I just finally picked this book up on a whim since I thought hey book 3 is finally coming out this month why don't I read book 2 and omg what an amazing sequel?! I would say it was a little slow in the beginning and the other bad thing I didn't like was how the author didn't put the character's pov at the heading of the chapters. Otherwise what a great sequel really looking forward to reading book 3 now that I have that from the publisher.
Thanks to my friend Taylor for buying me a physical copy back in 2022 which I thought she bought for me last year but all of my years are blending together.
I picked this trilogy up orignally because Beast of Prey was my October 2021 book club and what a great read it was from a debut author! I love how u can tell that Ms. Gray's writing is changing/growing along with each book! I'm excited but nervous now to read book 3 but if I do that this week I can complete a trilogy and have that off my series list!!(:
5/5 stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review. I read this sequel a couple months back and I'm looking forward to how Ayana wraps up the story in the last book, Beasts of War. I do think this one dragged just a tiny bit but I really love Koffi and Ekon and I'm really rooting for my babies!

This series continues to get better. The book did not suffer from second book syndrome. Ayana Gray has created a unique setting and plot that I cannot recommend enough for teen readers.

Absolutely loved this debut! It was vivid, rich, endearing, and fun while telling a powerful story. The break from the regular/expected writing structure was interesting. I am looking forward to the sequel.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me free access to the digital advanced copy of this book.

4 stars

So to start this review off, I will say I feel a bit swindled. I thought this was a duology so I was expecting an ending. I did not get an ending as this is the second book in a trilogy. So that did influence my reading experience.

Also this cover.... I love it. It's beautiful and magical and give me diverse covers all day every day. But please also give me a matching cover for the first book if you are going to change it. And make it in hardcore format..

But let me tell you, Beats of Prey was one of my favorite reads of the year when it came out. I loved every word. Beats of Ruin was no different. I was so pumped to be back with Koffi and Ekon. Even if they were not together. I love both of our main characters, but I did enjoy Koffi's story more. It had me invested the most. I mean a cool new academy with a bunch of new characters? I also loved getting to know more about their families. It was just so good. But it most definitely felt like a filler book. I understand more information was needed to give this series a fleshed out ending. But it is a tad frustrating when they just pile it all in one book.

But I will be reading that third book asap. Literally the moment I get my hands on it because I need to know what happens.

The biggest case of Middle Book Syndrome...

Plot: 2/5
Before starting this, I remembered enjoying Beasts of Prey but I had no lingering interest in what happened next, the plot just wasn't enough to keep me invested. The feeling continued as I read Beasts of Ruin, it didn't feel like anything really happened. This is definitely getting "middle book" syndrome.
The plot also had a lot of weird similarities to Shadow and Bone...

Characters: 3/5
I'm not a fan of the chosen one trope so I don't think it did Koffi a service to put her in that position.
The edition of secondary love interests for BOTH Koffi and Ekon felt really unnecessary. Both additional characters were good and I liked them until they were used as plot devices.

Writing: 3/5
I do still think Ayana Gray is a skilled writer but I would be more interested to see her work in a new series rather than having this be a trilogy.

Overall: 3/5

I found this to be quite similar to the first book, it had a lot of quite confusing elements (plot, plot points, world-building, character/character dev) but the characters are very compelling to follow. Over plot I felt was lacking.

I'm really annoyed with myself because I really love Ayana Gray's writing style and her characters and world building are so well done. However, I've been sitting at 20% of this book for ages and just can't bring myself to care about the story. And it's NOTHING against Ayana's writing it's just that I don't have the same connection to the story or characters and can't push myself through this second book. It's not gripping me the same way as the first book and as much as I hope to finish this series one day, it's just not going to be happening any time soon. Maybe I'll try this again before the third book comes out but for now it's a DNF and less likely that I will be picking it up for the foreseeable future.

Again, I think Ayana's writing style and storytelling are magnificent but it's not hitting me the same and life's too short for me to push through in hopes that it'll become a good experience for me

Thank you prhaudio for the complimentary audiobook and penguinteen for the gifted digital!

I started reading Beasts of Ruin on digital. The pacing for book two in the Beasts of Prey series is much slower compared to book one. Picking up around where the first left off, we find Koffi under the thumb of the god of death and Ekon miles away with the Cobra. There's a part of me that enjoyed the separation between the two characters and another part that missed the dynamic of the two together.

The addition of Binti, Koffi's mom, ended up being one of the more deeper POVs that I enjoyed in this round. I wasn't as riveted by the place Koffi was stuck in and Ekon had more of a journey of growth with the Cobra by his side than anyone else. In a sense, it felt like things occurred but it took a long time to get there. Almost as if this was a forced way to get Koffi to learn about her powers in preparation of book three.

There's a romantic element for both characters that I wasn't wholly excited about since I loved the chemistry of Koffi and Ekon. Yes, I'm a sucker for these two. They just meshed so well. I'm definitely curious to see where this ends up going overall. The ending touched on a dynamic I really like with my heroines (but I sadly can't tell you what). There are two pretty big things (to me) that occurred that needed a resolution. I'm not sure if it'll be touched in the next book but if it's left the way it is.... well, thats just not Koffi.

The audio is read by Keylor Leigh, Benjamin Charles and Yinka Ladeinde. This trio was great! They brought the slower aspects to life and made the novel pace along. For me, audio wins for these novels and I hope they carry into the next one.

For those who journey into this second installment I highly recommend the author's note. The world building, culture, beasts and other intricacies come from some amazing research and meshing by the author. The work she put into so much of this novel may shock you. True rating 3.5/5.

This sequel blew the first book out of the water. I could hardly put it down at parts. It dealt with some hard topics and had a lot of high-stakes situations.

