Thank you netgalley for this arc. I'm pretty late on posting this review but it is not fault of the book, and instead the fault of me, victim to my annual summer slump.

I did, actually, indeed manage to finish this book during the summer. Usually, it's hard for me to pin down what sorts of book I like to read during the summer, but this is 100% a summer book. The setting was such a visceral picture of the zoo that instantly transported me into the few times I'd visited as a kid. There were a couple times when I was reading where I went, "Wow. Wish I was at the San Diego zoo right now." And in that way, it's delightful. The tone, delightful. The characters, very fun. Easy breezy beautiful colorgirl.

There was something to yearn for in terms of the pacing, though. It doesn't feel quite like a romance, and the main plot pivots on its heel quite a few times, making the pacing feel a bit wonky. At the 30% mark I accurately predicted the ending, and so a lot of the setup beyond that point felt a little tedious to get through. I wish the plot had been a bit simplified or streamlined or something.

The romance reminded me of almost like... sitcom enemies to lovers? Like that over-exaggerated, for laughs, sort of rivalry between two characters on cable TV. It's cute. I know quite a few of us have seen those kinds of relationships play out on TV and went "oh just kiss already". But yes, there's not really much to say about this book other than she's cute and I had a fun time.

I have really mixed feelings about this book, because while it did have some of the vibes a cozy fantasy tends to have, this one felt like it veered a lot more toward romantasy (a subgenre I don’t usually enjoy).


Some aspects of the book I liked:

🐦‍🔥 I love that we are seeing more fantasy characters who are neurodivergent and/or have mental health conditions! The main character struggles with anxiety/social anxiety and perfectionism, while also dealing with some social tendencies that are outside of the norm. I could relate to some of her feelings of wishing she could be more “normal” at times, and I loved that we saw characters who loved and accepted her for who she was. They also justifiably had moments of upset when the protagonist’s social issues impacted them negatively, which resulted in growth and deepening of relationship.

🐉 The inclusivity was clearly present without making a big deal out of it; it very much felt like this was the norm in this world.

🐦‍🔥 I have mixed feelings about zoos and aquariums, because of the lack of ethical standards many of them have. I liked that this book really dove into the positive impacts, conservation, research, and awareness that well-run zoos can promote.


Some aspects I didn’t enjoy:

🐉 The writing, pacing, and character depth often felt like they were straight out of a YA novel instead of an adult fantasy, which might have been okay if this were a YA book. While I appreciate the mental health aspects of the protagonist, I was often exasperated by the repetition in her internal rants and ramblings, as well as how shallow her views of other people tended to be. She felt very immature compared to what I’d expect of someone of her age.

🐦‍🔥 The pacing felt a bit slow at times. Many of the plot points felt so obvious right from the start and then it took forever to get to the pay off for them, and I was also frustrated that it took so long for the characters to figure them out.

🐉 I don’t mind a romantic sub plot as long as there is a non-romantic main storyline, but the romance felt more at the forefront of the book than pretty much anything else. I feel like this should have been billed as a romantasy and not a cozy fantasy.

Overall I think readers who like YA/NA romantasy would probably enjoy this book, and I did like the premise and world building, but this book just wasn’t quite for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for the advanced copy!

MacLean's The Phoenix Keeper is the perfect romantasy novel to curl up with and get lost in. I rooted for Aila from the very beginning and her journey as the head phoenix keeper at a zoo for endangered magical animals. I loved seeing Aila and Luciana go from enemies to lovers (a favorite trope of mine). I also loved the representation of mental illness and sexuality while still keeping the focus on telling a heartwarming story. However, at times, I did find myself getting mixed up in the details but there was a lot of world building in this book and I found myself having to take breaks to keep everything straight. Regardless, you won't be sad to be pick up a copy. Thanks NetGalley and Orbit for a chance to read an ARC of The Phoenix Keeper!

