OFFICIAL AUTHOR BIO: S. A. MacLean is a fantasy romance author from sunny Southern California. Infatuated with magical worlds since her days of brewing mud potions in her childhood garden, she fell in love with the romantasy genre after realizing all her favorite fantasy novels had kisses in them. Her stories invariably feature quirky humor, sassy animal companions, and queer casts who represent her voice as a chaotic bisexual woman. Sarah received her BS in Natural Resources from Cornell University and a PhD in Environmental Science from UC Berkeley. She left the research track to teach environmental science at her local community college, inspiring the next generation of students to save the planet.

FORMAT/INFO: The Phoenix Keeper was published on August 13th, 2024 by Orbit Books. It is told in first person from Aila's POV. It is available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: For her entire life, Aila has had just one dream: to be a part of the team working on the endangered species breeding program for phoenixes at the Sam Tamculo Zoo. Unfortunately, by the time she's accomplished her goal of becoming a phoenix keeper, the breeding program has gone defunct, with a solitary female phoenix left in the zoo's care. But when a tragedy strikes another zoo, a new home is needed for the male phoenix in their care. Suddenly, Aila's dream is within her grasp, but only if she can prove the Sam Tamculo's Zoo's facilities are up to the task. Begrudgingly, she has to look for help from fellow keeper Luciana, Aila's college rival who has an undeniable way with people and PR. As the two work to restore the phoenix breeding program, however, Aila may also have to admit that her heart isn't burning just for the phoenixes anymore.

The Phoenix Keeper is an absolutely charming and captivating cozy fantasy that stole my heart. It's a warm hug in more ways than one, from the devotion Aila has to the creatures under her care to the realization that Aila needs some care herself. Aila suffers from anxiety, the kind that sends her into spirals of imagining worst case scenarios - which in turn drives her to overwork herself to prepare for every possible contingency. While I don't suffer to the degree that Aila does, I definitely felt seen in the ways the character could lose herself to anxiety spirals; Aila leaning on her support network of friends to get her through the tough times particularly touched my heart.

Then there's the romance. This is a slooooow burn romance with zero spice, the kind that truly earns the trope name "rivals to lovers." Luciana and Aila barely tolerate each other when the book begins, but when they set aside their petty bickering to devote themselves to the animals they both care about, they begin to realize how badly they've misunderstood each other. And part of the beauty of the slow-burn romance is that it gives Aila space to learn what she deserves in a relationship. To top it all off, this is a queernorm world, without any of the angst of figuring out sexual identity. You simply love who you love and are who you are.

The Phoenix Keeper features an unusual modern fantasy setting; while the zoos may have kelpies and dragons on exhibit, the humans here have internet and cars. The names of fictional countries and regions, however, aren't here to introduce complex world-building. Instead, the setting invites you to simply imagine a world very similar to our own that just happens to boast an array of fantasy creatures. It threw me for a second the first time a character pulled out a walkie talkie, as I had erroneously imagined this as an 1800s type setting, but once I readjusted my expectations, I found I didn't mind it all.

In fact, the modern setting may have helped strike a very particular chord that made me predisposed to like this story even more. Several years ago, I began being interested in various zoo conservation programs, helped in part by the fantastic social media presence of the Cincinnati Zoo and a documentary series set at Disney's Animal Kingdom. I love the behind the scenes of how keepers work with their animals, from the training they do to get animals comfortable with medical procedures, to the breeding and releasing of animals back into the wild. So a whole story about the day-to-day life of a modern day zoo keeper working with magical animals? Absolute catnip to me.

CONCLUSION: If you're looking for an absolutely heartwarming story, you need to pick up The Phoenix Keeper. It earns every aspect of its coziness; it's not without occasional strife, but it rewards you with a giant emotional hug as characters come out the other side. I will absolutely be keeping an eye out for whatever MacLean writes next, as this spoke to me in a very real way.