I loved the first book in this duology, The Wrath & the Dawn, which largely focused on Khalid and Shazi's relationship as well as incorporated hints of magic and intriguing conflict with a cursed kingdom and political forces moving against the caliph and his new calipha. The Rose & the Dagger, meanwhile, focuses more on different leaders in the world vying for power in the hopes of overthrowing Khalid's kingdom. Shazi and Khalid were still awesome, but the story was less about their romance/relationship and more about side characters' motivations. It was hard for me to connect with this book than with the first, mostly because so much of the conflict was kind of meaningless. Tariq, Shazi's childhood crush, was the literal worst throughout the entire book. (view spoiler)[So much of the conflict in this story arose from Tariq reaction emotionally and irrationally. He's portrayed as this great soldier and leader, but he's actually pretty terrible. If only Khalid had just killed him in the first book. Sigh. (hide spoiler)] I still love Shazi and Khalid's relationship, though; one of my favorite moments being towards the end when Khalid is asked if he is looking for something and Khalid quickly responds that Shazi is a person, not a thing (duh). I also enjoyed the female characters in this story, especially Shazi's little sister Irsa's evolution from shy, timid teenager to being able to rely on herself and her own strengths. Plus: Despina. The magical elements were also pretty cool, but I wished the magic system was explained a bit more. Either way, a pretty good conclusion but didn't quite live up to the first book in my opinion.