I've been sitting on feedback for this book for a while now trying to make up my mind. I was very excited and intrigued by this book when I first read about it, especially with the inclusion of Japanese mythology. However it took me weeks to get into the heart of the story, and by the time I thought I had almost finished I had only gotten through 20%.I couldn't find myself caring fr many of the characters and the writing came across as very laboured. I'm sure there are many people who will love this book; however I don't feel it was right for me.

— DISCLAIMER: I received a eARC of this novel via NetGalley – thank you to both Netgalley and Orion Publishing Group for the opportunity! All opinions expressed in this review are my own. —

Based on Japanese mythology, and it’s historical feudal system, this is a fascinating tale of tolerance and the lack thereof. The main characters are all wonderfully multi-dimensional and grow throughout the story, which is like catnip for me. It is rare that charaters have such a natural growth process over the course of a story, and I think that this is a large part of why I loved this book so much.

While the main story is about tolerance and the future of the whole Empire and it’s society, and can in parts be seen as an allegory for the flaws of our current society, the side plot of the competition for the future Emperor’s hand reads like a fairy tale. This mix is what makes this book stand out from the many great books published this year, and lets it tell its story in a unique way. The ending is unexpected, not the traditional happy end too many stories feature, but amazing and empowering.

Full review available under: https://libridraconis.wordpress.com/2018/11/02/empress-of-all-seasons-emiko-jean/

I was quite excited about this book, as I love Japanese mythology and this novel is filled with it, There was good worldbuilding and the setting was very atmospheric. I loved the inclusion of many different types of youkai, some familiar and some less so. I did have some trouble connecting to the characters, and it took me a while to get on board with them. I loved the idea of the competition with seasonal themed rooms to battle, My main problem with the story is that it feels like the story takes place over the course of about three or four days. This makes the romance feel unbelievable - unless Taro's love is supposed to be more obsession, but then Mari's attachment seems too quick to develop. This for me also made Akira's skill with the throwing stars unlikely - with not being a fighter trained to go from failing to slicing and dicing folk in the forest seems improbable. I would have loved for it to take place over say, two or three weeks, with break-days in between the different rooms to get to know the other competitors, and to let relationships develop more, between Akira and the rebels as well. Or even take more time in the rooms themselves! I just wanted a more drawn out story!
I did really like the message behind the story - being enough just the way you are, and learning to be content with that (and not needing a romance ending to have a happy ending!)

Quick thoughts:
- THE PROLOGUE!!!
- Japanese mythology!!!
- Really loved the atmosphere throughout the story.
- A bit messy, but I didn't really care???
- Similar vibes with Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa but with a splash of The Hunger Games and Red Rising
- There were some ideas and scenes in the book that weren't as thoroughly explored or elaborated as I would have liked
- I wasn't 100% emotionally invested in the characters (although I adore most of them)
- Great, great pacing
- Empress of All Seasons kept me guessing, which I really liked
- THE ENDING!!!

Full review to follow!

Highlights

Badass female character

The world

The twists

The ending 

The Message  

Overall

The second paragraph in the first chapter in this book ends with "The Killing Room and Mari was executioner" - 😳 aaaaaaaand I'm hooked...

This was a surprisingly badass book with badass characters.

This book did not follow the mainstream of how to write a book, and I loved it! That ending, I didn't see it coming at all. Everything that followed was to my liking and I really enjoyed the ending and its twists and turns. 

The Story

The story follows Mari as she tries to do what her clan can't do, fight to conquer the seasons, get the prince and his fortune. The story is narrated by three characters: Mari, the crown prince and Akiro the best friend. It's all centred around Mari's competition for the position as Empress. While brewing below the surface is a rebellion against the emperor and his crown prince and I enjoyed how these two plot lines merged and meandered between each other. 

World Building

The world building is quite easy to follow as the reader is slowly introduced to the different aspects to it. Small pieces at the time.

It's a very fascination world and I really like it. I'm not sure if this is going to be a series though the ending suggests not, I hope there will be more books set in this world with these creatures. 

Magic System

The magic in this book is mainly focused on demon type creatures or half creatures as far as I've understood. There are other people with abilities but it's not fully explained where they come from or why they have them. 

The Characters

Mari is the main character and is quite awesome but kind at the same time. I felt a real connection to her and I could really relate to her thoughts and feelings. This is probably the main reason why I enjoyed the book so much.

