The gang is splitting apart. Ethan and Lena are off to college. John and Liv are off to England (And if Rid and Link get a spin-off surely these two will as well. Right? Right?). Link has told his mother he's attending a bible college, but he's really headed to NYC to make his way as a musician, despite the fact that his plan is to sleep out of his car. Ridley hops along for the ride, and while she hooks Link up with a band, there's more going on than meets the eye. 
 Spin-offs can be hard, even with characters as beloved as Ridley and Link in the original series. For one, I commend Garcia and Stohl for giving Rid and Link's journey it's own setting. I also enjoy the new cast of characters we've been introduced to, even if I would have liked some more time to get to know them. At the same time, I miss the gothic-feeling South that I fell in love with in the first place with this series. 
 The plot here could feel almost too fast-paced at times. In the way that events are happening without all the proper motivation or justification, but it wasn't too far over that line. I guess I wanted a little more time to grow into our new settings, even if they will probably change by the next book. We'll see how I feel about our villain as the series goes on. Right now, I'm not necessarily digging it. It feels kind of stretched. The emotional stakes feel much more real than the supernatural ones. 
 There were things in this novel that were set up and never came to fruition. Early in the book Lena connects all the friends, but when Rid and Link get into some hot water there is never any indication she knows something is wrong. On one hand I like that Lena and Ethan don't come in and save the day as a deus ex machina. Rid and Link get to do their thing. But on the other hand, why is this set up if we're not going to use it? I can only assume it will show up in the following novels, which there will be. 
 Really what was great about this novel was Ridley's growth, even if some of her backstory given in Dangerous Creatures seemed to clash somewhat with what I remembered from the Caster Chronicles. For instance, this novel hints to her dark nature even before her claiming, when I thought the previous backstory had her going dark as coming out of the blue. But it's been a while. Please correct me if I'm wrong! Regardless, I'm enjoying watching her change and evolve as a character, and more as a person.