy romantasy with great diversity and mental health representation. It takes place primarily in a zoo of magical creatures, and it was a pleasure to see MacLean’s creativity as she described these animals.
Main character Aila is the phoenix keeper at the zoo and has been trying for years to reboot a breeding program for the endangered Silimalo phoenix. When a neighboring zoo loses their phoenix hatchlings and their mother to poachers, Aila’s zoo is given the opportunity to try a breeding program of their own.
Aila has social anxiety, so it’s a challenge for her to navigate the national attention the zoo is getting, but her dedication to the phoenixes she has had a lifelong passion for pushes her through. She gets support from a solid supporting cast, including best friend Tanya and rival Luciana. A lot of the characters are POC, and there’s sexual orientation and trans representation. Aila’s anxiety is handled well, probably in part because of the author’s own experiences with it. I loved how supportive and accepting Aila’s family and friends are, while still trying to gently encourage her to go outside of her comfort zone.
There’s a high fantasy setting, in that this novel is not set on earth. It’s a fictional land with fictional/mythical creatures. However, the setting is very modern, with technology and concepts from earth (DVDs, margaritas, a version of Instagram). This threw me a bit at first because it’s so unlike other fantasies that aren’t urban/low fantasy. Eventually I adjusted to it, and the advantage is that the book is easy to read, without too much focus needing to be spent on world-building. Most of the scenes are set in the zoo, creating an immersive experience.
I really enjoyed this debut novel and will definitely look for more books from S. A. MacLean in the future.
I received this free e-ARC from NetGalley, but my opinions are my own.
cbr16bingo smash – romantasy