I'll tell you one thing, it was the cover that drew me to this book. The image of the sad girl definitely intrigued me and I love the dark, foreboding look it gave off, but that's where it ends. Of course, I expected another paranormal love story, and I even expected the girl to be a clueless pawn in the "bigger picture", but usually I'm all about the guy and the romance between the couple is what keeps me going through the book. In this book, however, not only did all the characters have major shortcomings, but the "love" wasn't really given any justice and it certainly didn't appeal to me in the slightest. When I first starting reading the book, the prologue drew me in, because you catch a glimpse of the strength and sadness of their love, but then that's it! The rest of the book is about the girl, Luce, being dragged around like a clueless puppet at this dreary and boring excuse for a school with characters who are not only shady, but really outright annoying. I have to say, I really had to push myself to finish the book, otherwise I would have stopped midway. 
 Don't get me wrong, the story was well-written in that Lauren Kate certainly knows how to describe a scene, but the "love story" definitely could have used some work and the supporting characters honestly did nothing to help with my liking the book. It's a typical scene, the boy pushing the girl away because he's afraid of what would happen if they get together, but even in other stories, the guy does it in a way that leaves you intrigued and still wanting them to end up together. Here, Daniel really isn't painted in my head as a guy I'd swoon over and Luce lack of self-respect had me really wanting to slap some sense into her. The premise of the story is that, due to her unlucky and mysterious past, she is stuck at this boarding school, Sword & Cross, for trouble-makers and she meets Daniel, who she is instantly drawn to and most of the book is about her figuring out why and then them falling in love. The scenes that lead up their romantic encounters and even the encounters themselves leave something to be desired, definitely not something you play over and over again in your head because it was so great and romantic, because I've seen better. And then when it is finally revealed what Daniel is, it's not much of a shocker. Honestly, most of the book leaves you with so many questions and the thought that no normal girl would live her life like this without seeking answers and doing something about all the strange occurrences in her life. 
 I guess what kept me going is my curiosity to see how it would end and if Daniel and Luce would end up together. If you were to piece together all of their romantic encounters, especially the climatic, and well-written kiss, then you can enjoy the book somewhat. I did, however, really like Luce's friend Penn, who is a good and important character in this book. She definitely kept things lively, as well as the other characters like Arriane and Cam, but they still weren't my favorites. I was glad when things were FINALLY revealed at the end and Lauren shed some light into the whole story of Daniel and Luce and the background of it all, but again, it still left something to be desired. I only hope the second book in the series, Torment, will be better.