This book was sooo sloooowww. It's nothing like the fast paced Vampire Academy that came before I can tell you that much. The story line was still really good but I felt like up until like 80% the book was just a bunch of filling. The only thing that really got me through the book in the beginning was using it as a distraction during my cardio at the gym. Either way the book takes a bunch of characters from The Vampire Academy and just tells it from a different point of view. More so this time it's from Sydney, the alchemist, point of view instead which I really liked. She's such an interesting character! I picked up on ONE of the antagonist, but the other antagonist came as a complete surprise to me as I'm sure it would you. I think the only reason I want to continue reading the series now is because Dimitri is coming back and who doesn't love him?! 
 I feel like this book could've been so much better than it really was.