As always with DWJ, the worldbuilding is fantastic and the quirky characters are engaging. I do love a good parallel-world(s) setup, and I'm excited to explore the other stories in this series.

Lots of humor, and some lovely familial and other relationships are present, of course. Some really messed up things happen in this one; I'd say it's a little darker than the Howl & Sophie books, but with the innocence of a younger child's perspective. I didn't feel like I connected with Cat (and certainly not Gwendolen, thank goodness for that) the way I did with Sophie and Howl and Calcifer, but he's just as lovable as Charmain even if you kind of want to shake him for how passive he is throughout most of the book.

Pretty good, but not all that different from any other YA supernatural teen romance in plot and structure. At least

Spoiler

Matteo didn't have all the answers

. Just for the record, though, I liked Verlaine more than Nadia.

The ending was absolutely awesome: finally, one where the protagonist doesn't win! Mateo was cute, but a little too perfect, up to and including all the times he was helpless. And even as sweet as Mateo was - Asa, bad boy with a good heart? Yes.