Review first published at http://fansofmsw.com/ 
 I first read this book in French and because of the horrible job the translator had done, I found it interesting but extremely confusing and not exceptional (whole passages were suppressed in addition to a lot of adjectives and adverbs all along the book, they apparently found that it was too long ...). Yet, some things really intrigued me and I still bought the second book and switched to English from the third one. Her writing style is particular and people will love it or hate it; personally, I loved it. 
 The world building was really interesting. I loved to learn about all the different races that composed Elantra, their particularities, their customs and their tense relationships. Yet, because we only discover this world through Kaylin's eyes and because she is not a great learner, the details we know are rather sparse and let us constantly hungry for more. Kaylin's limited vision is probably what I regret the most about this series. 
 I liked that the eye colour of all the people (except the humans) change with their mood, I think that it is an interesting details and it certainly helps to better understand and eventually sympathize with people like the Barrani who are always expressionless and aloof. 
 I really loved the way Michelle Sagara handles her immortals, both in this series and her other ones. They really seem to be another race, different from us in the way they think and feel; it is not just an artefact to render them more interesting like with many other authors whose immortals always seem too human despite all their efforts. 
 As for the characters, I was often annoyed by Kaylin's behaviour or opinions as she seems to be too immature despite all she has had to go through. Those who really interested me are the Barrani; they are always intriguing as they are always plotting something or other and we don't understand their motivations. Among them, Nightshade and Evarim are of course the firsts. Both are extremely dangerous and determine to interfere into Kaylin's life. (Nightshade's behaviour and his mysterious motivations are of course the biggest reason I choose to follow this series). The dragons are also interesting but not as much are they will be in the next books. 
 The plot of this book was a good way to familiarize us with Kaylin and a part of her past. It was a good way to show us the importance she attached to children, the foundling hall and her healing. The mystery was completed by the end and the enemies defeated which allow us to have a satisfying story despite the threads left hanging for other books. 
 This book was an interesting beginning to the Chronicles of Elantra series, but it is not the best in the series. Michelle Sagara never explained too much what exactly happen and things are often implied. For those reasons, some people may be let confused. While her writing style is not as complicated as in the novels she writes under the name Michelle West, it is certainly something a reader will love or hate, that's why I would advice new reader to read first the novella Cast in Moonlight which constitute a good introduction to the series.