Taro is the crown prince and a little nerd 🤓 I really liked him throughout the whole story and found him a satisfying romantic lead. Though he seems to be a misunderstood man. They seem to be very common in the YA universe.

Akira is the best friend and half ghost? I was a bit confused about that. I mean did his mum have him before or after she woke up as a vengeful spirit?!? I did figure it out towards the end, but it really confused me in the beginning. I did like him as a best friend and the stuff he did was logical and made sense in the story. I never really questioned his decisions or directions.

LGBT+?

Minor and to the side but acknowledged in a positive way.

Writing

The writing was smooth and flowed nicely through the book. I didn't notice any grammar faults or any misformulation of sentences. I really enjoyed the authors writing and their style. I would definitely pick up another book by this author again

Summary

I really enjoyed this journey and its ending with all its twists and turns. Even the shortness of it I liked. It really intrigued me how much ending was needed to tell the important message in the last paragraph, which (surprise!) I really liked too.

For the most part, I think this is just one of those "it's not you, it's me" books. There are reasons that I struggled with it that I know are subjective, which others may not find to be as off-putting as I did, but there were also a few points that I would say are less so.

Empress of All Seasons tells the story of Mari, a yōkai, who enters the competition to win the hand in marriage of Taro, the emperor's son. The competition involves overcoming the Season rooms in the palace, each designed by a priest to represent the four seasons. In this world, yōkai are all registered and collared, and treated as slaves, and Mari has been trained since a child to win the competition and steal the Emperor's treasury.

Initially, I liked a lot about this book - the writing was good, the characters seemed great, and I loved the concept, so I had high hopes. Unfortunately, things didn't quite pan out as I expected.

The writing got somewhat tedious after a while. I think it was partly because I took a lot of breaks reading this, and I read some books with really good writing, then coming back to this one made me realise that it wasn't actually all that good. So I got bored of it really quickly. Not to mention some of the scenes were really cringey, like, so cringey I had to skimread. Like the part where Mari confronts another yōkai in the Winter Room. Linked to the writing, I found the pacing a bit strange. Everything happens really quickly (after Mari reaches the palace) and, although it never felt underdeveloped because of that, I did feel like occasionally some scenes, particularly those where the contestants were in the rooms, could have stood some more time dedicated to them. The end was also incredibly rapid. The final battle itself isn't, and is possibly one of the only times I felt like a scene got the time it needed, but the entire bit after that is summed up in an epilogue chapter, when, quite honestly it was enough plot to take an entire other book.

As with the writing, I also started disliking the characters by the end (though never Mari, she was my favourite), particulary Taro and Akira. In fact, I just disliked Akira right from the start. He was in love with Mari, so he spent most of his time obsessing over her, and it was so damn tedious. His only motivation for doing anything was that he loved her. Like, I got it the first time Akira! Also, both he and Taro referred to Mari as "his" multiple times, because yes, of course, you love her, suddenly she belongs to you. I honestly wanted to tell both of them to get over themselves. The love triangle aspect (though was it really a love triangle when Mari didn't really seem to like, let alone love, either of the potential love interests?) just tired me out in the end.

Finally, there was a part I was fairly unimpressed by, which may or may not fall into the bury your gays trope, because it's more of a vague hint than anything and I could be taking things completely wrong. Asami, who joins with Mari in the competition (and don't get me started on how this would have been a much better ship than any of the heterosexual ones), is killed in the Winter Room, leaving Mari to become champion. Now, she's been a spy for the yōkai Resistance, headed by Hanako. On finding out about Mari's death, Hanako is upset, because she loved her. The reason why I'm not sure whether this is actually a case of bury your gays is that, while I took that to mean romantic love, with Asami and Hanako being a couple, that may well have not been what was intended. And it's also not clear whether Asami reciprocated that. But if that hint is right, then it's really disappointing because, in a book saturated with heterosexuality (there are two rōnin at the start who have a "brotherly bond", and I was like, hmmm), there's firstly, only a vaguely hinted gay couple, and secondly, one dies. So, I'd really like to give Emiko Jean the benefit of the doubt, but I've been burned a few too many times for that.

Ultimately, that's why I rated this book down to 2 stars, where I might have given it 3. That and the fact that, although the concept sounded amazing, I didn't really click that well with the execution.

