4.5 stars rounded up because I read this in one long sitting.
Once again, I'm sucked into the world of cryptids and fated mates. Any time I see that L.E. Horn or Ellie Horn has released a new book, it's pretty much automatic that I will read it. Unfortunately for me, this time I didn't read the fine print, and this book is NOT standalone, unlike the previous fated mates series that takes place in the same universe. But had I known, I would probably still have read it because 1) I love this universe so much and 2) Horn writes her books in a timely manner so I am sure I won't have to wait forever for the next book. I WILL be waiting in line for it though.
This series begins with a new set of characters, Anna, Matt, and Talakai, as well as Anna's roommate, Mari. But many of the old favorites are there, including Cara, Cody, Ryan, Kitani, and of course, Sebastian, who we met in the previous series. Our old favorites are running an academy for cryptids to learn how to better utilize their gifts, but the goal is to defend the realms from those who would abuse them or take them down. While it's not necessary to read any of the previous series, I think it helps to understand the world where this takes place, as well as the politics of the cryptid council and the history of the dragons. Horn does a pretty good job describing everything, but I'm not sure if it was all easy for me because I already knew it or if she really does include everything you need. Personally, it really enhanced the story for me knowing who everyone was, especially Sebastian.
As with many of the fated mates series, those who are destined in this story don't have the easiest backgrounds, and so you know that some of them will make major mistakes. But I think this story is also about redemption, and I do like how complicated some of the main folks are in this one. If anything, Matt was the most straightforward new character, but even he has some hidden traumas in his past which we get a glimpse of in this book, and I imagine we'll get more clarity in future books. His insistence on using Aussie slang was both amusing and annoying, but my annoyance was more on the level of Mari and Anna, so it wasn't too bad. I think his motivation was partly a defense mechanism and it gave you an understanding of the type of person he was.
Also common to the other books is that this one has both obvious and hidden villains, as well as potentially good people doing bad things in the name of survival, and politicians with hidden agendas. The big bad in the previous books continue to be background enemies and
I suspect we'll hear more from them in future books.
This book absolutely ends on a cliffhanger, so if you hate that, you may have to wait a year or so for the rest of the books to be published, but I still highly recommend this series (and this universe). Horn is one of my favorite authors for this genre of books.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from BookSirens. All thoughts and opinions are my own.