A cozy book! I have been to the San Diego zoo so this felt almost realistic with the aspect of mystical creatures! I. Felt like I could relate to Aila in the sense of loving animals.

I will say I felt like Aila was not mature enough to be in her 20s and felt more like a 16 year old.

2.5 stars. I love the idea of a zoo filled with magical creatures and I had so much fun learning about them throughout this book. The rest was somewhat of a miss for me. I can definitely relate to and understand the mc's social anxiety, but it seemed like she really just came off as super whiny and changed very little over the course of the story arc. The romance was a good idea, but the execution of it left much to be desired. The antagonist reveal took too long and by the time it came up, I was just like "come on, really?"

Holy Hannah I love this book.
I've been excited to read this since I first learned about it a couple of months ago, and eagerly picked it up at the beginning of this month. I knew in the first chapter it would be a new favorite.
S. A. MacLean has found the perfect balance of magical realism, animal husbandry, humor and suspense and I love it. From the opening with Archie, my new favorite fictional bird, to the nail biter ending, I loved this ride.
The phoenix has long been my favorite mythological creature, followed closely by the gryphon and dragons, and all featured predominantly, with some other mythological creatures along the way. The way I want to visit the San Tamculo Zoo now.
I loved the representation in this book, the amazing writing and how well the action was set up. Having an inkling to how the ending played out did not diminish my joy of reading this whatsoever, and i can't believe this is a debut book. S.A. MacLean just became an auto buy author and I can't wait to see what they publish next. I will be waiting for it.
I'd like to thank Orbit Books and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own.

You can always tell when authentic love for the real counterpart is imbued in a fantasy equivalent.

Maclean writes with the level of detail in fantasy zoo maintenance and biology that you would swear such a place existed and that they had visited the fictional Tamculo Zoo.

The only thing keeping me from a 5 star read here is that the book being consistantly marketed as a sapphic, queer romance makes an integral plot point to the book easy to guess- which is really disheartening! I think with more ambiguous marketing it could have retained more surprise and less suspicion when it comes to a certain character.

The Phoenix Keeper is still a book wholly worth readers' time.

I LOVED this book. It pairs perfectly with a dark romantasy, so when things get too stressful, you can disappear into cozy wondrous world of the San Tamculo Zoo. It's a solid and delightful 4.5 stars for me. I had a fun time reading this and do highly recommend it!

Light and breezy, for both good and ill. Love the magic animals, love the really well done characters (and especially the queerness of many of them), but do find the plot a little too down the middle cozy fantasy to hugely stand out. Good, definitely good, but probably not great.

I can totally see some people loving this book: it was a cute fantasy with a sort of whimsical vibe throughout the story. For me, unfortunately, there were a couple of things that stopped it from being amazing for me.

"As head phoenix keeper at a world-renowned zoo for magical creatures, Aila's childhood dream of conserving critically endangered firebirds seems closer than ever. There's just one glaring caveat: her zoo's breeding program hasn't functioned for a decade. When a tragic phoenix heist sabotages the flagship initiative at a neighboring zoo, Aila must prove her derelict facilities are fit to take the reins."

So the positives: this book was a really cute story with, what I thought to be, a good portrayal of anxiety, specifically social anxiety. For the most part, I love the characters and the discussions that this book presented about how we treat those we're closest to, even unknowingly.

Now for the negatives: Wow. That was the most predictable plot I have read in a while. It made it rather boring at points. The plot twist was so completely obvious from the very beginning. And it wasn't something you can be like, "oh the character should have realized xyz," but it was a choice so obvious on the authors part that THIS would have to be the direction of the story that it was impossible to ignore. Additionally, even the plot aside from the twist was obvious. Reading it, I felt like I knew exactly the "theme" for the next fifty pages, and the theme for the section after that, and so forth.

This book had the potential to be really good, but it unfortunately fell flat on some of those accounts. It was still a cute urban fantasy novel, so it still gets three stars.

