I don't know how to rate this one, and it probably is more of a 3.5 than a 4...

Positives: Diverse, emotionally intelligent, trigger-worthy but respectful, a heroine with strong scientific skills and empathy who doesn't throw her life away for a brooding, pretty boy.

Negatives: The world is set up to be dark and perilous and only the heroine's medicinal knowledge will save the day... but at every conflict she is rescued by magic. And the twist at the end...makes her seem nefarious? It's at odds with the character that was established.

The beginning and ending quarters of the book create lots of political intrigue, but the mid-section DRAGGED! There was a lot of redundancy that stretched the story out. I can't figure out how to balance my curiosity with my trepidation; a book needs to be more than twists. I guess this book did make me care about its characters, and make me want to jump into the sequel, but I'm worried about the series lacking integrity. If magic saves the day, and characters appear to change abilities or personalities as a "twist" to get out of any situation... what real conflict is there?

I need time to digest this one... We'll see if the sequels deliver.