Best Beast

An Enchanted Occasions Story

By: E.J. Russell

Narrated by: Kirt Graves

Length: 4 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Being invisible makes it really hard to get laid.

When half-human Kai Schiffer steps into the Interstices—the post-creation gaps between realms—his supernatural half kicks in, and he literally disappears unless…well, don’t ask. 

But in a stroke (heh) of good fortune, Kai finally has a chance to show his face (and other parts, stars willing) to his long-time crush Jovan Kos—Interstitial Law Enforcement agent, wolf warrior, occasional berserker, and best man at their mutual best friends’ Imbolc wedding.

Jovan, who’s half in love with Kai already, is grateful his best man duties are light enough that he can focus all his attention on Kai. After all, with Enchanted Occasions Event Planning handling the Olesson-Pakulski wedding, what could possibly go wrong?

©2021 E.J. Russell (P)2022 E.J. Russell

A lovely listen

Jovan and Kai are hands down my favorite couple!

The plot was exciting and there was so much happening overall.

I didn't want this book to end

The narrator did an amazing job on this one.

Definitely recommend this series

Fun and funny whirlwind

Fast-paced, witty and full of humour this is a great quick read. Great, dynamic and colourful characters and a fun twist on a few wedding disasters. The narration is fantastic and elevates the story!!

imaginative!!

Adored Kai and Jovan!! Kai is half human and his other half takes over when in the supernatural world. Jovan is an Interstitial Law Enforcement agent. He is also a wolf warrior/berserker. These two had fantastic chenistry. Such a fun story to listen to!! Kirt Graves did a fantastic job with the narration!! Well done. Overall, fantastic!!

Romance between the Realms

This was a lot of fun to listen to. It's actually my first book from this series but I'll definitely be going back to read/listen to the previous books.
Kai and Jovan have become really good friends over the past couple of years as they joined their best friends for movie and game nights. It didn't matter that Kai was invisible to everyone whilst in the Interstices, a bond grew between them along with quite a big crush, on both sides. When on Earth's side, Kai is fully visible and the two have the chance to be together, fully, for the first time. What ensues after, when it comes to the wedding of their best friends, is absolute chaos! It reminds me of a comedy caper where everything that can go wrong, does go wrong but from the influence of others.
It's such an entertaining story, both from the relationship aspect and the overall plot of the story. Kai and Jovan are from different worlds and are seen as outsiders even by their own people but together, there is attraction, happiness and love. The wedding is just, insane. No one is safe from the groom to the musician, all happening but not for the reasons I was expecting.
I really enjoy E.J's writing style as she brings characters and the supernatural to life.
Kirk's narration is spot on throughout the story. The voices provided match the the character personalities and I found myself laughing along while listening to all the goings on that they endure.

disappointment

I really liked the rest of the series to varying degrees... but this one seems to be the bad one. There's virtually no plot. There is only mutual pining and it is very boring. You can give this one a miss.

Invisible man in finds love.

What an interesting premise for a plot! Once again, Russell brings a diverse and fascinating cast to life. Romance with lots of twists and geeky snark. Loved it!
Kirk Graves narrates with his usual flair.

Fun, sweet story

I really enjoyed this trip back to the Enchanted Occasions universe, although I don't think this one would work well as your first foray into the world, as there is minimal history or background for the organization or many of the side and background characters. However, the MCs were well described and they were both so sweet (yes, even the berserker). The wedding scene is a hoot, but I definitely sympathized with poor Chef. I enjoyed the story and look forward to hearing more stories about Andy and the Enchanted Occasions team.

The narration by Kirt Graves was enjoyable, and I didn't have any trouble distinguishing the various characters' voices.

I received a free review copy of this audiobook and am voluntarily leaving this honest review.

Invisibly in love

I loved this story Kai was really funny and interesting and I felt a bit bad for him because of the prejudice against him within his best friends family and that community in general and a bit bad for jovan to I loved their best friends and the plot against the wedding was really fun and creative to try and figure out as well as deplorable on the person trying to destroy its part I loved when jovan first got to see Kai it was really sweet and I really enjoyed kirt graves voice in this and Ej Russel is a great writer

MM Fantasy

This follows the Enchanted Occasions Event planning, for the Wedding of Olesson- Pakulski. Jovan is Best man and he needs Kai's help to save the marriage. it was a clusterf*ck of getting them to the aisle, whilst realising he was in love
Well written and narrated

Jovan and Kai

Jovan and Kai have their hands more than full with the wedding from the nine circles of Hades. Sabotage at every step and the supernatural interfering families of the bride and groom is enough to make a berserker lose it. I loved that falling in love with each other doesn't mean that they don't put their best friends' happiness second.

Audiobook: Excellent narrator.

Cute story

This was my first story in the "Enchanted Occasons" world by E.J. Russell and the novella worked well as a standalone.
The author created many fantastical paranormal creatures. I liked Kai and Jovan well, with Kai having the distinction of not always being visible. The two are invited to their best friend's wedding and it was really funny at times what sudden unexpected problems arose there. I really liked the two main characters, the chemistry between them was definitely right.
I liked the story, it was alternating, sometimes funny, sometimes with some drama and sometimes a steamy romance. Unexpected twists and turns make the book entertaining. A sweet story for in between.

