I don’t need to specifically like a character, just understand them. So, it’s natural that I’d like to this more than the previous book. Every aspect of this is better than the first. Characters are far more realized and contradictory, fleshed out, and understandable—so much so that it actually makes the first book better.

Things look up from a craft perspective as well. The plot beats are more interesting, as is the world building. There’s a character arc that isn’t as tropey. The plotting was actually exceptional. And the prose moved from being a bit annoying, to being pretty invisible (aside from a few cringey sentences early on). It’s commercial fiction, but you can tell she has a handle on the tone and diction so as to cater the prose to the audience, whereas previously they felt unwieldy and not indicative of good voice.

I think this does a better job at making explicit the toxic traits of every individual, including Feyre, who feels like a young adult navigating coming-of-age-aspects and her physical changes and trauma—all while dealing with the way she’s been socialized. I quite liked that she she was… well, unlikable at times. All the characters have this quality and I just prefer characters like that, especially in the genre and this age.

It was so much easier to care about what was happening, too. At first blush, it’s such a long book for what it is, but the length actually makes the romance angle way more believable than insta love. The powers from her change are interesting. Rhys is far more complex, as far as characters in fantasy romance goes. And I liked the new characters and their dynamics quite a bit too.

The ending felt a bit over the top. So much happens that it does make the next instalment interesting, but it also made it feel more scripted than organic. I liked very much the setup for what’s to come though, so I’m on board. I can see why people loved this one; it’s genuinely quite good, especially when contrasted to the first book. So much has been improved.