What. A. Book. I don’t even know how to properly organize my thoughts, this was such a perfect sequel, it follows the story from the first book so well, picking up plot lines left open and even ones we didn’t even know had more to be told about. And the writing, omg the writing!! Sometimes I would read a line and genuinely just sit with it for a while, Jay Kristoff has such a way with words that every thing he writes just sounds so beautiful. A lot of new characters show up in this book and, not gonna lie, at first it kinda threw me off just because of the amount of new things that were being introduced, but then they added such a depth to the story, connecting earlier parts of the book that made the story feel complete and so well detailed and written. Nothing felt out of place, everything happened for a reason. The balance between the importance being weighted on the characters and the plot is so well done, we really get to know the characters and see what they go through while having such a complex plot that just keeps building while engaging with the characters. Again, amazing writing not only in the way the story is told but how the story is built. The bicker between Gabriel and Celene was so funny and I loved how realistic their sibling relationship was. One moment they were shit talking each other, fighting for different opinions (verbally and physically), wanting different things and contradicting each other, and then they were remembering old times, smiling at each other and having, even if small, moments of affection. I big highlight of this book for me is the relationship between Gabriel and Dior and how much they rely on each other. You truly see in this book how much they care about each other, how they’re all they have, and how important they are to one another. It would always bring a smile to my face every time we had little moments between them. Very scared for the next book but also super excited, I needddd to know what happens next!!