Kirt Graves has a big part in this, who is a master at portraying the emotions of the protagonists super well, so that as a listener you find yourself in the middle of the story. It is always a pleasure to listen to Kirt Graves.

I requested a free copy of the audiobook and this is my honest opinion that I am volunteering

Loved it

This was a great prequel, I loved it, parts of it made me laugh a lot. The narrator was also excellent.

Fantastic listen!

This is my first book by this author and it won't be my last. I love how Kirt Graves bring the characters to life. I highly recommend this audiobook!

I adore Best Beast!

Best Beast serves as a prequel to the Enchanted Occasions series, but works perfectly as a standalone.

I absolutely loved this book when I first read it last year. It was just so cute that I kept going back to read passages. I am absolutely thrilled that it's now in audio and I can listen whenever I need a pick-me-up! Kirt Graves did a fantastic job depicting Jovan and Kai, and the numerous other characters. The timing and the sense of chaos brewing was perfect!

Jovan and Kai are just adorable. This is the book you need when you're looking for main characters who are really good to each other. The storyline is fun but not complex, so you get to just enjoy these characters.

Now that I've listened to it, I find myself curious about what Kai and Jovan go on to do. If ever EJ wanted to write a series following the adventures of one couple, I think these two would be fantastic.

I originally read this first, but now that I've been reacquainted with this book the vibe has made me think strongly about Meghan Maslow's Must Love Demons (which is another favourite of mine!) If you enjoy mythological creatures, strong worldbuilding, gorgeous main characters and a fun, madcap storyline, I highly recommend both of these books.

Sweet & So Creative, Great Job by K. Graves

Super cute story, with tons of imaginative characters! I know what I can expect from E.J. Russell, and I was not disappointed by Best Beast. It's a fun premise, with the wedding and opposites attract romance.

Audio perfectly performed by Kirt Graves, I can listen to him anywhere, any time, and any place!

Wedding Hijinks

Best Beast is part of the Enchanted Occasions series, but can easily be read as a standalone. Kai and Jovan are interesting and likable characters who have to use all their wits to keep their best friends’ wedding from becoming a disaster. In the process, they also find love with each other. There is so much humor and sass throughout the book and the interactions with all the characters is really enjoyable. E.J. Russell is one of my favorite authors - the amount of intricate and fascinating details she weaves into her stories is phenomenal. I just adore her world building.

The audiobook was narrated by Kirt Graves who does a fantastic job. The audio was well produced and that, along with a smooth and dynamic performance, made this audiobook fantastic.

Entertaining

I'd read the novella before but I believe that the audio enhances it. It's also helpful to have read some of the authors other books as they are set in a wider universe. It does work as a standalone but I got more enjoyment out of it after reading others.
The mcs were great together and I loved the wedding plot.
Cute and quick listen

Enchanting & Entertaining! Fabulous Story & Listen

E.J. Russell takes you on a wild ride into her fascinating “Enchanted Occasions” world, a world filled with imaginative and equally fascinating paranormal beings. This novella sized book packs a punch and a whole lot of story. I adored the two lead characters, Kai Schiffer and Jovan Kos, Kai is half human but his other half takes over when in the supernatural world, making him invisible to others, with only one exception, he becomes visible for a doomsday situation. Jovan is an Interstitial Law Enforcement agent and a wolf warrior/berserker but currently he is the best man for his friend Ole, who is marrying Radka. Enchanted Occasions event planning is handling the affair so you can expect some bizarre situations and SNAFU, but beyond that there are more than usual mishaps. I loved the chemistry between Jovan and Kai, so happy they got spend time together and Jovan got to actually see Kai. This is a fast paced and cleverly plotted story, there is plenty of drama, humor and witty dialogue, twists and turns, heartfelt emotions and some steamy romance. E.J Russell, thank you for another entertaining story.

🎧📚🎧 And for the fabulous narration, E.J. Russell cast the perfect narrator to bring her story and characters to life. Kirt Graves is a talented narrator and a versatile voice artist. He is awesome at covering the roles of all the different characters, giving each their own distinct voice, making it easy to follow along and tell who is who. His portrayal of the characters is spot on and he is believable in every role he plays. He sets the perfect tone for the story, handles to witty dialogue with ease and handles the humor effortlessly. He also captures all the character’s emotions and projects them into his performance and has you feeling every single one. Kirt Graves is an entertaining storyteller and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another amazing listen.

A bit different but I liked it.

I have to admit that the main reason I requested a review copy of this audiobook is because Kirt Graves performed it. I love everything I’ve ever listened to that he’s performed and this book was no exception.

I really enjoyed listening to this book; it’s the first one I’ve read by EJ Russell. It was a bit confusing in places because of all of the unusual character names and species. I’m not normally a fantasy reader which probably explains some of my confusion. I liked this enough that I plan to check out the other stories in this series.

A complimentary copy of this audiobook was provided to me at my request but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.