I’m a sucker for cozy fantasy and low-stakes drama. And there was something inherently magical about this one. I was smiling all throughout. I loved all of the creatures and their unique personalities that shined. Something about the way the characters were built up so well, they felt alive and like I was living in the book. It was masterfully crafted and I cannot wait to read more from S. A. MacLean.

There were a lot of things about Aila that were so relatable, but this quote really hit me:
“Animals are easier than people. It’s like they understand me. They never judge me.”

Thank you to @orbitbooks and @netgalley for the eARC. All thoughts are my own.

For a book with the tagline "Falling in love never burned so bright" I was severely underwhelmed and disappointed by this book.

This is not cozy. This is boring. There is a distinct difference. In a cozy fantasy you still care about the characters and want them to succeed. Aila is incredibly annoying and whiny and judgemental. She holds grudges and has so much anxiety she's barely functioning. She doesn't feel 28. She feels about 15.

I mean, I have so much anxiety that I'm barely functioning. But she's not doing anything about it? And being judgemental and not like other girls is not quirky.

Also this is at least somewhat marketed as a sapphic love story but Aila spends at least half of the book lusting over a man but too terrified to talk to him. And it's a *stretch* to call someone your enemy when you disagreed over a group project once in college.

There is so much exposition that somehow never gets around to actually describing the interesting things - the magical creatures. It's a zoo for magical creatures and yet they're hardly described.

I tried reading this twice and put it down in irritation each time. It was making me actually angry and I really didn't want to force myself to hate read it.

The narrator was ok but didn't help with Aila's tendency to whine.

*Thanks to Orbit for providing an early copy for review.

I loved this sweet, cozy fantasy. Aila is a zookeeper, her dream job, and the head phoenix keeper. She has always dreamed of helping endangered species and sets out to do so at her zoo, however, she is incredibly shy. Aila has to overcome some big obstacles to make this dream come true! What a gem of a book! Wonderful characters, wonderful writing. 5 stars!

This book is quite modern fantasy, with detailed, textured worldbuilding for those who want to sink into a world and live there for a while. Full of biology, climate, and zoology details, you’re reading more for vibes than for plot. There is a romance element but this did not read like a romance novel, felt secondary to the phoenix breeding plot and to Aila’s confidence and anxiety issues. Overall I really had a cozy time reading this, but at the same time I found much to critique. Aila is very judgy for a character so worried about being judged, and for someone so self conscious she is not very self aware, which made it hard to empathize with her sometimes. Especially when you consider how many people were helping her and she was barely reciprocating. There were some pacing and editing/repetition issues— could’ve been shorter. And There was a moment of high stakes almost-disaster that felt like conflict was prioritized over being true to Aila’s character. Mostly though I kept wishing I was reading Luciana’s book. She was an incredibly compelling and dynamic character, with depth and an interesting backstory. I wanted to read about her! I will definitely read more by this author and recommend this to folks looking for a low stakes, beautifully detailed fantasy world. 3.5 stars but rounded up to 4

A charming and heart-warming fantasy romance featuring magical creatures and the zookeepers working to conserve them in the face of poachers and the pesky public.

The main plot revolves around Aila and her attempts to restart the breeding program for her beloved phoenixes. Running parallel to that is a romantic subplot with a dragon keeper who isn’t all he seems, before Aila realises she prefers a griffin keeper who is *more* than she seems.

The stakes get higher towards the end, with highly satisfying results. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone in the mood for a good cozy fantasy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them wishes it was The Phoenix Keeper.

The Phoenix Keeper is another great addition to the cozy fantasy genre. the story takes place in a fantasy world that closely mirrors ours, except for the fact that magical creatures exist everywhere.

however, similar to our world, many creatures are facing extinction due to poaching and general human greed.

our main character, Aila, works in a zoo as the primary caretaker of a near extinct Simarallo Phoenix named Rubra. Aila is painfully introverted and has zero (and I mean ZERO) people skills, which she’s simultaneously fine with (generally hates other people) and also wishes she understood how to talk to others (lonely b*tch hours). she has one friend, which was a classic case of an extrovert adopting an introvert when they became roommates in their college dorm.