I feel like this book has got a lot of mixed reviews due to one reason or another. I am neither here nor there on this book. It was a good read. But just that; good. In each generation a slayer is born… that reference. In each generation a competition is held so the new empress will be found and crowned. She must go through a series of challenges based on the seasons; winter, spring, summer and fall. Hence the name of the book. Enter Mari who enters the competition. But there is one thing that is going to stop her in her quest. She is an yõkai, a being that can transform into a monster. The problem is the yõkai are the most hated people out there and if found out, she would be killed. But she must decide what to do. Hide her identity and fear what could happen to her or choose to live her life in the way that she wants to.

3 out of 5 stars.

I'm feeling really conflicted about this book. On one hand, I really loved the universe, Japan-inspired with mythology and a full fantasy world. The concept of seasons enchanted rooms was interesting but wasn't that much part of the book? Don't get me wrong, it was important, but not as much as I thought while reading the summary.

But on the other hand, I just couldn't connect with the characters and especially not the romance, it felt forced more than anything else. I also found the beginning kind of slow while the end was entirely rushing. I got quickly tired of all the repeated mentions of how Mari was simply "plain", "average", etc which is exactly NOT what are thinking the other two main characters seeing her. I understand she was considered plain next to the other women in her village who were extremely beautiful but it seemed like a basic "look at her she's so plain but everyone loves her". I did find it really good (was mostly my favorite part of the book) that after all this talk nonstop about beauty and all, Mari decides she's the one who gets to choose how she sees herself, no one else.

2.5 / 5

I liked the overall message of this, the Japanese influences & settings and all of the creatures, but I had trouble with the pacing. It seemed far too rushed and I found it hard to connect with any of the characters. Some characters I would have loved more from and the book in general could have done with being a bit longer to flesh certain scenes out.

I was really hoping to love this, but unfortunately it didn't quite meet its mark for me.

I really wanted to love this book. I did! The concept of the Japanese setting/influences by an own voices author, the youkai and the fight to get the marriage with the prince and the power, mostly the power, sounded like a great combination. Should have been. But it lacked in execution.

Let’s start with the positive though. What drew me to this book is as I said the Japanese setting/influences by an own voices author. There have been other kind of books written with Japanese influences but unfortunately these were not all that often by own voices authors. I loved seeing the mythology influence, the correct usage of kimono’s, the youkai. There were so many different kind of youkai mentioned in this book which was great. I hope that in the next one they will be getting a bit more page time. I love the idea of the seasonal rooms and what they had to endure in there. And that it wasn’t all very dragged out.

Another positive thing was Mari for sure. She was someone who was very conflicted about her place amongst her own and what she was meant to do. I liked her almost immediately. Regardless of her place amongst her own, she was strong and not afraid to say what she thought.

The execution lacked a lot in the way the story was told. We initially get a point of view of Mari, the youkai and Taro, the prince. I initially quite liked Taro. He clearly didn’t like what was going on in the palace and how youkai were treated. However at the moment of meeting Mari there is an instalove from his side, and something he has been planning for a while goes right out of the water. After that his point of views solely focus on Mari and I feel like we lost the righteous prince we got the meet in the first couple of chapters. It was a real shame because he could have been a great character. His complete personality change in the last 20% or so was also not that great.

After a few chapters of going back and forth between Mari and Taro point of views, we get the point of view of Akira. I could have honestly done without him. He also has a complete focus on Mari and his chapters were completely boring to read for most of the book. I just didn’t get a real personality from him at all. He was so bland. I also felt that his only reason for getting a point of view was so he could show the youkai resistance. Which he didn’t even care about. It was such a missed opportunity. There were other ways to show the resistance.

The resistance also felt so lackluster. We only saw a few characters but they were going to storm the palace? Yeah, no…

this book was amazing to say the least.

Set in feudal Japan and full of mythology, Empress is the story of a young lady who has never fit in with her beautiful family, fighting her way to the throne of Honoku.

i absolutely adored the use of Yokai as a plot point, presenting the audience with a swathe of mythological characters integrated into the story's society. I felt that the fact that Mari is a Yokai herself, didnt particularly detract from the overall tale - yes shes a yokai, no it define her entire existence.

The scenery and expert worldbuilding were an absolute delight, pulling you in to the Japan of the past. events occur everywhere from tiny villages with homely to a massive city with an intimidating palace in its centre; lush green forests full of hiding spots to rooms containing every Season used not only for battle but also as punishment.

