I had (probably unfair) high expectations going into this one because I loved The Priory of the Orange Tree so much. And in most respects it held up. Shannon’s writing is once again excellent, the world building amazing and the characters are great. I really enjoyed reading from Paige’s perspective, she’s so spunky and cool. Where it fell down from me, and this is just personal taste, was how grim it was. I felt for the first half of the book as if I were slugging through such a depressing world and tough, depressing circumstances for the characters. Not sure if I’ll keep reading on to book 2 just yet but not because of the quality of the story. ⭐⭐⭐ from me