Title: Beast of Prey
Author: Ayana Gray
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, African Mythology, African Fantasy
Published: September 28th 2021 by Penguin Random House LLC
Rating: ★★★★
Pages: 474
Format: physical book
Nightmares hunt like beasts of prey, vanquished in the light of day
Beasts of Prey by Ayana Gray
Synopsis
Beast of Prey an African Fantasy about an enslaved girl, Koffi, who works with her mother at the night zoo. After tragedy strikes the night zoo Koffi attempts to escape only to run into a warrior in training, Ekon, and the demon of the jungle that stops her. Koffi and Ekon find their different missions to have the life of their dreams, entangled on a journey of lost history, enchanting gods, and goddesses as well as a people who’ve long since been thought dead. In a world that doesn’t believe in magic, Koffi and Ekon must use that very thing to save the world. Do they have what it takes to make that sacrifice?
Worldbuilding
The world is a bit small in this first installment of the story. But not without luster and wonder. The history alone drives you to want to know more. There is a beautiful map in the book that I hope as this series continue, we get to explore more of.
Magic System
The magic system is rudimentary but wonderful for any young adult or middle-aged reader. What the magic lacked in complexity it all but made up in a solid foundation to grow in. My pet peeve with magic in fantasy books is when you read a book the magic makes the user all powerful. In this book the magic always comes at a price and that is always a win win in my book. Even though I do not think the magic itself can wow me what it does do is make the characters a bit cleverer and more interesting since they cannot magic their way out of all their problems. Another remarkable thing we have is mythology of highly active gods and goddesses. So, what I love about active gods are…. They are unpredictable and can change the course of the story at any time. Which to my delight they do? And how can I not mention the beasts and the world is in the title. We come across some interesting animals in the jungle one so unnerving that it made my arachnophobia flare up!!! LOL
Plot
I was nervous at first, I thought the book was interesting but nothing to write home about with lots of potential. The halfway thought the book the thickens we learn lots of backstory that not only enriches the characters but the story itself. With every chapter leaving you on the edge of your seat you will definitely see pay off but letting the author guide you through the journey of this tale.
Character Development
Oh, baby we got loads of the good stuff… character development. This book does an excellent job making the characters (no matter how wrong they may be) very likeable. You are rooting for their growth every step of the way. The backstories are amazing. The author really shows through the characters how trauma effect’s the mind long term. There is even a character with OCD that I find most interesting. Ayana has a real gift for writing characters.
Final Thoughts:
I was not at all interesting moving forward when I first learned about the synopsis of the story, not because it was bad but just cause it lacked high stakes and imagination. However, when I got into the story it made a hard turn and profoundly changed my mind. I completely fell in love with this book going from a 2.5 to a strong 4 star read for me. I cannot wait to see what else this series has to offer but even more I will be keeping my eye out for the author next great work.