As a positive, I like that this isn't a love story. I appreciate reading stories that focus on other types of relationships. That being said, I don't like either of the main characters, but especially the older sister. I can't sympathize with someone who manipulates and lies to her family. Not a fan of the animal death either. I can see where this is going and I don't care about these characters enough to read it. I'm not sure if the book will have the overall message that you should put in your own work and not rely on fairy bargains for everything, but that's definitely what I wish I could tell the characters at this point in the story. I'm frustrated and not having a good time, so it's time to move on. 

There are so many fun ideas here. I love the idea of a Sapphic fantasy romance in a pseudo Victorian England setting. I like the concept of the different types of magic users and a found family of female bodyguards. The execution just wasn't working for me, though. None of the items I just listed felt like they were done well. The dialogue felt unnatural, the main character was hard to like, and the writing went too far over the edge of whimsy to become convoluted. If you liked The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels but wanted more swearing, drugs, poverty, alcohol, and casual sex, you might like this? 

did not realize this was Christian fiction when purchased

 Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!
 
 I've never read any R. A. Salvatore, but I had head of them as a prolific fantasy writer and was interested in giving them a try. Unfortunately, I don't think this is for me. Since this was a new trilogy, it seemed like it would be an okay place to dive in, but I found myself quickly overwhelmed with the terminology. The start of the book is fairly exposition heavy, but I felt like I didn't have the context for the exposition to stick to, so I struggled to make sense of it. The writing style to me also feels a little more fable-like and removed rather than getting deeply into character's thoughts, and the dialog is similarly more folk-tale like rather than sounding like modern speech. I think this book would be better suited to someone who is more familiar with R. A. Salvatore's work and enjoys high fantasy with intricate names and world-building. I think the adventure is there and this would be a good time for the right kind of reader. 

This book is not gripping me at all. I feel like I'm forcing myself through it, and I have too many books on my TBR to wade through a slow one like this. If I was invested in the characters I wouldn't mind the slow plot as much, but they feel too flat to me. I don't care about them or anything that's happening. I had high hopes for this one, maybe I'll try again another time.

my roommate bought this, so it's on my shelf, but I'm not gonna read it most likely.

My roommate bought this and I have no intention of reading it.

I bought this audiobook on sale and I didn't see the reviews beforehand

I didn't like the first book in the series, but I thought I'd give the 2nd one a shot since I had bought a physical copy (I hadn't realized it was part of a series at the time). Unfortunately, I think I will have the same issues with it as I did with the first book, so I'm gonna DNF and donate my copy. 

I was disappointed to see how Baz and Simon's relationship, and Simon's mental health, had deteriorated so much since the last book. There was no mention of the therapist Simon had been seeing at the end of the last book, either. I was worried the book was going to drag out the bummer angst, so I checked the reviews and it seemed like that was the case. I'd rather just treat the first as a standalone and assume everyone gets therapy and Baz, Simon, and their friends all live happily.