a cute low stakes low fantasy romcom that could've had more romance IMO

this book follows aila, a zookeeper who works with the phoenixes and is pushing for a breeding program at her zoo. aila is a very relatable main character; her struggles with social anxiety and her love for her work is felt through the pages and i admire her for her devotion to the phoenixes. however, sometimes i found her irritating like girl you're 28 c'mon now please try and have a little confidence please please. i think she definitely could have treated tanya better btw.

also this book is marketed as a romcom but i'm gonna be real here now there is barely any romance with the character (luciana) marketed in the blurb. i was waiting for the romance while reading and it just didn't come for like half of the book which is underwhelming. there was some romance with a male character, but i was waiting for my rivals-to-lovers romcom and it barely showed up! the romance with luciana kicked in at around 70%...that's way too long for a book marketed as a romcom. 

at its core, this is a cozy romantasy story that i believe would have been better if it was more marketed on aila's personal growth and her workplace journey instead of a romance. if you like cozy stories or low-stakes fantasy, i would recommend this with you.