This book did maintain the dark mood appropriate to this genre throughout, with an ending that I admit I didn't see coming. I would've liked to get more of the other characters' perspectives; the female characters especially seemed to be caricatures at some points. The detective's take could have been cool too. 

I really wanted to like this book; it was recommended by a book podcast. I was SO distracted by what I felt like was honestly plagiarism from The Hunger Games, The Selection, and, especially, Red Queen. I kept waiting for it to get better, but finally I decided it wasn't worth my time. 

 I was very excited about an Austen-inspired story...with magic! The actual story wasn't as Austen-like as I hoped; the constant threat of dueling and death was way overly dramatic for my taste in a Regency book. I liked the magic; I wished we saw more details of it. I figured out most of the "twists" or ultimate character fates earlier than I'd like. 

Some great moments, some things that were out of balance (lots of telling). I was disappointed that we still didn't get anything really happening romantically between the two main characters - the constant delay is frustrating.

Individual sections were well-written but the way it was put together was alternatively repetitive and confusing. Some moments were extremely poignant, while others felt stale. I would've liked to see more action from Rose, as most of what happens seems to happen TO her or happen in her head.

I had never thought about what it's like for investigators after a disaster, and that was the most interesting part to consider. Charlie's character was believable, but with Erin, I kept thinking that one miracle survival would make her expect another or at least want to let her family know about her survival - I hated that she saw her lover but not her husband. 

I almost didn't finish this because I was so annoyed with the male main character leading everyone on until I came to the reveal, and then I realized how cleverly this was put together. Many scenes felt real, which I liked, but it would've been stronger to me had there been other fleshed-out female characters besides those with the same guy.

This was a compelling concept but the plot and characters were too weak to be believable. One teenage girl is really the center of the universe? I didn't like how dismissive Lia was of everything that didn't directly relate to her.

I wanted to like this more than I did - I preferred the fabricated letters to the real plot, and I didn't like how many plot points were recycled from Alcott, even if that was the point.

Cute but contrived. Most of the secondary characters felt overly convenient.