If possible I'd give this 3.5 stars but as that's not possible I've given 4 because 3 doesn't do it justice.

Whereas the first in this trilogy captivated me from the beginning, this one took longer for me to get into and it took me longer to complete. It's a darker, twistier book than the first. You get a deeper sense and understanding of the world in which the Talents inhabit both within and without the world in which we live.

I found it a difficult read in parts as the prose didn't flow as well as in the first book but I'm glad I persevered. The book as a whole is well worth the read and the last few chapters pulls it all together. I'm truly looking forward to reading the final installment but in the meantime I'll read something a little lighter both in subject and in length.

I received this book as an advanced reader copy via NetGalley. This review is my own thoughts freely given.

This sequel was so much more than book one! Horror, dark, twisted!

After the ruin book one left us, our characters are seeking the second orsine, a door between worlds, a way to cross into the land of the dead to find Marlowe, a living boy trapped within.

However, the world of the talents is vaster and stranger than Cairndale ever was and they haven't met the half of what's in it, yet.
The Dark Talent is rising and it will destroy everything and the lost drughr, the four who'd vanished centuries ago, were once more stirring.

“There aren't any grown-ups, Charlie. Not in the way you mean it. There's only just children what's gone and got too far away from their own childhoods. Sure, their bodies is all grown. But on the inside, everyone's all just about the same size."

The characters are definitely more fleshed out in this instalment and we get to see their innermost fears, ideals, and dark lurking thoughts.

What Miro does really well is shocking readers. Whether that be through the depravity, the gruesome accounts, the grief and horror of scenes, she writes with such vividness that it shocks and destroys you.
Not to mention, there are many plot twists and revelations. Even more so then book one, taking some of those and turning them on their head! Masterful and mind-bending!

Home isn't a place you go to. It's something you carry with you.

If you enjoyed The Northern Lights (Golden Compass), or Miss Peculiar’s Home for Peculiar Children, I would recommend this!

Thank you to Bloomsbury for providing an arc in exchange for a review!

It only took a few pages for me to be pulled back into this world.
It's full of people with powers, and other wordly goings on.
It's tense at times (a lot of times) and full of action.
Our children have moved on from the ruins, and we follow them.
I enjoyed this as much as the original book, and was pleased to see how the story went for our favourite characters
Nail biting to the end, it's good to know there's more to come somed