Mance, the heir apparent to the current leader, is known to the world as being a vicious killer. She has famously killed hundreds of animals using nothing but her bare hands, after all. But it turns out that not all is as it seems as it is her tyrant father has been forcing her to engage in these brutal acts for years. Silver, tasked with infiltrating the palace in order to earn a better life for him and his friends, realizes this only after gaining her trust and then betraying her. Overall, the Beasts We Bury is a decent stand alone. Had it been made into a duology/trilogy, some of the instances where things felt forced could have been more fleshed out. The world building is excellent, and the characters are relatable. The only negative is that it lacked the depth I hoped to see. The ending makes me feel like this is not the last we will see of this world, and I look forward to it!

I read up to 27% of this and unfortunately it’s not something that I am enjoying. It’s quite boring and i keep stopping it because i want to love it! I may just not be jiving wirh the audio, but at this point i’ve decided to DNF.

I was not sure I would like this book based on the first few chapters. It is difficult to stomach Mancella's power. She gets to keep animals spirits and summon them at well but only if she killed them with her bare hands first and in a fair fight. But Mancella is a powerful FMC and I don't mean her powers. Her character won me over. You feel her pain, her struggle. As she meets Silver and begins to trust him, you see her kindness and desire to be different than her father grow. Manc and Silver are amazing characters who are easy to cheer on, even when they're unknowingly working against each other.

Her father, the ruler and Prime, is an easy villian to hate. He would sacrifice his entire family if it meant he could gain more power. He's cruel and manipulative and I spent the majority of the book enraged at him on Mancella's behalf.

Overall, a solid read. I will read future books by this author. I also really enjoyed the narrators. I love dual narrators and these 2 were fantastic!!

This one really surprised me. I believe this is a debut novel as I haven’t heard of anything from this author before. I picked this up as I was very intrigued by the description on NetGalley and I ended up enjoying it a lot. I loved the way we got to explore Mancella powers and her relationship with her father/her past as we go through the book.

I would have appreciated a bit more info on Silver as I didn’t connect with him as much as I wanted to and that made me kinda meh on him as her love interest. But I was obsessed with the resilient, strong, and stubborn Mancella. Overall a very good read that surprised me a ton!

This book took me about 20% to get into. I feel like the story just drops you into the middle without explaining the manic system, but once I got into the story I couldn’t put it down.

The magic system is amazing, but the mfc was treated horribly by her own father to test the limits of her magic, testing her limits and if she refuses then he would lock her up until she complies.

I did not expect to cry within the first couple of chapters. This dark YA fantasy surprised me. The writing was incredible so vivid while listening to it through the audiobook. I appreciated the two POVs being two different voice actors for Mancella and Silver. This is a very unique world and magic system I enjoyed very much. The FMCs powers are different from what I've read before.


Thank You to NetGalley and MacMillian Audio for the audiobook ARC !

The Beasts We Bury is the 1st book in a duology by debut author D.L Taylor. It's a YA fantasy teeming with political Intrigue, betrayal, and a sweet enemies to lovers romance. From the first page I was hooked, the characters are so well developed that I instantly felt connected to them. Mancella, the FMC, is shackled by her father (both literally and figuratively) as she fights for not only her freedom but her kingdoms as well. And Silver, the FMC is sarcastic but loving in his own way, who is also fighting for his and his friends freedom. Together Mancella and Silver and the best combination for a couple I've seen in a book lately. The world-building and magic system are also well described and unique in a way that I haven't seen. Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who loves a high stakes, sweet romance, with the threats of looming war.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.75/5

The Beasts We Bury is a fierce, spellbinding YA fantasy with a lovely romance, an interesting magic system, and a fun plot.

Ooh, this was a good one. The magic system was my favorite part: it was a unique and emotional magic that hooked me from the beginning. Mancella was a great FMC, and I loved her personality and determination. Silver was a fantastic love interest and MMC; his golden retriever vibes and personality were top-tier. The banter and connection between Mancella and Silver was everything I hoped it would be. The pacing was great, and I adored the prose and writing style. The world was exciting and well-developed, and I enjoyed the many settings. The ending was great and has me desperate for a sequel. I highly recommend this addictive fantasy!

The audiobook narrators for this one were great. Mancella’s narrator fit her character perfectly and added a fierce depth to the story. Silver’s narrator also fit him wonderfully, and the energy he brought to Silver’s character was fantastic. This is a beautifully immersive audiobook listen!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ALC!

This book exceeded my expectations! The story focuses mainly around a girl named Mancella who has the power to summon animals. The catch? She has to kill them in order to be able to summon them. Her father abuses and manipulates her so much as he wants to be able to wield her in war and other various political tasks. I can't remember the last time that a villian actually made me dislike them as much as her father did.

The other main character in the story is a boy named Silver, who is a rebel thief. Mancella's path crosses his as Silver is trying to pull of a heist to rob the castle. As time goes on, Silver starts to care for Mancella and starts to regret his actions. I really enjoyed their relationship towards the end of the book when Silver finally starts to learn right from wrong.

There are so many twists in this book with Mancella's family that I found surprising. This audiobook had the perfect narrator's and they truly captivated me from start to finish. I loved Mancella's power and how we got to meet several of her animals and the stories behind all of them and how she obtained them. Some of the stories are truly heart breaking and Mancella is such a strong character to have endured what she has.

Thank you to Netgalley, Macmillian Audio, and D. L. Taylor for an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Set the beasts free. So many fun animal perspectives in this book. Which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Join our main character in a war torn land. She’s next in line to rule, with a deep dark secret. Which side will she end up on? Who can she trust? And what is best, for her and her people?

Treachery around every turn. Can a street rat help the princess find her way? Or will everything crumble down around them?

The entire premise of this book is extremely engaging, a young girl with magic that when she kills, a creature takes on their powers, however, it turns very dark. When you find out that not only does she take their powers, but she takes their soul..
The author really shines when she describes what it’s like to see through the eyes of each of the animals you can feel their pain and the pain of the FMC.
The MMC is an orphan who uses humor to try and cover his deep and crushing grief and anger. You feel all his feelings.

I don’t think you will hate anyone as much as her father who take the title of wurst dad/father figure firmly from Arobynn.

Parts of the book with interactions with her father are genuinely tough to read he is so evil, I found myself skimming and not wanting to feel those feelings. The author being so descriptive was definitely a catch-22 in those scenes.

All in all, I found the book very good but very very dark and I’m not sure if I’d read the next book in this series for that reason. I need more light in my books.