This feels a bit lighter in tone compared to the previous volume. A new ally is gained at the beginning of the volume wrapping up the plot from the previous volume. It was super nice to see Asta help out some friends with what he learned on the last mission. Additionally we get some more funny scenes of Noelle being in denial of her feelings for Asta and Asta being oblivious, as usual.

The Captain of the Blue Rose Knights, Charlotte Roselei, has a crush on Yami, which makes for some great more great laughs. The usually well composed captain goes out of her way to impress him, and Yami, for the most part, seems none the wiser. Mereoleona Vermillion, Fuegoleon's sister, is fierce and terrifying in a less subtle way than her brother. It I clear that those under her respect her greatly, though. Everyone continues to have hope that Fuegoleon will recover and are determined to continue to improve themselves in his absence. I found this detail quite touching. Asta has started exploring some new discovered abilities and I'm curious to see him unlock more of his potential. A fun installment in the manga with some much needed humor.

I don't usually read hard sci-fi like this, but this one gradually grew on me. It reminded of original Star Trek in terms of pacing, but with really enthralling action scenes in between the lulls of the plot. There is an emphasis on the vastness of outer space and this first book feels like an introduction to the Fractalverse overall. It takes a while to really get to know the characters, but by the end I really appreciated the humor and friendship amongst the crew. I would say it is definitely more of a plot dye l driven story, though.

The conclusion of the story is open ended and emphasized how far in the future the story is occurring. I think some people may see some aspects of fantasy in the world and story. Personally, I found that interesting and enjoyable. I’m not one to nitpick at the minor aspects of a world if it doesn’t really affect the story. It’s a fictional story with aliens, spaceships, and impossible space travel, so a symbiotic relationship that modifies the host party isn’t really where I draw the line is what I’m saying. If you want to just read this first book and stop here you totally can. However, I definitely think I'm going to read the sequel. I feel like I appreciated the story most after finishing it and having time to digest everything that happened. It’s one of those books that I think you have to sit with for a bit in order to determine if it’s for you or not. Even if it’s not for you, I think it’s not a bad introduction to hard sci-fi. I'm looking forward to more.

We explored Liesel and Magiere's romantic tension more in this book. I think by the end of the events of the book they are more sure of the other's loyalty within the context of the relationship. A lot of the conflict felt more interpersonal, but there was still a murder mystery aspect to the plot. The authors continue to switch back and forth between the perspective of the antagonists and the protagonists. I think it enriched the story for me as it helped you follow the train of thought of the villains and understand their motivations. It also helped emphasize how unhinged some of them were and how they were able to justify their actions to themselves. 

In addition, we learn more about Liesel's past which helps paint him in a much more sympathetic light. Learning more about him also allows Magiere to become closer to him. We get more information about Chap, what he is, and where he came from as well. Al lot of the dots are starting to connect.

It's still crazy to me how Chap just understands everything they have been saying this whole time. I already suspected he was a fae hound or something of the sort, but not that he was quite that intelligent. It's understandable that Magiere was caught off guard and upset about it for a bit there.

. I'm looking forward to Magiere and Liesel grappling more with the new information they found out in this installment. I'm excited to continue reading. A great series and just what I was looking for around the corner of the spooky season.

A lot of tides have turned in this volume. The Black Bulls end up making a new ally with Asta's help. Additionally, Asta seems to have unlocked more of his power. We also learn some more about one of the Bull's backstories which I always find interesting. Lots of action in this one. Looking forward to seeing what's next.

I thought that we would get to see more of Bone Arrow in this book, but unfortunately we did not. Ren and Van were together, but Bone Arrow spent most of his time apart from them. However, we did get to see more interactions between Van, Ren, and Az. The subplot between them all because of their contract was very fun and Az isn't as bad as I think Van and Ren initially thought. We revisit  some of the relationships established in the first book and those loose ends are tied up. The ending is open ended and I'm sure the author plans on continuing this series or at the very least writing a spin off to explore other characters. I'm looking forward to that and can't wait to see more of these charactesr again. It was a fitting conclusion to this plot.

