I went in blind on this book after enjoying Babel. It is a quick read. The beginning of the book had me checking online to ensure that it wasn't YA fiction, as it is a traditional military/magic school storyline in the beginning. Its grimdark credentials are earned later in the book as Rin, the main character, experiences greater and greater war time atrocities in a not-so-subtle escalatory writing device. Given her academics, I found Rin to be more naive about ethics and strategy than I would expect, though this was in service of the plot. An important prisoner is freed, and several other actions set up the sequels in a slightly perfunctory manner. I loved the fictionalized world building with close parallels to historic Chinese and Japanese conflict. Overall a refreshing read, but a little tougher at the end than I expected.