This is a cozy fantasy in the vein of The Spellshop and Legends & Lattes. Low stakes, obvious villain, and magical vibes. 

I really loved the premise of this book but the execution was lacking. 

Aila was so self-centered and a bad friend. Once you’re post- college, most people know the basics of friendship so it felt a little juvenile for lack of understanding. The characters very much felt like they were in high school. 

The conflict with Aila and Luciana was ridiculous but also, kinda relatable & understandable. I think it was insensitive for Luciana to write off Aila’s feelings as self-centered because it’s completely valid as to how Luciana’s actions came across. What IS valid is that Aila didn’t give Luciana a chance to see if she’s changed once they graduated and grew up a bit. 

The setting was very cool. I loved that it all pretty much took place at the magical zoo. 

It felt very out of place for the Aila & her friend Tanya to be making top/bottom jokes. This was very PG except for those comments. 

Overall, it was a cute story with a really cool setting. The characters were juvenile and the romance was PG.