Aila’s goal is to reopen the phoenix breeding program at the San Tamculo Zoo and have a shot at saving the entire species.

now, I won’t lie to y’all—the first few chapters made my head spin a little and I got bored of ALLLLLL the different magical creatures having their histories explained, AND their descriptions explained, AND all the details you could imagine that you didn’t really need for the story. I actually considered DNFing at one point because I just wasn’t getting pulled into the story, but when I looked at how the ratings on Goodreads were steadily above 4 stars, I figured it had to be worth it to stick it out.

around the 25-30% area, the plot felt like it finally found it’s pacing and it actually turned into a very quick read from that point on.

plot: ★★★★☆
this is peak cozy fantasy in that the plot is essentially “plot? what plot? just magic animals and sapphics, pls.” the antagonist’s reveal wasn’t until almost the very end of the book, so obviously, it was a very short era of villain-y. I had kind of assumed there wasn’t going to be a villain because it took so long for something dastardly to happen and honestly I was kind of on board with the idea of a book being just fluffy and cute and nothing bad happens ever. however, once the villain had their big reveal, it felt like it had been made so obvious at this point that I was kind of over it.

writing/prose: ★★★★★
the writing is good. I really enjoyed how relatable Aila was written. she is flawed, but in very normal ways, which just made her feel more genuine and real. it made you want the best for her.

pacing: ★★★★☆
the pacing was kind of rough in the beginning. it just felt like it was dragging and not enough was happening to pull me into the story. once the characters became more established and engaging, the story itself started to flow much better.

humor: ★★★★☆
the humor is more dry, but it fit my sense of humor perfectly. this wasn’t a book that had me laughing out loud, but it would make me smile to myself a lot.

romance: ★★★☆☆
the romance was very sweet, but if I’m being honest, I wish there had been a little bit more.

I saw early comparisons between The Phoenix Keeper and Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. while reading Emily Wilde, I am constantly kicking my feet and swooning over Emily and Wendell’s interactions. in The Phoenix Keeper, I was enjoying it, just not to the same level. it felt more surface level and I didn’t feel as connected to Aila and Luciana as I had hoped I would. I also think we could have spent less time on Connor.

characters: ★★★★★
Aila definitely got on my nerves sometimes, mostly when she was just downright rude to Luciana early on. I get the backstory and all, but goddamn, you can still be polite, LOL. but overall, Aila was too damn relatable to feel negative towards her for very long. Aila is an introverted icon. her character growth was definitely endearing to watch and was probably the highlight of the book for me.

over-all: ★★★★☆
I enjoyed this a lot!! I would highly recommend this book for a vacation read or just to take a break from the more stressful fantasy stories out there. it was refreshing and sweet, and really fun to imagine so many magical animals with a little love story in the background.

5 stars. I feel like the Phoenix Keeper was written for me. It's literally everything I love in a book. If you've followed my reviews, you know I'm such a sucker for a book with animals. So you better believe that a book about a magical zoo would be absolute perfection (my PhD is in animal behavior and I've worked at a zoo before). I didn't know the author's background, but I was so impressed with the way the animals were presented. Even though these are magical/ made up animals, she really nailed the science (turns out, she's actually a PhD as well, which makes total sense!). I've really been loving cozy fantasy lately. I know that as a subgenre, it can sometimes read a little slow, and that may be the case for some when reading The Phoenix Keeper-- especially the scenes that deal with animal husbandry. But for me, I ate up every second of this book. I loved the friendship, I loved the romance, I loved the ever so slight mystery component, I loved the message about conservation, and I LOVED LOVED LOVED the animals. This book was just so sweet and heartwarming. That said, I also really appreciated the representation. The main character in this book suffers from anxiety, and the author did a fantastic job describing her struggles but also successes. All in all, I can't praise this book high enough. If you also have a soft spot for animals, highly recommend this one. I'd also compare it to the Undertaking of Hart and Mercy/ Undermining of Frank and Twyla... so I think fans of those books will also really enjoy this one.

