As my first book by Leigh Bardugo, I definitely fell in love with her writing style and prose. 

The 16th century Spain setting was perfectly written.  Enchanting and incredibly atmospheric, the settings was brilliantly executed , though sadly for me the plot itself just didn’t quite hit the mark. I do feel a vast majority of the book is spent setting the atmosphere over progressing the plot itself which did slow down the book and weaken my reading experience. 

Whilst I enjoyed the heroine over course of the book, the romance interactions between her and the MMC felt superficial and I couldn’t get invested in it. Without this investment I felt the ending lacked the impact it aimed to delivery sadly. 

In places where the plot became more invested in the magic aspects I found myself hooked but do feel this was slightly more watered down than I would have hoped for. Personally, had this book focused more on the magic element and the trials and betrayal within that over the hidden religious aspects it could have been a stronger read. 

Overall not a bad read, just felt like this author fell in love with the setting and world building and didn’t deliver the same attention to the plot itself.