The Phoenix Keeper is an extremely character-driven cozy fantasy story about a socially anxious woman named Aila who works as a phoenix keeper at a zoo full of magical, endangered animals.

Aila was an enjoyable protagonist and relatable for anyone who finds it easier to talk to animals than people. The friendship she shared with her best friend, Tanya, was very sweet and the romance plot-line that came into play later in the book was tension-filled and cute, though the love interest was difficult to care for at first.

Now, cozy fantasy is obviously intended to be low-stakes and not too heavy on the plot. However, for a large portion of this book, nothing at all was happening. The first 130 pages primarily consisted of Aila going through a single day of work at the zoo. If you're interested in reading about all the details of her routine as she fed the animals, cleaned their exhibits, and avoided other people as much as possible you'll love it. Otherwise, you– like me– will likely find it boring.

The odd thing is, the story does have stakes. Aila is attempting to make her lifelong dream a reality and also help save an entire species. Yet, the extremely long and detailed descriptions of her completing completely mundane tasks in order to achieve those goals made it hard to remember or care. There is hardly any relationship building or character development until far into the book either, so altogether there was nothing to keep my attention.

This book is very magical. There isn't necessarily a lot of world-building but the author paints a fascinating and unique portrait of the many fantastical animals who are cared for at Aila's zoo. Some of them were the typical magical animals we see in fantasies like unicorns, dragons, and phoenixes. Then there were also animals that I believe the author created for this story, such as archibirds and disappearing ducks. The variety and complexity of these animals was unlike anything I've seen before so if you love magical creatures you might love this.

Overall this book has many merits– a fleshed out main character, a lovely friendship, a creative use of fantasy elements, and an ultimately cozy and sweet story. Unfortunately, it was far too slow-paced and lacking in action for me personally but if you don't care about plot or action at all and you just want pleasant vibes and to follow the day-to-day life of a phoenix keeper, you should definitely give it a try.

This is everything that a Fantastic Beast should be. Although the main character's anxiety caused my distressed, I was so proud to follow her journey. The story is so wholesome and shows such a growth. It touched this sweet spot in my heart for people who come of age later in life. I loved every second of it, tho at the beginning I had a hard time getting into the story.

Idk where to even start. I’m kinda obsessed with the zoo of mythical animals. Like can you imagine going to the zoo and there are unicorns, dragons, phoenixes, thunderbirds, kelpies, and more?

I was initially disgruntled by Alia’s lack of awareness of other people and how other people also have problems and worries, but Alia does learn and grow from it so I’m okay.

I want to bring this back to this world for one quick second. I hope people love and want to support wildlife conservation too. Like we also have so many animals that are endangered or those that have been hunted bc they were prized for something or another.

I'm so disappointed because this SHOULD be something I loved. Cozy sapphic romantasy featuring mental health, enemy coworkers, and zoological preservation? Inject it to my veins. But I honestly think the marketing did a disservice by focusing on the romance. It's there but hardly the prominent plot point. I was not convinced that they made a good or convincing couple by the end. The magical beasts part was fun, though,

Okay I am super biased and I will admit that here. I'm giving this a 4.5 because it was just a perfect book for me, minus a few nitpicks. Aila is our Head Phoenix Keeper at the San Tamculo Zoo in charge of the critically endangered Silimalo Phoenix. She is awkward, extremely anxious when talking to real people and LOVES her birds more than anything. Aila's dream is to reignite the Phoenix breeding program at the zoo, and when a clutch of Phoenix chicks are snatched to be sold on the black market, she petitions for that chance.

We follow Aila in her daily struggles at work and in her personal life with her crippling anxiety. I fell in love with this book over the detail surrounding the animal husbandry and care. This is absolutely a book for animal lovers or people who wanted to be zookeepers. The stress on conservation is just *chef's kiss* This whole story is based on the revival of the California Condor as stated in the author's note at the beginning of the book.