Mari and Akira are absolutely fantastic characters, protecting each other in their own way so as to maintain their childhood friendship. Akira, the strong masculine type becomes a big ball of fluff and emotions whenever Mari is around while otherwise he is manipulative and smart. Mari begins as a cold hearted b with no time for love and rounds out the story as a well developed young lady who will go to any extent to protect the people she loves.

The downfall with this tale however, is Taro the reluctant prince. He prefers to spend his time locked away with his mechanical beasts rather than rise to the throne. Which would be fine but throughout the majority of the novel he acts like a spoilt child and hides away. In the final pages however he feels betrayed and throws a tantrum, determined to end everyone and anyone who gets in his path.

Overall i loved it and really hope that Jean releases more hard hitting action in her publishing future. actual rating 4,5 stars

Empress Of All Seasons is a book about monsters, and people, and the way that the line between the two is quite a lot blurrier than you might think.

Mari is, at least in theory, a monster. A yokai, she can grow claws on demand, and use them to cause more than a little difficulty to people who might want to take advantage of her. Socially, she’s circumscribed by the customs of her village, filled with other yokai. They send daughters out into the world to find husbands, abandon them and then return with their treasure. Sons…well, it’s best not to think about what they do with sons. Mari, though, is different. In a village of beautiful monsters, she thinks herself ugly. So in order to find a husband, she trains to kill as well as to deceive. Because what she’s looking to steal isn’t just plates and rings, but an empire.

Mari’s world is encircled by the empire. The emperor is a man who hates the monsters in his realm; not just the yokai, but other creatures, greater and lesser threats to a dominion which relies on uniformity. But when the son of an emperor weds, their bride is chosen by competition. The competition is, of course, filled with elaborate death-traps – and if they aren’t enough, the competitors all have the desire to become an empress.

This is a book about monsters.

Mari is an outcast among monsters, to be sure. A young woman whose community see her as less than themselves, a disappointment and an oddity. She bears up under it, and that resilience is one of the threads tying together her story. If she carries the marks of a monster, it’s the capacity of her people to accept, or to hurt, that defines who they are. The same is true of the emperor – an old man whose broken heart manifests in oppression and a detached, spiteful rage. As those who are different in his empire are oppressed or enslaved, even as they’re decried as monsters, one has to wonder whether he protests his own role too much. The story seems to want to throw a mirror up to our monsters – to spider queens and ice-killers – and use their treatment as a way to show that the way minorities are treated is really the marker of a monster. Mari is fast, physically co-ordinated, with a keen intellect, but she carries the weight of unreasoning prejudice from others wherever she goes. She’s easy to empathise with, and if she’s sometimes making bad decisions, it’s easy to see why. If she has anything, it’s a strength she things is derived from being alone – though over the course of the text, that strength is challenged by interactions with family and new friends. It’s a thoughtful presentation of complex relationship dynamics, one which doesn’t promise easy answers, but whose realism gives the prose a real emotional kick.

And what prose it is. There’s a delicate, mythopoeic quality to it; the rhythms are those of a fairy tale, best spoken aloud. But this story is at the darker end of that spectrum, with enough blood and thunder for anyone. What it really draws though are hard choices, those moments when characters sit on the knife edge of a difficult decision, when the tension is keeping you prowling down the page, turning pages, looking to see what they do, and what the effects are.

This is a story of monsters.

It’s a story of a young woman finding herself and deciding what she wants to be. It’s a story of how she sets out with her own agency, and makes her own choices. It’s a story of defiance, and of friendship. It’s a story which makes you ask questions, about the way people are talked about, and the way they’re treated. It’s a challenging book, in the sense that it wants the reader to think, not to accept what’s on the page, but to follow the story, follow the fairytale down a rabbit-hole and realise something about themselves in the lens of these characters.

This is a story about monsters. And it’s a damn good one. Give it a try.

This book was a breath of fresh air from, but it was also too short, at times too rushed, to fully develop its huge potential.
Such a pity, because, otherwise, it would have deserved 5 full stars.

One of the things I love? Plots that have a series of trials. I remember being so cross at Throne of Glass when they mentioned all these trials the characters were going to have to go through and then didn't show them all? In this case, it's fairly obvious what the tasks are based around (it's the seasons) and it really works as a framework for the book. I don't know what it is, but I just find it so satisfying to read about characters completing a set number of challenges, I guess it's the completionist in me. But having that framework around which to build story does also help to anchor the reader, I appreciated it. 

