3.5
This was sooo fun to read, it never got boring.
Leah, Elias and Helen are all such interesting characters, the girls especially.
I loved seeing Leah, who was so scared and afraid and not that skilled at spying in the beginning, build her bravery throughout the book. It was so satisfying seeing her being self assured at the end.
I loved seeing the corruption within the resistance, the dichotomy of the Elias being such a skilled killer but actively hating it. And Helen who everyone seems to think is heartless, and Elias especially assumes the worst of throughout the book, but she just a stellar poker face and her empathy is just more contained than his.
I will say I didn’t care for the romance between Elias and Leah, I actually enjoyed the tension and angst of the Helen X Elias thing in the beginning, but I recognize they don’t work out due to clashing ideals and approaches to those ideals. But I still think there was more ‘alchemy’ there than what was told to us during Elias X Leah’s scenes. I think it should have been more slow burn, but I like how the focus is now more on the plot towards the end of the book, and it seems like the romance will take a backseat.
I’m looking forward to more messy politics, journeys, escapes out of prison and familial dynamics explored in the next book.
Also Cook, I need to know her lore! But she should have just exploded Blackcliff academy a longg time ago.