It was mostly lighthearted but the last 15 or so percent of the book were really tense and not lighthearted at all. A major event happens that changes everything including the book itself. Before that the story is fun, mostly easygoing while still exploring harder topics but with stakes that aren't as high as life or death. It felt really affirming to read parts of this book, the way the characters struggle with expectations, freedom, their wants and needs, life's purpose, sexuality. These are all topics that are handled really well and are inspiring but definitely feel very YA which is fine. The last part of the book wasn't necessarily unexpected because the story was slowly getting there; there were hints. Still it escalated in a way I wasn't expecting - it turned out to be way more dark and terrifying than I thought it would be once events were set in motion and it didn't feel like a YA book at all.

The book managed to elicit one squeal out of me and I think the chemistry between the romantic and friendship pairings was really good, especially the latter. I really liked Sidney's and Arthur's friendship. But other friendship developments were really good, too, like Arthur and Gwen, Gwen and Agnes. 

Overall, I'm glad to have read this book and I would recommend it for people who are queer or want to understand queer perspectives better. I think this book works best for young adults or for "baby gays" no matter their age. It's also fine for people who enjoy political intrigue, low to no magic, Arthurian inspired fantasy (but not the best if that's the only thing that intrigues you because there's not a lot of that). 

I believe this is my second book by the author (I also enjoyed Reputation) and I plan to read all of their fiction books. I'm still unsure if I'll read Infamous because after reading some reviews, I'm not convinced I'd enjoy it. I'll see how I feel about the rest of their books first.