Big fan of this author. The prose are decidedly commercial, on purpose, but within everything I’ve read of hers there is a fantastic insightful relationship between the characters (who are always marginalized) and the society around them. It’s fair, dynamic, stark, and feels lived in and real. The mysteries are always fun and relate to events in the world most people would know little to nothing about. Very happy a new series starts, as I loved the Ghetty books.

One thing I could take or leave is the romantic aspects, but I think it does work well and doesn’t get in the way—and again, feels like an organic way to talk about the culture of the characters.