No Better Than Beasts
By Z.R. Ellor
Narrated by Max Meyers
4.5 ⭐️

I had such a good time in this world. This version of The Nutcracker delivers on political plots, untold histories, mysterious magic, psychological impacts of neglect, and so much more. The world building provides vivid imagery from the start. I felt the story was non stop action between actual physical battles, high stress social/political situations, dramatic internal dialog, etc. The beast transformations were an interesting (in a good way) aspect as well. I do think it can be tricky to catch onto the storyline during the first 10% or so of the book. It starts fast right away and definitely took me a while to grasp it all. I read this via audiobook. Meyers was fantastic. I thought they hit this narration out of the park and absolutely recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley, Z.R. Ellor, and Macmillian audio for this audiobook ARC.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

The writing was so plain and I found the characters to be incredibly flat. The narration itself was actually decent but it couldn't save the story from being incredibly average. Perhaps this would have worked better for a younger reviewer.

No Better Than Beasts by Z.R. Ellor is such a fantastic dark YA fantasy. The world-building was exceptional and the characters are very well developed. The strain between the three siblings was a main focus point throughout the book and it worked very well for the story and plot. You will find secrets, betrayals, secret loves, folklore, and morally grey characters throughout No Better Than Beasts and I love that it is a standalone! The amount of detail Ellor put into this novel is extraordinary and it had me captivated and invested in the story from start to finish, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys retellings, morally grey characters, a unique magic system, or lgbtq representation!