» overview «
stars: ★★★☆☆
plot: ★★★☆☆
readability: ★★★☆☆
characters: ★★★☆☆
writing: ★★★☆☆
recommend: ✗

» liked «
- the ending, i think there is definitely a lot of potential
- Cal and Maven. I feel like they were underdeveloped, but had potential.
- Maven and his mother's relationship. I love how they prioritized each other and did whatever they needed to take power, together. this is a mother-son duo i can get behind.

» disliked «
- Mare's POV is the only one we get. it makes plot twists and betrayals a lot more surprising, but can make things dull, especially since Mare is stuck n the dark for a large portion of the book
- the first thing i thought when Mare revealed her abilities was, "why don't they just kill her off?" we kind of get that answer in that the even she revealed herself in was too public, but also in that

they have been killing people with the genetic mutation

. the non-killing of Mare I could excuse, but the fact that Mare was made to marry Maven was not. They could've made her off as a private person, jailed her, then killed her in an "accident." the forced marriage was not necessary, other than setting up the weak love triangle
- the love triangle was weak. the set up for Cal's corner was fine, but then it went nowhere until the very end when they were forced to be around each other. as for Maven's corner, it was done a lot better, but it was also still very plain and dull. i wouldn't mind a weak romance subplot, but the main rebellion plot was also weak and dull.
- speaking of the main plot, for the majority of the book i felt like nothing was happening. the 300 or so pages could've been reduced down to 150-200 pages.

» overall «
i will continue the series, but i'm hoping and praying for more action and more proper romance