The Sphinx Pride

The Griffin Sanctuary #5

by Ariana Jade

What's a sphinx pride to do without their leader?



New arrivals have apprentice veterinarian Charlotte revisit an old friend, the long distance in her relationship helps her make up her mind about how she really feels about Felicity, and a pride of royal sphinxes put her abilities and heart to the test as Charlotte works out if she's right for the job as a veterinarian at the Griffin Sanctuary.

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The Sphinx Pride is book 5 in the Griffin Sanctuary series about apprentice veterinarian Charlotte as she learns how to care and handle mythical animals. Every book has a new animal case and can be read out of order. The series contains a slow-burn sapphic romance.



If you enjoy mythical creatures, zoo documentaries, slow burn sapphic romantic sub-plots, and a heroine who loves animals, start The Griffin Sanctuary series with The Unicorn Herd.

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, Lesbian Fiction

143 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 19, 2023

Reviews

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy from the author through Booksprout and am voluntarily reviewing it.

I really liked The Sphinx Pride. This whole series is great and follows the point of view of Charlotte, who is a vet at the Griffin Sanctuary for mythical animals. In this book the focus is on the sphinx pride and the struggles as the leader of the pride falls ill. I also liked how there are some other things going on as well like tanuki kits that arrived at the sanctuary, as well as some other animals she checks in with like the unicorns and there's her romance with Felicity.

While I enjoyed the last two books a bit less, this one was really good. I was so glad to be back in this universe and follow Charlotte and her work at the Sanctuary. It was interesting to learn more about the sphinxes and the sphinx pride. There are some sadder and difficult parts for Charlotte to deal with in this book, but I felt those were important for the story and for Charlotte's development. I thought it was interesting to see her struggle with whether it was right to keep animals in cages even if it was for the best and how this difficult topic was addressed. It felt like a strong installment in the series and like an important one for Charlotte.

Besides the main focus on the sphinx pride there is more we see of what's going on in the rest of the sanctuary. There's a side plot with some tanuki kits, which made for some nice variety in the plot. There is also a bit more about the two unicorns who don't go along as well and we see the kitsune and tanuki from book 3 again as well. I liked how these different plot lines and other animals got integrated in the plot and I liked the continuity it added to the series to keep seeing the animals from previous books.

I liked the way the romance felt more settled in this book. There was less drama and I found it interesting seeing how they dealt with the long distance dating. I liked seeing their relationship deepen and also how they communicated when they hit some struggles. I wasn't always a fan of the romance in previous books, but I like where it is now and seeing them as a couple finally. Their romance deepens and I liked reading about them in this book.

To summarize: This was a great read and felt like an important one for the series as a whole. Charlotte has a difficult situation to deal with when the leader of the sphinx pride falls ill. It was great seeing how she dealt with everything and the book touches upon some difficult topics and handled them well. I liked seeing how Charlotte dealt with everything and processed what was going on. I liked seeing some more of the other animals as well, there is a new side plot line about some tanuki kits as well as more about the unicorns, kitsune and tanuki from previous books. I liked how the romance felt more settled and had less drama. There was some good communication and I liked seeing them as a couple and how their romance developed. This was a great read and I can't wait for the next book in the series!

[Cath · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book five of The Griffin Sanctuary series and the main character Charlotte Beaver, apprentice veterinarian, is getting used to a quieter sanctuary now all the interns have finished and graduated, leaving her to have to get out of her bubble and get to know more of the keepers and senior veterinarians and try to be more social. She is having another long distance relationship with former intern Felicity, who if she passes her final exams, has been offered a job at the Griffin Sanctuary. Charlotte’s last long distance relationship was a disaster and she isn’t the most social or people friendly person. She is much better with animals as her mentor’s discovered and why she was offered an apprentice veterinarian position. Now the hours are more settled, she has time to talk to her girlfriend, but Flo, the second year apprentice still takes the easy jobs whenever possible, leaving Charlotte to deal with all the ailments and scratches. She gets to see a new group of mythical animals, as the royal sphinxes need to have their annual immunisations. They are big cats and the smell of them is strong and not something you can forget. This pride of royal sphinxes is one of only five left, after their habitat was destroyed in a wildfire. They are one of three sanctuary’s that took in a pride.

The dominant male of the pride is not keen to eat his meat as they try to tempt him into the enclosure to give him his shot. There are two younger dominant males that in the wild would be going out to form their own pride, so now there could be a lot of aggression and fighting from the younger males, Tut and Ramesses, if they sense any weakness in Kemet. The other problem the Griffin Sanctuary has is that most of the pride are related and so shouldn’t be allowed to mate with each other. There is one obvious cause for Kemet not eating much, but with his age, there could be other hidden issues and causes, which could be devastating. Charlotte loves working with her mentor Jacob, as he doesn’t mind when she asks lots of questions all the time. She has moments of self-doubt when left with some motherless youngsters and thinks she has done something wrong, and also issues with her relationship when her girlfriend surprises her, something she finds herself unable to cope with easily! Luckily for her, her girlfriend is very supportive and after her exams finish in a few weeks, she will be right back there with her. Another great addition to the Griffin Sanctuary and the everyday life of a young apprentice veterinarian and all the mythical creatures she interacts with and learns more about, as well as visiting her old favourites, the silver blush unicorns. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlotte’s journey as an apprentice vet continues in the Sphinx Pride. The Griffin Sanctuary has taken in a pride of Royal Sphinx after their habitat was destroyed. When the old male leader of the pride falls ill, two younger males challenge each other for dominance. Charlotte struggles with the role zoos play in conservation, lamenting that sometimes animals in cages is the only way to save them.

