I guzzled this novel down in the blink of an eye. It somehow was nothing like what I expected, and yet it was even better. And I very quickly surprised myself with how much I adored and fell into Corvus’ writing. It fit the narrative’s time period and, admittedly, I needed clarification for a handful of words throughout. And it was fantastic.

My favorite aspect, besides the writing style itself, was Mildred and her friendship with Rosie. Mildred’s character was not only funny and sweet and powerful and achingly vulnerable, but she became entirely different to what we are initially led to believe. She morphs from an opponent to our closest ally, someone who arguably knows Rosie even more deeply than her lifelong best friend and love, Devon. It’s easily the most intimate and profound relationship of the novel, to my surprise and delight.

I did find a few pieces of description to be a little too long, and some pacing choices were not my favorite, and yet I devoured the book nonetheless. Rosie frustrated me on occasion, and I felt several times that I could not relate to the lives of these wealthy young adults, though I could not help my connection to them as the story continued to unfold. Despite their different lives and sometimes thoughts that are a little too on the nose, Corvus makes it impossible to not be intrigued and moved by these characters, one way or another.

I will add that I wanted juuuust a little more between Rosie and Raum. He interested me infinitely more than Devon and I would have happily read one hundred more pages if just to explore his world and his connection with Rosie further. And in that, I am excited to see what else might come of them in any upcoming additions to this series. It’s a shame that this book is only just being released and that it is the first, because I could easily read more. Kaitlin Corvus, I will be here when this novel officially meets the world, and I will stay for your future endeavors. This is a lovely, fun novel and I would recommend it with ease.

Thank you very much to NetGalley for this ARC. (: