It’s so rare to find a male lead in YA novels that embody the Clark Kent “boy scout” trope and Reid embodies it so well. Reid is an interesting exploration of a character that is loyal to a set of laws that he has used as a basis for his morality. His relationship with Lou is incredibly interesting because it allowed both characters to explore the other side of the same coin. Lou is the antithesis of law and order and it brought me such joy to see her help bring Reid out of his pretentious and religious bubble of higher moral ground. On the other hand, Reid was able to show Lou that not all Chaussers are horrible people that are going out of their way to destroy the lives of witches. Like himself, the Chaussers believe that they are helping to bring about God’s will for the greater good. Most of the conflict between Chaussers and witches can be broiled down to a huge misunderstanding of both parties towards one another. Thankfully, both Lou and Reid through their romantic link are able to understand each other past that ancient conflict because they see each other as individuals in the end.

 I appreciated the pacing in the relationship being slow because it made the progression feel very natural. Reid still had feelings Celie at the beginning of the story, but we see how living with Lou makes him grow out of those feelings into his love for Lou. Despite being so different, when you really break down both Lou and Reid, they are both people that seek moral good and just have different concepts of what that looks like. They are more alike than they seem at the beginning as their goals and morals end up converging by the end of the story as their characters grow together through their relationship. 

The subplots present in the main story are not heavily explored, but they are hinted at enough to garner curiosity and add to the plot. We get hints of how Coco became friends with Lou and get to see through her conversations with Reid and even Lou herself how much she care for her friend. Coco and Ansel were some of my favorite side characters. Coco is a shameless flirt but also very honest, straightforward, and conniving. Ansel is innocent and naïve in many ways as a boy who has grown up confined in the church, but despite that is surprisingly caring and open minded. I was really surprised when he accepted Lou despite knowing she was a witch. We also get a glimpse into Reid’s backstory exploring how he has grown up as an orphan and has been raised to hunt witches. Ironically, as Lou later finds out, he is in fact the child of a witch. This is something that Reid also realizes later, but he has yet to reveal to Madame Labelle that he is her son. I am wondering when Madame Labelle will discover that Reid is her kid. I think it’s quite funny that they have been exposed to such different atmospheres, Madame Labelle being a practicing witch and Reid being a confined Chasseur. It makes me tinker with the idea of how awkward their interactions will probably be. I’m always a sucker for the exploration of familial relationships, though, so I’m down for that.