Why do so many litfic authors feel the need to make everything so morose and so melancholic?

I’m not always a huge fan of shifting narratives in fantasy series (especially when paired with a backwards time jump) but I think it went okay here. I ended up really liking both main characters, and their perspective added some details to the world and the plot that I found useful. Pleasantly surprised - good not great.

The strongest part of the story is the characters; they feel real and I connected with the way the story unfolded realistically (because Lara should spend a long time making up for what happened). I also really liked how it focused on the people and the culture of the Bridge Kingdom - definitely made up for the difficulties I had with the world building in book 1 (plus there’s a map this time!).

I wasn’t sure what to expect here - was this going to be another fantasy romance where the girl is a small-yet-fierce badass surviving against all odds and the boy is a big ol’ dolt with big muscles and an even bigger heart? Short answer, kinda.

World building was a little lacking (what I would give for a map), but the characters were well thought out and complex. Enjoyable, but perhaps not a story that will stick with you for years (and that’s okay).