Thank you so much Orbit, MacLean, and Netgalley for hooking me up with an eARC in exchange for my honest review! I loved this one so much that I went ahead and purchased a signed copy for my shelf (even though I've also got an illumicrate copy on the way).

Actual rating: 4.25
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Queer Magical Zoo! I was IMMEDIATELY sold and the Phoenix Keeper did not disappoint. I will say I did go in expecting more of a historical setting but the Phoenix Keeper actually has a modern fantasy setting where the animals are treated like modern day zoo animals with specialized diets and conservation programs for endangered species. In the case of this novel - our main focus is the Phoenix but don’t worry we do also get time with some Peacock griffins and Diamondback dragons.
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As a biologist with unconventional pets, I really enjoyed how the author used real life species to influence the designs and personalities of magical creatures - it gave the story such a fascinating and grounding touch that I couldn’t wait for every bit of world building.
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Our MC Aila is incredibly fun to read, even if she has difficulty in social situations (and also talking to pretty girls, but I mean, what bisexual DOESN’T have a problem talking to pretty girls?). You’re rooting for her every step of the way and there’s also an amazing scene between her and her rival Luciana, where she finally stands up for herself about how difficult it is for her to read social cues and talk to people like a “normal” person.
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I will say I didn’t like Connor from the start, but honestly, how could you even bother to look at him when Luciana is in the picture?
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If you like Magical Zoos, disaster bisexuals, hot ladies you’d like to have step on you, The Phoenix Keeper will entertain you greatly. Fans of Dinosaur Sanctuary will eat this up too!
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Hisses & Kisses 🐍
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*I received an eARC from Orbit & NetGalley. All opinions are my own.*

My inner child is so happy. This was literally written for me as a wannabe zoo keeper when I was growing up. It was so cozy and nice to just dive into this book. Also the cover is stunning.

A cosy book I wanted to throw myself into. Who could resist spending a day at the San Tamculo Zoo?

Where to begin? Has to be the animals.
I really enjoyed the variety of species we were introduced to in a way that felt natural and avoided info-dumping. The fantasy creatures were familiar enough to not be overwhelming, but just that bit more, which perfectly suited the zoological setting.
Speaking of which, I adored the setting. I have aphantasia (I don’t have a mental image) but the way the exhibits were described meant I could still vividly imagine them - the smell and feel of a humid tropical jungle, delightful!

I adored the cast of characters. Aila’s anxiety rep felt very relatable to me, and I loved how you could see her growing in strategies and support throughout the book.
Did I see the villain coming a mile off? Yes. Do I mind? No; it’s a cosy fantasy and I always think if I can work something out ahead of time it’s just well signposted and makes sense in the story.

Overall, I absolutely adored The Phoenix Keeper and can’t wait to see what S. A. MacLean will write next!

FIVE STARS -- This book is probably my top cozy read of the year.

The story follows Aila, a phoenix keeper at a magical zoo. When tragedy hits their sister zoo, Aila now holds the future of any breeding for an endangered phoenix species she keeps. However, no one could have seen that the only way to do so would be to work with her college enemy. While the stakes have never been higher for Aila, this books reads as a low-stakes cozy fantasy (with a tad of romance)

A queer, enemies to lovers romance with mental health representation and some of the most relatable characters I have read in a long time. Go pick up a copy today, you will not be let down.

Orbit - I am in desperate need of some Archie merch!!!

A HUGE thank you to Netgalley and Orbit for to opportunity to ARC read this!

