This is another great book by Seanan McGuire. I was happily surprised at how it felt like everything just kept building, and building. Then, when the villain was finally revealed, our heroes still weren't able to stop them right away.

The characters are great. Each one feels unique and real. There's also an extremely minor romantic angle that comes in late and refreshingly "just is". The book would be 100% as good if it were edited out, but having it there just adds a nice little bit of character building that continues in the sequel.

My only issue with this book is that it reads like a bunch of serial episodes put together. This is because it was initially created for Kindle Serials. The end result is that you get a little bit of the recap of the setting and that the main character is a "Snow White" again and again. In Seanan's defense, she does a great job of minimizing that.

Bonus points for having a character who is transgender where the fact that they're trans isn't a central plot issue, or a joke, & the other characters are totally supportive and accepting when it's mentioned.