“Now I'm in a king's cage. But so is he. My chains are Silent Stone. His is the crown.”

I really liked this book far better than the previous one. Yes, at first it's more slow-paced and it was more explanatory than Glass Sword or even Red Queen, but it was necessary - especially in terms of characters. We got to know a bit of how the Silvers came to power and Norta's history, as well as a little of how other Silver nations work, like Lakeland and Piedmont. But what actually made the book for me was Maven and Evangeline.

Maven was always a favorite of mine - his character is so complex from the beginning and after this book, we get to see more of the REAL Maven. Yes, he's a monster, he's twisted, but he wasn't always like that and what was done to him was horrifying. He's not just this cruel, heartless villain, he's much more than just that. He's just a boy with a broken, disturbed mind and I can't help but, like Cal, want some redemption, some kind of cure for him. It's the kind of villain you can't help but love and feel sorry for, as much as you hate what he's doing. I love that kind of characters, the one you can understand the motives and sympathize with. Evangeline was the big surprise for me - she was made since book one to be that mean girl kind of character, power hungry and manipulative, aiming for the crown and only that using any means necessary, but seeing through her POV gave me a new insight on her character and a much needed character development and likability as well. She may now be another favorite of mine. I love the Samos family dynamic displayed here and the relationship between Evie and Ptolomeus, as well as her and Elaine. Also, her POV brings us directly into the Silver court's schemes, which also gives the reader a more ample view of things.

Cameron's POV was ok, and she's starting to grow on me, mainly because she is maturing and realizing that this 'war' is not as black and white as it seems. I really liked how she is discovering where she belongs in all of this, how to control her powers and what she wants to do with them. And also how her friendship with Mare evolved - I would like more of their scenes together. Mare was a little annoying and whiny in this book and though her POV were the ones that brought the most of the needed information and action to the novel, she was my least favorite narrator. And MarexCal are definitely not convincing as a couple - their chemistry is so meh and they just don't fit well. There's always a drama between them and neither is willing to compromise. Cal in itself is a good, albeit predictable, character, but I think he would be better of without the whole Mare drama. Yes, I know that most of it is what moves the plot, especially the love-hate triangle between the Calore brothers and the lightening girl, but it could have been done differently and still work.

The ending was very anticlimatic, especially because we went in already knowing the big twist that was dumped on Mare and the Scarlet Guard, so when I saw that it ended there I was really mad. I mean, I was hoping for some big twist, like at the end of Glass Sword or Red Queen, something really game changing and that would leave me excited and anxious to War Storm. That didn't happen. Maven's threat seemed distant and not as remotely dangerous as it should have felt going into a final book. Still, I'm curious as to how Aveyard will wrap up the series and what's in store for these characters.