Magical creatures were great but the story is inconsistent.

I wasn’t sure about this book at first but it quickly drew me in. The story begins with Leena who is a charmer which means she has a special way to tame wild beasts. We know she’s in exile from her people but we don’t know why. Very quickly she finds herself hunted by a killer and only saved by one of her magical creatures. This leads her to the land of the dead and their king Noc. These are people who have died and been brought back to life and they make a living by working as assassins for hire. Leena and Noc come to terms with each other by agreeing not to kill Leena if she provides Noc and his close associates four magical beasts. Of course how much can you trust assassins? My favorite part of the story is the quest and taming of the magical creatures. The creatures are very diverse and a lot of fun to read about.

I did not realize this was a fantasy romance. Given that premise it should not come as a surprise that Leena and Noc will fall for each other. The problem in their way is that Noc is under a curse that kills anyone he loves. The removal of that curse towards the end of the book was not as well done in my opinion. I also did not find any chemistry between Noc and Leena. The author actually has another character looking like a better romantic option for Leena and a different one for Noc. There are a couple of gratuitous and graphic sex scenes between them. The author chose to make Noc bisexual which seems like an odd choice that is just going to bother readers. Readers who want more gay characters are bound to be disappointed by not having the character actually choosing a same sex partner. Especially when there is a male character that he has loved before, almost killing him, that he seems to have more in common with. Romance readers might find his very close relationship with a male associate make his choice of love interest in Leena less believable.

As I said I think this book is at its best on the fantasy element of magical creatures and not on the romance part. I’m curious if this book is setting up a sequel and if so I’m not sure if I would read it. This book was inconsistent in its writing so it would depend on how interesting the premise was. For that reason it’s a hard book to recommend. If the magical part sounds interesting enough to outway the negatives it can be a fun read despite its problems.