I gotta say, I'm torn on exactly what I think of this book.

On one hand, it definitely has the charm, humor, and just general ambiance  of a quintessential Diana Wynne Jones book. Things are never as they seem, people's egos constantly work against them, and somehow the grandest get-out-of-trouble schemes always go on without a hitch. I know a lot of people when reading this book are disappointed by the absence of Howl and Sophie for the majority of it, and I think that's majorly due to it being marketed as a "sequel" rather than a "companion" book. There are so many fantasies that change main characters between installments, but I think since Howl and Sophie are just such banger characters the shift feels a bit more egregious. While I fully enjoyed the little time they had here, I still managed to get some interest out of the new characters. But there's a problem. Namely, a lot of stereotypes and fatphobia.

The moment Abdullah looks on in horror at the two large women his family wants to marry him off to is somewhat uncomfortable as he really hammers in the whole "ew fat giggling women, clearly they do not have brain cells because they giggle, not like my beautiful, intelligent, (and thin) dream girlfriend." I can't rightly speak on the portrayal of obviously Middle Eastern-inspired characters and places, being incredibly pasty myself, but seeing how some of them look and act is a bit suspect. 

It's those tarnishes that somewhat drag the book down from being a truly enjoyable read. That and for some reason this book insists that Howl is somewhat of a coward? Which...wasn't really all that present in the first book? A slacker in some ways sure, egocentric yes, and dramatic in spades, but cowardly wasn't really a defining trait of his. Sophie, though, is still amazing because she's Sophie and has a good head on her shoulders. Not to get into spoilers but her reaction to being in a certain condition is just so perfect for her that it's what kind of entertained me the most during my read.

As a sequel, it is a bit disappointing, not going to lie. The new characters we're introduced to aren't as engaging as the ones we started with in the first book, though they have their moments. I'm not going to say I outright hated it or found it boring, just that it could have been a lot more than what it was.