Charlotte & Felicity’s relationship is also challenged by distance as Felicity leaves the sanctuary to finish school. They both have to confront their fears and insecurities in order to find solid footing. With communication and understanding they deepen their relationship and are reunited when Felicity returns.

CW:death of an animal.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy the thoughtfulness that some of the challenges of animal conservation are addressed

don't get me wrong - I live hearing about mythical beasts and their habits and habitats as much as the next geek, but real life animal conservation has breeding, resource and population challenges.

Charlotte reflects a real empathy for the animals and mourns genuinely for the animals and the limitations of the options available

it's a bit sweet to observe her romance, but really the curiosity and appreciation for a wide variety of creatures keeps me well entertained throughout the series as Charlotte and her skills grow

[Looby Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love and loss feature heavily in this book. Felicity is away taking her exams which unsettles Charlotte making her remember the last time she did long distance with her ex.
Also unsettling her is whether the sanctuary is actually helping animals if they can tell they’re behind bars.
This is a sadder than usual book but with sprinkles of hope scattered here and there.
The last few pages of the book show the series is headed into darker days too but I’m excited to keep reading the next instalments.

[Bookaddict · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series with mithical creatures!
In every book we get to know more and more creatures.
And in this one, it’s not only about royal sphinxes, but more other are detailed.
I like the in depth description of sphinxes, their apearance, their interactions in the pride, their life.
And the news of the end of the story about the creatures that must be tescued, made me anxious to read the next book.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kyrstin Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit the later half of this novel was hard to read. I read the books a bit more for the animals then the actual main characters. So when one animal is suffering even though, I generally know it usually gets better for the animals its hard to read. I liked Charlotte's complex emotional struggle and growth as she continues to move forward working with the animals and her peers. Over all the story was a good read. Can't wait to start the next one.

[Sophie Eaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book focuses on the Sphinx pride at the Griffin Sanctuary. Charlotte meets the various members of the pride and learns about their dynamics, particularlywith two young males. This is put under further strain when the dominant male is declining in health. On a personal front, Charlotte and Felicity continue with their long distance relationship through video calls and messaging. A really interesting, sometimes emotional, and definitely fantastic book!

[Debbie Benson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review. Charlotte is still learning as an apprentice vet. I like how realistic this story was about the roll a sanctuary plays and how hard and good a life as a vet can be.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte has to deal with an old sphinx and baby tanukis. This book was sad in parts but also had some lighter parts. I really enjoyed reading this book. I would recommend it.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Carolyn Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

The issue at hand is life and its uncertainty as Charlotte deals with another long distance relationship after the disaster of her previous one. Meanwhile, the realities of loss of habitat, aging animals and other issues start weighing on her.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte is getting more time with the Directors. She thinks it is nerve-racking. I can see were she is with that. A lot has gone on with is book. Hard times and still no real peace yet. I do love the names the animals have. Very exciting and a lot more danger with the bigger animals. Good story.

[Dulaine Roode · Rating 5 out of 5]

The picture of the animal had me confused at first, but then I remembered that it is magical creatures. Charlotte got sent to the sphinx habitat to help out there, and then through a series of event they found out that the alpha sphinx was sick, and while trying to fix him in surgery, they found more troubling health issues for the very old sphinx alpha male. There were tears involved, but also happy moments for Charlotte and Felicity. Keep reading to follow their story...

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[TaniaRina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great opening – totally sets the tone!
‘The Griffin Sanctuary housed many mythical animals and one of the loudest and most obnoxious groups had just gone extinct: the interns.’

Helping animals is a tough job since we don’t have a common language. Humans need to learn how to pick up on animals’ cues and signals, which is difficult when different species communicate in different ways.
Breeding, climate, feeding, human interaction, medical care, quarantining new arrivals, reliance, social hierarchy, trust issues post-abuse.
‘The issue for some animals isn't that they can't return to the wild, it's that their wild no longer exists.’
‘Birth control is stopping their natural urges, they're losing their instincts because they can't hunt properly, and when we move someone, we break up families.’
Conservation of endangered species is even more complicated. Imagine having to coordinate a massive illegal exotic collection – when already trying to figure out who goes where in your own sanctuary!


We’ve lost touch with the world of nature and our co-residents. Perhaps if urban & suburban children were given the opportunity to gain hands-on experience animals for a length of time, we could pass along a more compassionate and responsible world.


Will Charlotte pass muster in time to help with ‘The Griffin Flock’ around mid-September?