It was interesting to hear this speech being narrated in Spanish. I think it continues impactful and the narrator's sentiment resonates well in the speech.

Fue interesante escuchar a este discurso narrado en español. Creo que continua siendo impactante y que el sentire de la narradora resuena dentro del discurso.

I enjoyed reading this book more than I expected to. I have not read a middle grade novel in a long time and I was not sure if I was going to be able to smoothly dive back into books of that demographic. This experience was quite delightful. The plot at first seems very simple and the characters seem a bit one dimensional. However, as the story continues there are deeper themes that are explored well.

The story strongly focuses on the friendship between Agatha and Sophie. The girls are starkly different from each other and their goals and wishes also oppose each other throughout the plot. When Agatha is transported to the School for Good and Sophie is taken to the School for Evil, both of them believe that their positions have been switched. As you get to know Sophie and Agatha's inner thoughts, though, this placement starts to seem more and more appropriate. 

Sophie is very spoiled and vain from the beginning and her actions are motivated strongly by self interest. There were moments in the story where it felt like Agatha was the one who clearly cared more about preserving their friendship and Sophie's well being without that sentiment being reciprocated. 

Tedros fills the role of the stereotypical love interest. There are tropes that are leaned into very strongly in the world. However, in the same vein all the tropes you would expect from fairy tales are inverted. I absolutely loved the ending. If you only wanted to read this book and not continue the rest of the series you totally can. The ending is conclusive enough that you are able to do that. Although, I found it open ended enough that it piqued my interest and I am excited to continue exploring this world and these characters.

In this second book in the series Ren and Van spend more time apart. Van learns more about her connection to the elemental in her chest which makes for some interesting magical results. Az's involvement with Van and Ren is a fun and welcome plot development. He consistently irritates the two but their banter was nothing but fun for me.  It also seems that there is more to him than what is seen on the surface and I'm looking forward to exploring that. 

As far as pacing, I feel like this book spent more time focused on the overarching plot. There is a war coming and Van and Ren are consistently working with other characters to try to prevent it from escalating. They make allies along the way, some more distrustful of them than others. We don't get as much of Bone Arrow in this installment since the three main characters spend quite some time apart. I'm hoping that we see more of him in the sequel.

I'm so happy I picked up this series. We had time to explore each characer more deeply in this last installment. The book was long but didn't feel like it dragged on. It always felt like events occuring in the plot held a weight of importance to them (because indeed they did). All the character arcs that started in book 1 were all concluded in a satisfying way in this final installment. Even Holland, who I would be hard pressed to call likeable, was interesting all the way through.

My favorite moments in the book are the emotionally raw moments of loss and grief that are experienced by the main cast. There is a war happening with thousands of lives at stake and the emotional gravity of that is not left to the wayside. There is a lot of death, and loss. The book gives you time to feel the emotional impact all of this has on the characters. It did nothing but make me love and appreciate them more. 

Just as a side note, there is commentary about homophobia and queerphobia within this installment. I found this very compelling and I felt that it gave some much needed depth to an already interesting character.

Additionally, I love the banter between all of the characeters. I would say the scenes between Allucard and Kell are probably my favorite. Mutual annoyance and respect never looked more entertaining. I am excited to pick up more books by V.E. Schwab. I can confidently say she is one of my favorite writers.

I think this story was limited narratively by the length. I finished the story and I wanted more. The way the story is told is not linear which can make understanding what's going on at first a bit difficult. Despite this, I was able to grasp the important plot points and characters by the end. I do think this is one of those stories that bodes better on a reread. I think if there were more issues the writer would have been able to spend more time on exposition to make some of the plot developments clearer.

The art is tonally dark and matches the story and characters well. It reminds a lot of Alan Moore's Watchmen in terms of the mood of the characters and story. I need more alternative superhero stories like this. Looking forward to reading volume 2.