I loved this book. So much. It had me charmed from the very first chapter on and I was glued to the book whenever possible. What are responsibilities? Sadly, the things that kept me from reading this book in one sitting.

There were three major things that I loved about this book: the world building, the MC, and the emotions the story evoked in me.

While I'm not exactly sure I'd call this a full on cozy book, I did love the world it created. There was a lot of world building in this book but that made sense because of it being set in a zoo. Having so many different kinds of creatures meant that they all needed their habitats to be created with their home environment in mind. But because of the passion of the MC that was narrating this story, it never just felt like a random info dump to me. It felt like I was learning from an experienced staff member of the zoo that loved their job.

That MC was also one of my favorite parts of the book. She felt so incredibly relatable to me. I know this won't be the case for everyone and I can see this not being some people's cup of tea, but to me she just really worked for this story. While my own anxiety and awkwardness isn't quite as bad as that of the MC, I still understand the struggles and why she acted the way she did. Between the anxiety, the nightmares, and the memories of bad situations that haunted her years later, she just felt like a well-developed character with fitting emotions and motivations. I had to put down the book several times to take a deep breath while remembering some things myself. Her passion for her creatures and their conservation was amazing and I loved how that affected the story.

And that leaves me with the last thing I really loved about the book, which was how emotional it made me. I got so caught up in everything and felt all the things: happiness, sadness, giddiness, resignation, excitement, fear, secondhand embarrassment (of course, cause it's me we're talking about). You name it, I felt it. I regularly read books that make me tear up out of sadness but this was one of the few books that made me cry out of happiness. It was just so emotional and so much fun for me when things were going well but also so sad when tragedies happened.

Now, I do have to say that some of the plot was a little bit predictable but for me, personally, that didn't take anything away from the story. I still enjoyed it a ton and loved seeing how everything played out since I didn't know the details ahead of time. The climax in particular had me on the edge of my seat. I also liked seeing the various relationships between the characters and their ups and downs together. This was definitely one of my favorite books of the year!

This was a truly wonderful, thoroughly enjoyable read. It was incredibly cozy, heartwarming, and everything you would want out of the book of this type. The writing was superb and engaging, and all the characters were interesting and lovable.

Absolutely obsessed.

A cozy fantasy about a magical zoo and its zookeepers? LGBTQ+ rep? The funniest animals, the most frustratingly lovable FMC, and the sweetest friendship? The FMC character development? I loved it all. I stayed up late finishing the last few chapters because I HAD to know what happened.

As soon as I realized Connor was not the main love interest, the plot twists with him and with Luciana were pretty obvious to me, but even without them being surprises, I still love how everything turned out!

The Phoenix Keeper is a comfy, cozy fantasy that takes place is a modern world like our own, but with magical creatures. Aila is the reserved phoenix keeper in charge of much of the aviaries at a zoo not unlike the San Diego Zoo.

As a biologist with an interest in conservation, I really enjoyed much of the “shop talk” of the different creatures and how the zoo is run, but that might not be everyone’s cup of tea. There are many creatures mentioned I did not have a context for so I had to look them up, which took me out of the story personally. I wish there was an index describing each creature with an illustration. I felt like I was just supposed to know what such and such mythical beast looked like.

A personal pet peeve is not knowing how to pronounce a major character’s name. Our heroine is Aila, which according to the internet can be pronounced Aye-la or Eye-la. I didn’t find any indication which pronunciation is correct for the story. Aila’s name is mentioned a lot so I was repeatedly reminded that I didn’t know how to pronounce her name, hence the pet peeve.

Overall, the book was enjoyable. I was not in the right mindset for a cute, cozy fantasy, but I will reread it when I am.

A cute, fun, cozy fantasy read! The premise of the book and the magical birds were what drew me in initially and kept me reading, but I did feel that it was a bit slow paced. May have just been the mood I was in rather than the book overall.