We have some great mental health representation with Aila and her crippling anxiety, LGBTQ+ rep in a bi-sexual FMC and a Trans Woman best friend. The 2 navigate daily life and struggles working in a zoo and working on projects they're passionate about. When Aila gets approval for a Phoenix transfer, the 2 kick into gear to get the dilapidated breeding facility updated. Aila struggles with her newfound fame and being thrust into the spotlight and having to work alongside her college nemesis Luciana, head griffin keeper. The slow burn tension between the 2 simmers until they come to an understanding and bond over their animal charges and have some character growth.

We have a looming background threat of black market smugglers stealing the phoenix chicks which adds some extra tension. It keeps with the main plot of the book, but also pads the book out to be a little longer. I didn't mind much, except I picked out at like 30% what would happen, and the motivations for why based on a single line later. Aila was also a bit too anxious and unlikable at times, but that made her growth pay off a lot more in the end. Overall I highly recommend if you're looking for a low stakes cozy fantasy with some romance.

THE PHOENIX KEEPER is a cozy fantasy that takes place in a magical zoo. Aila is the head phoenix keeper who is intent on conserving the endangered firebirds by reinstating the zoo's breeding program. She's forced to enlist help from her college arch-rival, Luciana, who tends to be an insufferable know-it-all. THE PHOENIX keeper is a cute story with romance and lots of magical creatures, conservation themes, and character growth.

The Phoenix Keeper is a cozy fantasy set in a world with magical creatures and zoo keepers who take care of these animals. Aila is a keeper obsessed with phoenixes and is given the chance of a lifetime to start a breeding program at the zoo.

I thought this was such an amazing premise! I love cozy fantasy and magical creatures so was really looking forward to reading this book! I'm so sad to say that it disappointed me, which is hard to say because I wanted to love it so much!

First, what I liked: the illustrations!! I love seeing field-note-like illustrations of magical animals. Amazing. I think the world and zoos were a cool set up. I liked seeing a trans woman as the best friend. I feel like the bones of a book that I would have loved was here!

My main problem with this book is that I really struggled with the main character. I feel badly saying this because I know the author pulled a lot from her own experiences with anxiety, but as someone who also has social anxiety, it was very claustrophobic living in Aila's brain. I've had this issue with other books that have POV characters with anxiety, but this one was particularly difficult to read. She was also very immature, self-centered, and so focused on her needs and her anxiety that she completely forgot about everyone else. And most characters were pretty okay with this! Aila definitely had growth by the end of the book, but it was too little too late for me. Not to diagnose fictional characters but my psychologist brain also thought about autism when reading this book. I always appreciate seeing neurodivergent main characters but I had a hard time with this one.

I also think that this book could have done with some more editing. It's very long for a cozy fantasy and I think it could have been trimmed a bit. I didn't get as many cozy fantasy vibes as I wanted, which made me sad. I thought the romance was okay. This is an enemies to lovers story and Aila starts talking about Luicana as a "witch." Since this is cozy fantasy I thought that Luciana literally was a witch and I was waiting to learn more about the human magic system, but no. It turns out this is just a mean name that Aila calls her. Since Luciana is Latina coded I thought this was kind of racist in addition to just being rude. This is also a personal pet peeve but it really bothers me when characters talk about how skinny and weak they are :( and how they admire the curvy people around them :) I get what they're trying to do but we so value thinness in our culture and having the main character constantly talk about how sad they are because they are so thin rubs me the wrong way.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite, but I recommend checking it out if you are super excited by the premise and don't mind a flawed POV character. 2.5 stars from me rounded up to 3. Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for the eARC of this book, my thoughts are my own!

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC for early review.. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

Phoenix Keeper is a wonderful cozy fantasy about an anxious woman learning to be brave and bold for the sake of her passion, finding friendships, love, and courage on her journey to revitalize the phoenix breeding program at her zoo.