Let's talk about the characters. This book is multiple POV, but there aren't too many perspectives to contend with. I suppose the most important three are Mari (our brave young heroine), Taro (the prince), and Akira (Mari's friend is probably the simplest way to describe him). I actually enjoyed all three perspectives, I thought they were balanced characters all of whom had interesting storylines. What I thought this book got incredibly right was the idea of motivation. All of the characters ended up in the plot in some way because of a clear motivation that, for the reader, was easy to understand. That motivation may have changed throughout the story, but from the beginning, it was obvious why they were there. In a genre that so often has plot for the sake of plot (oh no I tripped and fell into my superpowers/magic/love story), it was refreshing to have characters who, for the most part, knew what they were getting into from the start. 

I thought that the way the romance was handled was well-done. It is a quick romance, I'll grant, but as someone who is used to these things, I thought it was very sweet. I was also worried that we were going to have the dreaded love triangle, but again, that was dealt with quite decisively and the plot doesn't get bogged down in it at all. 

My one criticism with this story is that I felt it was a little too quick, in particular towards the end, it's such lovely prose, interspersed with mythology/fable that the ending seemed very rushed in comparison to the start. When something is as engaging as this, I'm willing to read a bit more of it, and in this case, I think it would have benefited from having a bit more time spent on the last quarter of the story, particularly since this is a standalone (as far as I can tell).

Obviously, as a white lady reading this, I cannot speak to the representation of people of colour in this story. However, I did think it was interesting how, in the author's notes, she talks about her own racial identity and how she wrote that into her characters. I almost wish I had read that first, but it is clear throughout that there is that connection with Japanese culture. I look forward to reading more books from Emiko Jean, whose work has captured my imagination. 

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own

It's taken me a while after reading this book to write a review because im still not 100% sure how I feel about it.

The writing is beautiful, how the author describes the settings,  characters and emotions transports you to Mari's world so thoroughly that you completely loose yourself in the story.

Mari is a great character, and her arc is one that I was thoroughly engrossed in, however, I wasn't a massive fan of the relationship between her and Taro. It felt a little rushed and I felt that although Mari grew as a person Taro, if anything, reverted to be more like his father rather than becoming a better man.

The ending of this book really threw me for a loop. I felt that it could have easily had a follow on novel, however, the author made a little epilogue which described what would have and could have happened in the next book. It all felt a little rushed for me but had it been paced properly I would have definitely picked up the next book in the series.

This book is a 3.5/5 for me. I did enjoy the story line and the book was written beautifully,  and I would still recommend reading this as it has quite a few twists and turns that keep you reading until the end. I would just have liked for there to be a sequel, instead of the two page epilogue that we got.

This feels like a fairly familiar read as it includes many common book tropes.
One of my least favourite tropes of all time is when the main character is deemed "ugly" until her prince (or in this case samurai) tells her otherwise and this book had plenty of that. In the first few chapters it felt as though we were being constantly reminded that Mari was unattractive.

That being said it wasn't a bad story overall, the pacing was an issue for me but i thought the setting to be quite unique and i loved the elements of Japanese folklore

Mari is a yokai. She has been training her entire life to survive and win the once-per-generation competition, with the prize being marriage to the prince and one day becoming the empress. However, yokai aren't allowed to compete, and if the truth is revealed then Mari is sure to be executed.

I really enjoyed reading this book!

It was so rephreshing to read a fantasy novel that uses Japanese mythology as its basis. I freely admit that I find Japanese things fascinating, so this book was a real treat.

This novel has a lot of characters. However, everybody was unique and distinct enough from each other that I didn't struggle with remembering who anybody was. Naturally, my favourite characters are probably the side characters we don't end up learning massive amounts about, like Asami, Sei, Nori, and Hanako. This isn't to say that the main characters aren't interesting, because they are, but the side characters are also compelling and feel real.

The use of multiple perspectives was great! Mari and Akira are separated for a large chunk of the novel, so it was necessary to switch between them so that the reader knew what was going on. The third main point of view was that of the prince, Taro. I enjoyed his chapters a little less than the others. His definitely weren't as necessary for the plot to make sense as the others were, but I do understand that it was a good idea to try and show his thought process, and why he did the things that he did. Also, interpsered throughout the novel, are short chapters from the perspectives of different gods, which I found really interesting!

