Beans and a Bite

by Shannon Dennington

Queensland is changing. Vampires, shifters, humans, and fey have always been separate, but the One Justice Act is being processed and soon they would all have to obey a singular set of laws. Seren is a human. She’s happy to run her café, Beans and a Bite, and leave the politics to people who know what they’re doing. That is until she’s bitten by a werewolf and she has to learn what it means to be a supernatural in a human dominated world. Brendan is the driving force behind the One Justice Act. He’s also the Alpha of the Brisbane werewolf pack and an architect, but he still makes time to go into Beans and a Bite to see Seren almost everyday. When she’s bitten, he has no choice but to take her under his wing and into his home. Not that he’s complaining.

189 pages, Paperback

Published July 12, 2020

About the author

Shannon Dennington is an Australian author and editor based in Brisbane. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative and Professional Writing from the Queensland University of Technology and a Masters in Writing, Editing and Publishing from the University of Queensland. In 2017, Shannon’s short story, Watch that Jiggle, was long-listed for the State Library of Queensland’s Young Writer Award. The Down Under series are her first books.

Reviews

[Alexander Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is set in Brisbane, my local city - a Brisbane that is inhabited by werewolves, vampires, fey, pixies, to name only a few, with humans in the middle, trying to mind their own business and not get involved in the politics of each supernatural race.

Seren is a young woman who runs Beans and a Bite, a cafe, one of these neutral sites, where humanity and supernaturals can mingle without repercussion. Her friend, Brendan, is the head alpha of the local Wolf Pack, and he has made it his mission to create the One Justice Act, a set of laws that all races must follow. This creates enemies.

Seren, still suffering from the memories of her brother being turned into a vampire (albeit, to save his life) is turned by a shifter, a werewolf, and all she thought she knew about the world will have to be thrown out the window, as she now finds herself in a Wolf Pack, and navigating the politics and the shifting itself. Brendan takes her under his wing to learn the ropes.

This is a quick and fun read. Dennington did a fantastic job of mingling the supernatural with the everyday. It was so fun reading about settings I myself see all the time, being that this is about Brisbane. The writing is to the point, and still manages to be poetic at times without being flowery. Dennington has an eye for character, mainly shown in Seren's backstory. This type of fiction - paranormal romance - is not usually my normal read, but I have to give it 4 stars for achieving exactly what it set out to do. Check it out!

[Sam Everard · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The smell of coffee had soaked in through the floorboards and now the whole room smelled like coffee no matter what time it was."

That may not be everyone's definition of heaven, but it sure comes close to mine. In Beans and a Bite, all supes are out in the open, with grudging respect (and some quiet dislike) between each type. After Seren's brother is turned into a vampire to save his life, she - a human herself - approaches the local shifter pack leader with an idea to open a cafe catering to all kinds. What could go wrong?

Seren, and the reader by extension, comes across a little naive to this supernatural world her business serves. It isn't until she's forced into its open arms that she learns there's a lot more to understanding and acceptance between these groups than she once thought.

I enjoyed this world the author created, with its shifting (pun intended) politics, careful romance and overall, simply a deep sense of family - those we're born into and those that we build ourselves. While the action peaked and ended far quickly, the book held my attention throughout, and I'd definitely be interested in seeing more of what comes next.

[Bri Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I genuinely enjoyed the whole thing. At parts it did feel a bit slow but was filled with colourful dialogue or commentary that kept you interested in both characters perspective. A couple of the chapters felt to end a bit sudden. Like there could have been more of a seen or more interactions to add to the plot. When Brendan goes to talk to Faraji, it feels cut short and like the dialogue could have been drawn out more to maybe give more of a look into the character or more of home between major plot points he gets easily forgotten after the start. Like why did he so easily give up Seren when they showed up in the end? It made the scene feel very anti-climatic. But was still an amazing ready and I’m definitely excited for the next one.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 Stars

[Brianna M · Rating 5 out of 5]

🥰🥰🥰 a very fun read! Worldbuilding is fascinating, spinning together modern Australia with traditional European supernatural. Fun little dark romance "kidnapped for your own good" tropes, and I really did enjoy the twist on soulmates, being that Seren's "fated mate" was someone she politely and mutually declined, and instead made her own choice of partner . All in all, a fun little book.