Though admittedly not as action-packed as the first installment, I still quite enjoyed this sequel in the Legacy of Orisha series. The writing is still fantastic and the world-building/magic system are really well done and complex.

The plot was problematic in a few ways that definite pulled down my enjoyment. There were several instances where it felt like things were running in circles. The same conflicts occurred over and over again with no progress in any direction. That grew a bit frustrating as the characters didn't seem to have any changes in opinion or learning from mistakes for a while.

I still really like the multiple POV for this series. Though it does remove some of the intrigue by giving a glimpse into the thoughts of the main characters, it makes things feel deeper and the stakes higher as motivations and feelings grow more complex.

While there was a lot of character development, some of it felt contradictory to what was completed in the first book. This was particularly true for both Zelie and Amari. They felt a bit waffly, not always seeming to have the same goals and values as they had established by the end of Children of Blood and Bone. While I appreciated the growth of Zelie's relationships, her interactions with Roen and her feelings about Iman made her feel flaky and prone to quick love interest--something that conflicted with her often overly suspicious nature. In Amari's case, she lost a lot of her humanity along the way and felt much less powerful as a leader figure by book's end. That was quite disappointing.

Knowing that there is still another book coming has me assuming (hoping?) that some major conflicts of character and unanswered questions about motivations will be resolved. This was still an enjoyable read for me, though it was occasionally a frustrating one. I also highly recommend the audiobook, as Bahni Turpin's narration is amazing as always.