I recieved a free copy of this book from the publisher. 

this is a spin-off of an existing series, which I didn’t realize before I picked it up. I actually think it can be read as a standalone as long as you are okay not knowing every detail of the backstory of some of the characters, as there is a bit of a catch up infodump in the first few chapters. 

as a spin-off, I found this to be fairly enjoyable YA fantasy. you have one FMC suffering from PTSD who experiences some predictable but genuine character growth throughout the book, a second FMC who knows she is doing awful things but does them for the sake of the greater good (and I am absolutely rooting for her), and lots of twists, turns, & betrayals. the romances follow familiar romantasy beats without a ton of new or unique elements, but they fit the overall story well & add more to the story than their predictability takes away. I do think there are a number of unanswered questions about the world & magic system but honestly I can’t judge that without having read the other series. 

is this a perfect book? no. am I absolutely going to read book 2 when it comes out? yup. I actually want to go back and read the first two books now to get a better understanding of the world.