Whilst I can't say I loved this as much the first installment, I did enjoy being reconciled with Mare Barrow and the Red Queen world. I loved seeing the interplay between the powerful, dominant elite and the impotent, weak masses and the good/bad binaries, that emerged in the first novel, get explored further. This has such a unique magic system and I enjoyed the focus on political intrigue and suspense. The world-building wasn't as rounded as I would have liked, but I could still fully imagine the world and its inhabitants.