Something that I really appreciated about this novel was that there was never a love triangle, or anyone acting like they were entitled to the attention of another person. Right from the start, the reader is told that Akira is in love with Mari, but that Mari doesn't feel the same. Akira, while understandably upset by this, accepts this and doesn't try to convince her to change her mind. His actions are still mostly motivated by his love for her, he wants to keep her safe, but he doesn't expect anything from her in return and he doesn't hold anything over her. He hasn't been 'friendzoned', because that implies that he views the situation as being Mari's fault when it isn't. His feelings for her are unrequited, and very quickly he learns to be okay with that. Honestly, this isn't something that should be notable, it should just be basic decency, but unfortunately it is notable and so I'm going to point it out.

One thing I didn't like about this book, and that means I don't feel right giving this 5 stars, is how the relationship between Mari and her mother is written. Mari's mother was cruel to her for her entire life. She constantly made Mari feel as if she wasn't good enough, she constantly put Mari's life in danger, she forced Mari to spend her life training for and participate in the deadly competition, and she forbade Mari's friend from visiting her at home. There's probably more besides this that I'm forgetting right now, as well. Yet Mari forgives her for all of this because it was out of love? And because she had to look strong to the other members of the village? Mari's mother was the leader of their village, she could do whatever she wanted, including not torturing her child. I don't think she deserves forgiveness for any of it.

On the whole, I think this was a solidly put together book, and I'm very very glad that something like it exists!

I am fascinated by Japanese folklore and the strange creatures that inhabit it, and this book didn't disappoint! A secret tribe of Animal Wives- beautiful women who marry unsuspecting men then transform into 'beasts', murder their husbands and spirit away their wealth- have trained the least beautiful among them to win the battle for the hand of the son of the emperor. Prince Taro (probably not named for the purple root vegetable!) is an amateur inventor who deeply regrets his role in the war for supremacy over the monster kingdom. All 'yokai' are forced to wear magical collars that limit their powers; any uprising is instantly crushed by warrior priests, like Taro's half-brother, who use chants and tattoos to dispel uncollared yokai. It's imperative, therefore, that the animal wives' champion conceals her true nature from the palace. Mari is accompanied by a band of ronin- mercenaries for hire- and her best friend and fellow yokai Akira, otherwise known as the Son of Nightmares. While Mari navigates the maze-like challenges that have been set to test Prince Taro's potential brides, Akira meets the fabled Weapons Master and joins the underground yokai resistance.
Mari and Akira are complex characters with deep motivation and challenging goals. They both experience multiple shifts in their perspective and their newfound appreciation and distaste for the court causes conflict between them. Mari's competitors are slightly under-developed but her main rival has an interesting link to the yokai resistance. Her mother, the leader of the animal wives, is more loving and complex than her cold exterior suggests.
Beauty, ugliness and physical differences play a large role in the plot and this book certainly teaches us not to judge a person by the way they look on the outside....they could kill you otherwise! Mari pulls off a triumphant transformation in her tribe's time of greatest need and she and Akira value their friendship above all else, even when one makes a deadly mistake. The book has a rather abrupt, happy ending, but I had a strong sense that the author has more of the story to tell. I would recommend this book to younger teens, though it has a fair amount of fantasy-style violence. Anyone with an interest in Japanese culture should enjoy learning about the many unusual characters from folklore, particular the yuki-onna ('snow girl') and the slash-faced woman.

I enjoyed this book, especially the last 50 pages or so, but leading up to that it felt quite samey to other books in the YASFF genre, though I particularly enjoyed the Japanese influence and the matriarchal society of the yokai Mari comes from.

This is a YA fantasy book set in a fictional Japanese inspired world that is inhabited by humans and yōkai. As I understand, yōkai is an umbrella term for many supernatural beings from Japanese folklore. This was one of my favourite things about this book. Jean has done a fantastic job at creating a complex and unique world that is so immersive from the very beginning. This world is unlike anything I’ve read before and I really appreciated that. Although I enjoyed the plot overall, I felt that it was a little rushed at times. I kind of wanted this to be a longer book so some of the plot could be expanded on more. My one other small complaint was the romance. Again it felt rushed and very predictable. Overall I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend checking it out, especially if you love YA fantasy.