I can definitely see how this book/series became so popular so quickly. I'm really glad I decided to pick this up and discover why it is so beloved. There was a lot going on in this 850 page beast, but I flew through the book in under a week. There were a few moments that were slow and a little too drawn out, but ultimately necessary for backstory and character development. I also found myself regretful of remarking on the slow pace when in the next chapter something terrible was happening to our main heroes. Overall, I'd say this is a 4.25 rating from me. It's my first dive into an adult series, and I think if I'm going to continue the series I definitely need to break it up with other novels and genres in between.
This first book really set up this world, the characters, and the plot nicely. Some things weren't completely satisfactory, but I have a feeling they'll come up as shocking turn of events in future novels. Part of me wishes we could have seen a beginning, middle, and end of our main characters story in just one book, but alas.