A perfect five star for me--- my only ding against this book is loudly drowned out by the fact that this is what I call a Triple Horse Hitter: it features unicorns, pegasi, and a kelpie. You know I can't resist. My singular complaint is that I am tired of obliviously rude main characters in my stories--- I've read one too many books featuring them recently and my secondhand embarrassment can only take so much.

But I'm happy to say that Aila, our main character, grows a lot and experiences a full character arc throughout the story. Normally I abhor the "makeover fixes everything" trope, but Aila learning to take care of her hair and emphasize her natural beauty thanks to her friends was a really sweet departure from the normal "she took her glasses off, she's gorgeous!" Between the insane bisexual panic she feels for her two crushes throughout the story and her anxiety, she's a bit of a chaotic figure to follow, and I laughed and cried alongside her. She's hyperfixated on her phoenixes, determined to make the breeding program a success, and that leads to problems as well as achievements. But overall, Aila is a good person who learns to care for her friends and open up to others, hearing their perspectives and realizing that hiding away is no way to live at all.

This is definitely cozy fantasy, but with mid-tier stakes. Animal lovers will cry reading this one. I felt anxious getting up to the 80% mark, and the last 20% was all just adrenaline and panic for me. I saw the twist coming very early, but still enjoyed it. I think the zoo setting was done very well--- despite taking place in a world nearly identical to earth in terms of technology and population, every single magical creature was fleshed out and believable.

The supporting cast of characters was well rounded and delightful--- Tanya and Luciana especially. The diversity and representation present throughout the cast is well done and I love a queernormative setting like this. I think the romances (both of them) were perfectly developed--- I never felt like Aila had unrealistic feelings or insta-love for either of her crushes.

The plot is slow, and methodical. If you want action-packed high stakes drama, look elsewhere. By the end of the story, I cared about all of the creatures and characters just as much as Aila did.

Overall, a supremely successful debut, and I'll be over here begging MacLean for a side sequel featuring more magical horses, please and thank you.

It took me a long time to finish this book because my baby celebrated his first bday recently and I’ve been very busy with hardly a minute to spend on reading. But I finally got to binge it and turns out, it’s such a sweet and heartwarming tale and I can totally see why every one of my blogger friends has adored it.

While the world building as a whole isn’t much of a concern here, the setting of the magical zoo is delightfully presented, introducing us to each of the amazing fantastical creatures and their lovely caretakers, the ecosystem of the world concerning these animals and the beautiful camaraderie between everyone working in the zoo. The ever anxious introvert Aila, supportive bff Tanya, maybe comes off as bitchy but is secretly softhearted Luciana, the gorgeous but mysterious Connor - and ofcourse the phoenixes and griffins and kelpies and more - all make for a great team to follow along on their daily adventures involving budgeting to feeding to answering stupid questions and even fighting off smugglers.

It’s a delightfully cozy story of the bond between humans and animals and sweet tale of the beauty of friendship. I also really enjoyed the audiobook narrated by Stephanie Bentley. Definitely recommend.

It took me a long time to finish this book because my baby celebrated his first bday recently and I’ve been very busy with hardly a minute to spend on reading. But I finally got to binge it and turns out, it’s such a sweet and heartwarming tale and I can totally see why every one of my blogger friends has adored it.

While the world building as a whole isn’t much of a concern here, the setting of the magical zoo is delightfully presented, introducing us to each of the amazing fantastical creatures and their lovely caretakers, the ecosystem of the world concerning these animals and the beautiful camaraderie between everyone working in the zoo. The ever anxious introvert Aila, supportive bff Tanya, maybe comes off as bitchy but is secretly softhearted Luciana, the gorgeous but mysterious Connor - and ofcourse the phoenixes and griffins and kelpies and more - all make for a great team to follow along on their daily adventures involving budgeting to feeding to answering stupid questions and even fighting off smugglers.

It’s a delightfully cozy story of the bond between humans and animals and sweet tale of the beauty of friendship. I also really enjoyed the audiobook narrated by Stephanie Bentley. Definitely recommend.