This story was a grower/pleasant surprise for me. At first, I was like Saoirse and the prince don't have any chemistry, and you keep constantly telling me how much she adores her sister. Like, pleaseee.

It took a while for me to get invested, BUT once all the parts came into play, I couldn’t put it down. The plot developments made sense to me, and I liked Saoirse's constant struggle to not revel in the thrill of the kill. She is a constant liar, but we learn to read her true feelings as the story goes on. I eventually understood why she was so overprotective of Rain.

Also, Hayes and Saiorse’s banter gets better. When we learn more about him (spoiler:

hello, daddy issues

), and the inevitable pull they feel towards each other, it’s hard not to root for them. For Saoirse, the appeal is

he's the one person she doesn't have to enchant because he's already so desperately down bad for her.

The ending has me interested in book two, and I think it was the perfect setup. I would read more from this author.

Also, the prince wears a dashiki!