Book Review: Contracts and Cats by Toni Binns

The book, Contracts and Cats, kept popping up on my Instagram feed, so I downloaded it recently and dug in.

The story is set in a bookstore. The main character, Sable, arrives for a job interview and accepts the position. As a newly graduated university student with loans to pay back, she’s thrilled. But once she moves in, she finds out she can’t leave until her contract expires and her replacement is hired. It was a great beginning and had me hooked.

The story then went through each day with Sable making various kinds of coffee in the morning. Yes, the author did go into detail regarding the process of making coffee. Not too much detail, but repetitive. Though there are readers who love this kind of detailing.

Each day, the bookshop transformed for its expected customer(s). Some who were magical. Some who were non-magical humans. The shop itself was magical, and Sable was mentored by a talking cat who ran the shop.

Mostly, the story was entertaining and the characters were easy to like. The pacing was moderate and each new day held a little adventure as Sable met with the variety of customers. But that was the extent of the story.

There were hints of the cat’s real identity. There were hints of something more, and so I kept reading. In the final 2% of the book, we are given a huge reveal, followed by a cliffhanger. Because of this, I finished the book with mixed feelings. Overall, I loved the story and the characters. I am curious to read the next book. But I also feel disappointed. The story didn’t end in a proper conclusion. There was no growth (character arc) for the main character. She didn’t change, and throughout the story, I didn’t know what she wanted. There were lots of hints, though, that she and her family have magic. Essentially, the book felt like an entertaining introduction to a greater story.

Do I recommend reading it? Sure, the appearance of so many magical societies was appealing, and the world-building was rich. The characters were varied, and each gave a lot of life to the story.

I do plan on reading book two when it comes out. I sincerely hope the story progresses and more happens. I have a lot of questions, which I anticipate the author will answer. I also have high expectations for the various story threads the author introduced in book 1. My sincere hope is that Toni Binns fulfills her promises and ties everything up nicely!