4.5 stars!!! 
 Well, it has been a year since I read the "Red Queen", so it took me a while to get into this. It's purely my fault, I have to admit it, as I had to really try and remember where all the characters were since I last left them. But, once I got back into the groove of things, the story didn't fail to suck me in. 
 The "Glass Sword" picks off where Mare and Cal are now on the run from Maven. The story centers mostly around Mare's mission to find the newbloods that are just like her - Reds with Silver abilities. I found this book to be very character driven in most parts with slight plot progression and a few intense action scenes to get the blood pumping. There's still a lot of betrayal, political intrigue, deception and the like which was refreshing as always. There are also some plot twists and changes which had me reeling as well as heartbroken. 
 Mare Barrow goes through the most development in this sequel. We find a girl who is struggling to keep herself together while at the same time trying to protect those she loves. She is a girl almost coming undone as we see her trying to keep a cool stoic facade but underneath it all, there are cracks forming. This made me endear to her character even more because we get to see her conflicting emotions. I really appreciated how vulnerable yet strong she is within this story. 
 We also have more interactions with other characters within the book like Shade, Farley and Kilorn. They play pivotal roles in the plot and it's nice to learn more about them as characters. This creates a fuller and richer storyline making for a great read. I also liked how this book didn't focus too much on romance. It was more mission oriented although we do get a lot angst between Mare and Cal. But I'm glad that the author chose not to venture into this side of the story as even Cal is dealing with his emotions. This made the characters seem more authentic. 
 My only negative with this book was that I got pretty bored with how they found the newbloods. We come across a lot of new faces which I found a bit overwhelming. Plus, the way in which they were recruited was a bit too easy for my taste. They didn't put up much of a fight which was rather a let down. I would have liked to see some resistance over here in order to show some realness. But I guess, that's just me nit-picking. My other complaint would be that there wasn't enough of Maven which I really wanted. XD 
 Overall, a great read and a wonderful addition to the series. The ending definitely left me speechless and eager to get into "King's Cage" as I can already see that it's going to have a lot more of Mare and Maven scenes. I can't wait to get into it. :D