okay, so this is just a perfect, sweet love story. and i don't usually go in for perfect, sweet love stories, but i loved these characters in the first two smoke & bone books, and here they are allowed to experience their first meeting and first kiss without any pesky tensions like supernatural war or death mucking it all up for them. 
 and it is so charming. 
 two sweet quirky kids finding love and magic in a snowstorm in prague. and there is cake! and it is written by laini taylor with all of her gliding lyricism and humor; what could be better than that? she writes the love story i want to live and it never once felt treacly to me, and i am hypersensitive to barfy treacle. 
 and dana - i know you don't like these characters, 'cuz they are all whimsy and bubbles, but if you just read this and pretend they are two dudes, i think you will really like it. try it!! TRY IT!!!! DANA TRY IT!!!