It's a slow build of a book (in my opinion slower than Bitterblue even) that almost became a chore to read (Because of personal issues, I want to be very clear, the book is fine!) but I definitely appreciate it more than I originally did.

This is a prequel to Graceling, set a while earlier in a different land. Don't worry, as you learn from the first page, your favorite antagonist is in it.

But yeah, while reading I kept thinking about "if I could control minds would I just be destined to be a (figurative) monster?" And the book asks that question with your protagonist, a teenage girl that has the ability to control people's minds and is afraid of that power.

It's a really juicy book to just think about.