This is very well-written, and I liked the in-depth politics, the sense of machination that's always lurking in the background. That being said, I think it's a story I admire in an objective sense rather than a story I feel something for, and that is primarily to do with the characters. They are nearly all mildly unpleasant, and I didn't warm to any of them. The romance, especially, suffered because I actively disliked Alec, and wasn't invested in St. Vier enough to even wish him shot of that whiny millstone.