This was a lovely sequel to Voidwalker. It starts off with a recap, so if you're like me and read Voidwalker 1+ year ago, fret not.

It's a book that doesn't take itself too seriously, but it doesn't feel cringey or overly campy at any point. I did find myself rolling my eyes at Fi, since she is quite brash and arrogant for a human and like... girl, read the room, these people could eat you! I actually think I forgot that Fi wasn't my favorite in the first book until I reflected on my review before writing this one, so if you like her characterization in book one, you might not be as bothered by her as I am. But it didn't take away from my reading experience at all, and I still was very invested in this.

It had much more smut than I remember being in the first book, but it still never felt like too much time was spent on intimate scenes. They weren't too repetitive and generally felt appropriate for what else was going on in the story. It gets a little bit spicier and leans a bit more into the monster smut side of things, and we also get to see them experiment a bit more. It feels pretty fitting for a sequel, since they're meant to be 1+ year into a relationship at this point so of course they'd feel more comfortable with each other and be a bit more adventurous than early on.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for the eARC.

The book was fine. I cared so much more about the historic timeline than the modern day one. The male narrator was pretty terrible in comparison to the two women, so I think I might have preferred this one in writing.

Kate Quinn + Saskia Maarleveld is now a must read/listen combo for me. I didn't love this quite as much as The Rose Code, but it was a delight nonetheless. If you read this, you absolutely must listen to it on audiobook. Quinn's characters get so much life through Maarleveld's narraration, and she writes them with her narrarator in mind. It's a win-win for the reader, since it means we get very clearly distinct voices from each character and no one melds together in your head, but also it's so immersive since Maarleveld is an absolute master at accents.

I picked this audiobook up on a whim and I can’t entirely tell if this was a 5 star read because of the story (fantastic) or the narrator (her voices? Divine) but I suspect it’s somehow the combination of both. This book has me going down an absolute rabbit hole about Prince Phillip pre-marriage and code breakers in WWII. I finished this audiobook quicker than many half this length, it was just so gripping and enraging and heartbreaking and wonderful.