I read this as part of another author's summer read along and I'm so glad I did. I doubt I would have ever picked this series up otherwise because I found the idea of a human kept as a pet a little off-putting. However Pet is not docile. She's a snarky Pet and I find that amusing. She's confounding the psychos expectations of a typical human. Also, just as a point of information, because a friend asked when I tried to describe this book to him, being a pet has nothing to do with sex. Her owners consider her a pet like we would a dog or cat, but with more useful skills. I enjoyed the story and will definitely continue on with the next book in the series. ( )

This was a somewhat interesting one.
It used most of the stereotypical urban fantasy tropes but it just didn't feel like your run of the mill UF story.
The pacing was... weird and the story was a bit all over the place. Apart from a few boring sections, the weird construction made the story somehow refreshing.
After reading lots of UF and PNR I am at a point where even if I am not able to actually guess the plot (like who the perpetrator is) I can guess what story section comes next and what purpose it will have.
I am attuned to the typical pattern of story segments which in itself makes even well-written books somehow boring and predictable in a way sometimes.
I read/listen to books mainly because I need something that occupies my mind so it doesn't wander to dark places so having a break in the story-building 101 was very refreshing even tho one might objectively rate it as inferior.

The general tone is lighthearted but there are a few heavier sections every now and then as well.
I could connect well with the mc and the reasoning was surprisingly sound and personalities consistent considering how meandering the story progressed.
The conclusion made the plot feel a bit pointless but this is not really a plot-focused story anyway. It is more about experiencing the journey alongside the mc in a fascinating world and interesting circumstances.

I can not in good conscience rate this higher than 3 stars from a more objective viewpoint but my personal enjoyment rating is a good 4 stars for sure. ( )

Love these characters! ( )

I read most of these books in one gulp in April and I enjoyed it so much more than I’d expected to!

I'd read a chapter or so of Between Jobs last year. My reaction was Oh, heck NO.

Our narrator is a seventeen year old girl who has been squatting in the house in which her parents were murdered four years earlier; she has a cafe job and an ill-tempered boss who doesn’t care that she’s underage or underpaid. And then a neighbour is gruesomely-murdered and three strange “psychos” -- two fae and a vampire -- move into her house. I hadn’t even got to the part where they decide she’s going to be their pet. Ugh.

But I decided to give it another go because I liked Gingell’s other stories and because there’s not really a lot of urban fantasy set in Australia. Once I got past the opening, with its tales of murder, the worldbuilding of the world between intrigued me. That’s what I remember most vividly about this book. The places.

I still wasn’t sure what I thought about Pet’s “psychos” or the fact that they call her Pet, but I was willing to reserve judgement until I’d read more.

“It’s a matter of seeing things in the right way,” Athelas said, shrugging. “And the human who can see things in the right way to access Between would be a very rare human. I can only imagine the mess it might cause, and as a whole, the Fae are only inclined to approve of mess when it’s their own doing.”
“What do you mean, seeing things in the right way?”
“Don’t teach the pet bad habits,” said Zero briefly, making me jump. For a bloke as big as he is, he could move as silently as JinYeong; he was already in the kitchen. “I haven’t decided that we’re keeping it, and it’ll be a nuisance to wipe its memories.” ( )

I read the first chapter and I am very intrigued!