A wonderfully charming, action packed and witty tale for lovers of mythical beasts.

Starting a new job is always daunting at first but when veterinarian Jonathan starts his latest position he gets the feeling that things are not quite what they seem. Alongside caring for the local pets and livestock, Jon is stunned to discover that he is also responsible for caring for the communities best kept secret: a menagerie of mythical creatures. While navigating the challenges of caring for each of his new patients, Jon discovers an unusual creature that threatens the safety of everyone in the community and he must decide where his duty of care lies.

Packed full of endearing and loveable characters (an amorous centaur who likes mead, a cockney flying monkey and a hairdressing faun to name a few) this story is unique and enchanting and I suspect readers will want a Mr Bingley of their own.

I spotted a few spelling errors which I reported via Kindle.

SPOILERS BELOW:
There were a few pitfalls with the plot or characters that I noted down:
Gremsboc is from East London, England, so he would say ‘arse’, not ‘ass’.

There are a lot of characters in the book, and at times it was tricky remember who was who. Some of the humans are identified using either their first names or surnames or sometimes both in the same chapter, which became confusing.

Jonathan comes across as a man of honesty and integrity so it seemed a bit strange that he was willing to be publicly affectionate with Deedee at the ball, when he was already in a relationship with Anita. He was very quick to point out that there was a spark between Anita and Deedees’s boyfriend at the same event and seemed abit shocked. His relationship with Anita didn’t seem to add much purpose to the story, other than to provide him with a temporary dating option and point out how incompatible they were, compared to Deedee.

It seemed strange that Jonathan was still mentally considering leaving at the end of his contract, despite a specific tragedy that would have resulted in there being no other vet to take over the clinic.

There were points in the story where large chunks of time seemed to pass between sentences - for example at one point Jonathan is on his way to meet Lucretius, in the next sentence he is finishing Lucretius’ examination.

Connolly Davis’ involvement didn’t add much to the overall story, other than to highlight that the town has a secret and not everyone is part of the inner circle. This could have formed a much larger part of the threat-to-the-secret side of the story.

What a unique and charming premise - I found it very wholesome and warming. The animal characters and the bond between them and our vet are delightful. There’s a balanced blend of realism and mythology, with neither one stifling the other. Overall a fun read.