This was an excellent sequel to Beasts of Prey! The book picks up immediately where we left off and both Ekon and Koffi undergo journeys that really bring out so much of their character. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the flashbacks and everything clicking together for me. In addition to the character development, the world and the magic also expanded and I really like the direction it went in! Super excited to see more of it in the next book.

And the new characters??? I LOVE THEM YOUR HONOR. I have theories for the next book and I hope I’m correct! The ending is what did it for me, it was so intense and I was getting STRESSED and I would like book three immediately please and thank you! Another work of art from the genius Ayana Gray.

It’s the best feeling when you start a sequel to a really well loved first book and it instantly feels like coming home. Beasts of Ruin picks up right where Beasts of Prey left off and I was instantly immersed back into this epic world of mythology while expanding into so much more!

I loved the new POV and the more in depth insight into the history and world of BOP. I loved the direction the author took into exploring more elements of this world however it also felt a bit odd to me. I think it was just pacing and a completely different setting that made it feel that way. Where in BOP most of the book takes place in the forest and that sort of high stakes, fast paced scenario, in BOR it just felt odd to me to be in an entirely different setting and meeting new people/expanding into more magic.

I definitely enjoyed it, just took me a bit to grasp most of it. Suffice to say I am definitely looking forward to the third installment especially with the way this ended!

Not going to lie, this sequel was a disappointment. For some reason, I thought this series was a duology, but it's a trilogy at least, and this book quickly felt like a middle filler book and nothing at all like the first one.

The plot just moved so slowly, it took me forever to get through this book. I just kept getting bored with it, but I hate DNFing so I was determined to finish. And I do like the main characters and their development. But this book introduced SO MANY new characters, and a love square that did not feel necessary, and the urgency of the first book is talked about a lot but never felt (I remain confused as to why the main villain just kinda...disappears from the story, even though he is supposed to be right there and an ever-present threat). Certain things that happen to advance the plot don't always make sense with regards to the characters or the rules of magic that have been established (which honestly get a little murky with this book).

The world of the first book was so interesting to me, but this one didn't expand it at all, and by the end of the book, I felt like we were basically in the same spot as the beginning. Koffi and Ekon are fun and interesting characters—and the reason this gets two stars instead of one—but I'm not sure they'll be enough to get me to read the third book...

Another second book slump. I'm not even sure what is happening in this book. Our two main characters are not together for almost the entire book and then..have other love interests?!?
Why? The only thing worse than a love
triangle is a love square.

I was confused for most
of the new POV chapters for about half of the book. We jump right into this story and I needed
some reference to the end of book I. But our first chapter is a flashback chapter for a character that was barely in the first book. Another series that could have easily been a duology. This book
was all about training. That's what we did.
Trained in fighting. Trained in powers. Alana
Gray's writing is still great but the storyline was not.

This was so good! I am always fearful of reading a second book in a series when I loved the first so much. This one did not disappoint. I loved all the new characters and I loved learning more about Koffi’s family past.

What can I say, Ayana Gray did it again. I love where the story is going. Loved that we got to see another character, and understand Koffi's family and their choices better. Loved that Ekon and Koffi were separate, giving them room to grow on their own, have their own adventures, and at the same time gain new friends and allies.

Can't wait to see where the story goes, and how the series will end.

I went into this book thinking that this was a duology, so I looked like an entire fool with my jaw on the floor reading the cliffhanger at the end. Needless to say, I NEED book three.

Anyways, back to my thoughts on this one.

This story picks up right where book one left off. Koffi has been captured by Fedu and Ekon must do whatever it takes to rescue her before it’s too late. Because of this, the reader gets to see Koffi and Ekon a part and making new allies as they both try to find a way to defeat Fedu.

I really enjoyed getting to learn more about Koffi’s mother, and Koffi’s daraja heritage that even she is unaware of. The reader learns more of the daraja history as a whole as well as the heartbreaking circumstances that landed Koffi and the zoo as an indentured servant in the first place.

As with Beasts of Prey, there is still so much magic, adventure, and world building in this story, and I felt like we just got a much deeper insight into everything. Ayana Gray continues to shine with her impeccable storytelling.

And as I said at the top, this book ends on one heck of a cliffhanger, so now I am just impatiently waiting for book three.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.

I won't lie I was nervous to read book 2 in this series out of fear that I would be let down, but let me tell you, I'm glad that I did as I was drawn right back into this magical world from page one!

Beasts of Ruin picks up where the first book ended where we are following both Koffi and Ekon after Koffi has decided to sacrifice herself to save the lives of her loved ones. As readers, we follow the journeys of both of these characters with one additional point of view that brings us the perspective of the past, which connects us to the present.

Usually, I struggle with stories that have multiple POVs as I tend to favor one over the other, and I find myself wanting to skip through to get to the perspective that I enjoy more; however, I enjoyed all POVs in this book equally and found that each one added an additional layer that was necessary to move the story forward.

I also enjoyed the writing style as it was written in a way that made me feel as though I was within the world of the story. This also helped me to feel more connected to the characters and their struggles throughout the book.

The reason that this book is rated between 4-4.25 stars for me is that I found the middle of the story to drag on just a little too much for me. There were parts that lost my interest as I felt like the momentum of the story was lost.

However, it picked back up in the end, and the ending made my jaw drop (it ends on a cliffhanger).

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I'm looking forward to continuing this series!


Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review

I absolutely adored Beasts of Prey and Beasts of Ruin was a fantastic follow-up. The world feels multidimensional as you continue to learn more and more in this book. Just like the previous one, beasts of ruin is super fast-paced and the characters are engaging and unique. Slight downside, there is a cliffhanger ending, but now I can't wait for the next one!