I realize this might not be helpful if you don't religiously read all my reviews, but this book was everything that I felt Eon was missing.
Seraphina is another main YA character with a secret to hide and a tricky world to navigate as she attempts to discover who she can trust and who she can't, but she seems so much realer and more compelling than Eon. I loved Hartman's ideas of dragons and the way that created a character who is special both for her ancestry and her talents...and those talents don't tie in to traditional "strong female" traits. (Not that those are bad, but strength comes in many different forms).
It reminded me of Robin McKinley's Pegasus (only without the distinct stylistic tics that mark McKinley's writing...fortunately. One author like McKinley is enough) in its sense of Universe and world and the stakes. And I am eagerly anticipating the sequel because, of course, there's a cliffhanger.