The main characters get treated like shit by everyone around them. There’s no solid respect from anybody in their circle, yet one of the main characters is described as being stubborn and strong-willed…

The climax of the book was good and was very intriguing and the pacing was good. That first point just annoyed tf out of me

~~Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette for the ARC!~~

3.5/5 stars rounded down.

I've really liked Tooley's writing since reading her debut Sweet & Bitter Magic and I adored Sofi and the Bone Song, but I'm sad this one didn't hit me like I thought it would.

Don't get me wrong, the writing is still eloquent, and the characterization for Elodie and Sabine are really strong here. The theme exploration of the power of the church and the corruption that often proceeds it was a bit on the nose, but I still found it interesting, nonetheless.

My primary problems lie with the plot. I already guessed the plot twist pretty early on, but the story kinda just floated along until it finally got to that point. I just didn't feel the stakes as intensely as they should have been, because the girls were shopping and panicking over the one-bed trope while the church was taking over the kingdom.

Speaking of which, I also couldn't get a solid sense of place of Velle. There were other nations outside of Velle mentioned, but I couldn't tell you their importance or impact on the world. I'm hoping they'll be fleshed out more in the sequel, along with other things such as:

1. The queen's death. She died in her sleep, but I highly suspect foul play. The fact that this wasn't even thought by Elodie, a character supposedly intelligent, calculating, and well-versed in the world of politic feels weird.

2. What the deal is with Tal, the captain of the guard and Elodie's childhood best friend. The narrative tells us they were good friends once, but all we see from Tal himself is that he's manipulative and shady as hell. Elodie quickly bending over to him in the last fifty pages despite how obviously sus he was felt way out of character for her.

And 3. What exactly is the Second Son. The religion has solely focused on the Third Daughter this whole book, but then Tal brings up the Second Son and all the sudden the dude's a big deal? Surely, this will be expanded upon in the sequel, but I wish the Second Son was mentioned much sooner, like describing people giving thanks to the Second Son along with the Third Daughter, so it would have been more natural when this was brought up at the end.

I know I'm going off a lot like I didn't like the book, but I did. I just have a lot of thoughts and it's really the ending that got me irked the most. Hopefully, the sequel will provide the answers I need.