A much stronger story than the first. I wish I felt a stronger connection to the characters, but everything else was an improvement. Malik and Karina get more depth to them though I never once felt for their relationship. We get more side characters, but I only cared about Saenma and Hanane, who surprisingly played a big role in my enjoyment.

The stakes were bigger, consequences hd weight, and back stories showed nuance and development. Ife's meta jokes just weren't funny to me at all though I guess that's a sideffect of their otherworldly nature. A third book could've fleshed out the character interactions more and some of Malik's errand-running for Farid could've ideally been condensed. This was a rather long book, but the short chapters helped keep it engaging.

Still, a fitting end. There was a constant thread of action and some unexpected plot twists.

it's different that Karina was the experienced one here. but she didn't make Malik feel bad about his lack of it.