Wasn’t quite for me, but wasn’t terrible. The main character seemed terribly terribly young for late 20s. Immature and kind of whiny. I’m an introvert. She’s an extremely dysfunctional introvert . She’s half heartedly doing therapy but really someone among her family or her friend should have seriously pressured her into anti anxiety meds and kept pressing her until something took the edge of. Sympathetic and needs more help than she’s getting doesn’t make for the most romance focused main character. A Werewolf’s Guide to Seducing a Vampire that I also just finished has an extremely shy character very focused on his specialized interests but he’s better done and less completely a walking disaster. This wasn’t a bad book. It just wasn’t that good either. The description sounded amazing and I’d try a second book by this author but this feels like a first book. Potential, promise but not quite there.

Alia's job as the head phoenix keeper at a world-renowned zoo is perfect--when her social anxiety isn't getting in the way, of course! For years, she's dreamed of reinstating her zoo's phoenix breeding program, and after poachers sabotage a nearby zoo's facilities, Alia just might have a chance... but she can't do it alone. With the future of phoenix conservation in her hands, Alia must overcome her fears (and her feud with an irritatingly perfect griffin trainer) to protect the creatures she loves most.

I adore stories that explore what jobs look like in magical worlds, and although action is slow to develop in The Phoenix Keeper, I was perfectly content to watch Alia go about her daily work with the zoo's menagerie of magical creatures. The animals are so much fun (Archie the archibird and Maisie the kelpie were my personal favorites!) and getting to know both the human cast and the creatures in their care made the book's climax all the more meaningful. Anyone who has ever cared for an animal will relate to Alia's love for and exasperation with her birds, and there are plenty of laughs to balance the emotional heart of the story.

At its core, The Phoenix Keeper is about allowing yourself to be open--open to accepting help, to receiving love, and to tackling your fears head-on. None of this comes easy to Alia, whose social awkwardness I could absolutely relate to (and at times found hard to read, precisely because I saw so much of myself in her). MacLean's commitment to mental health, neurodiversity, and queer representation shone throughout the work, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't tear up a few times watching Alia come into her own!

Readers should be aware that marketing for The Phoenix Keeper is somewhat misleading--though labelled as an "adult" book featuring characters in their late 20s, the writing does veer into YA, and despite an adorable sapphic subplot, romance very much takes a backseat to Alia's passion for her work and journey of self-growth. That said, the end of The Phoenix Keeper is worth sticking around for, and if you're a fan of cozy fantasy authors like Travis Baldree and TJ Klune, this book should be on your fall TBR!

Thanks to Net Galley for an ARC of The Phoenix Keeper!

Aila is a Phoenix Keeper (hence the title of the book) at a zoo for mythological animals. She has dreams of one day breading the very endangered species of Phoenix the Silimalo Phoenix. She also have major social anxiety. Her zoo's female phoenix in the breeding program is often overlooked as a mate. Aila finds an opportunity to put her and her phoenix on radar for a mate. But poachers are abound, and expectant phoenixes are often poached. Can Aila find her Phoenix a mate and keep them safe? Will her social anxiety prevent her from keeping a romantic flame lit? (Get it? Flame? phoenixes?)

I wanted to like this book so badly! The premise sounded perfect for me. I loved the characters, the plot, the setting, THE ANIMALS! But boy was this a slog. The pacing was so off. I can usually read a book in 3-7 business days but this book took me over 2 weeks to get through. Although the olympics were happening so that didn't help anything.

I would give this author another try if their pacing is different in future books.

This was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and it lived up to the hype! I love creature fantasy, but coming from a similar academic background as MacLean I would find myself getting distracted from the story thinking about all the unsaid ecological factors. In this book, MacLean has already thought of all that nerd info and sent me up right! I loved all the little details in this. I loved the citations (forgot a period at the end of one though!!), I loved and recognized the zoo workplace dynamic with conservation and entertainment and the struggles between the two. While I sometimes felt the prose was overwritten, I still am going to recommend it to all my colleagues!