Where do I begin? This series is like a mix between Harry Potter, Throne of Glass, and Nazi Germany. Magical boarding school, a heroine that doesn’t know her own power or destiny, and an evil regime that wants to eradicate those they see as “impure.”

The characters are well rounded, they all have their own voices and personalities. They have immense depth to them, and the relationships they form are, respectively, beautiful and heartbreaking. The story is well thought-out and moves along at a steady pace. It’s really difficult to put down, and when some 300-400 page books take me 4-5 days to read, and I can read this 600 page book in two days, it just shows how amazing it is!

The world-building itself is well thought-out and well explained without the feeling of an information dump. It’s explained thoroughly and with reason. The magic system makes sense and the fact that each race of people has their own religion but they’re all a bit similar in some ways makes sense. Not even to mention the fact that this book deals with a lot of things that we deal with in the real world, prejudices, racism, bullying, and religious totalitarianism to name a few. For a YA series this book deals with a lot of heavy subjects, but it does it well.

Overall, I absolutely LOVED this book and can’t wait to read book 2!