I have to say that book two in this series did not live up to my expectation. I would rate this about the same as I rated The Emperor's Blades, About 3.8 but expectation plays a lot in determining to use the 3 or 4 star rating. This is like a Wall St mystery. Company A makes 4 billion profit after expecting to make $6 billion and its share price plummets by 10%. Company B makes a $100 million loss instead of $200 million loss and its share prices increase by 10%. 
 Well, my expectation for this book was much higher than Emperor's blades because was already invested in the story and characters and knew what I would be getting myself into. In reality I got something different. I am being a little harsh on Anthony Ryan with this, because really, it is still a great story and he used book two to develop the characters and the intrigue and the whole world story. All this info that was wonderful and relevant. The problem is/was, book one was like getting a ride in a racing car and book two felt like catching the number 17 bus, stopping all stops. 
 So in a nut shell, the dramatic change in pace through me, it struggled to keep my attention at times as events seemed to drag out. 
 I have to say that it finished very strongly and the last quarter had me remembering what I like so much about Ryan's writing. He also has me looking forward to book 3, but overall I am still a little disappointed with this one.