I have never read a Holly Black book and I'm not really one for fantasy, so I went into this book with low expectations of it working for me. I loved every second of it. Do I think I fully understood the magic system (something about shadows? and blood? and trauma?)? No. Did I have a great time? Yes.

There are aspects of this story that don't really feel - ahem - fleshed out to me, which makes me feel like this is the start of a series even if there's nothing to really confirm that. If it is, it's a 5 star read for sure. If it's a standalone, it's a 3.5 I'm rounding up to 4.

Thank you Tor and NetGalley for the ARC!