"As always. As ever. As a rose to the sun." 
 The first book in this series was a pleasant surprise. I hadn't expected to love it as much as I did; Ahdieh took me by surprise with her evocative writing, a beautifully crafted love affair and a place so richly described that I almost felt like I was there myself. 
 When "The Wrath and the Dawn" ended, I was so frustrated with myself; so unhappy that I hadn't bought the next book in the series, and when I couldn't get hold of it until a few weeks after, I had no desire to read anything else. I suffered from a serious bookhangover. 
 So, of course my expectations for "The Rose & the Dagger" where immensely high. Perhaps unfairly so. Because as lovely as this book was, it couldn't live up to its full potential. At least not in my opinion. 
 Everything felt rushed in this book. The wonderful and rich descriptions that won me over in the first place, were left out and replaced by fast-paced action and war scenes. The lyrical (and sometimes a bit mushy) romance were replaced by love triangles and jealousy. And the emphasis of magic were oddly out of place, clumsily executed. 
 But still: I needed to read this book. I needed to learn the ending.