Oh man, this series was quite good. I really enjoyed this pretty much the entire way through.
The character relationships (both romantic and not) were well thought out and felt complex, and the characters themselves shared that trait.

it didn't feel like these children got some awkward redemption arc, but rather that they were still aware that they'd done terrible things, and knew they'd live with the consequences, even though in the end they were all still victims of circumstance and past abuse and trauma.

I'm a big fan of morally grey characters, and this series is full of them. Pretty much anyone in these is sorta terrible at some point or another, and I love that.

Also this book hurt me, multiple times. Even the times where I knew, I knew,

that it was going to end tragically

still had me wounded by the way it was written, the way the characters reacted. 

I would die for the Lowe brothers. Their relationship is going to live rent free in my head for years probably.

(also the enemies to lovers arc is mmm *chef kiss* TWICE. THREE TIMES EVEN.

the character relationships were great, not just romantically, but just in general. the way they all interact is quite nice. You can see them all grow from the first book to the second, but it still shows that they're teenagers in the end too (traumatized teenagers, but still teenagers.)

It's throwing me off how many people on other review sites felt like the romantic relationships fell flat. (I believe they're using the term 'fanservice') I think they might just be upset that their faves didn't end up together. In my opinion the authors did a good job of portraying

a relationship that was always destined to be toxic because it wasn't based on anything real, vs. a relationship that wasn't, due to the two characters having a bone-deep understanding of each other because they were more similar than different. Alistair and Isobel fed off of each other's worst traits and made each other worse. I'm surprised people didn't... get that? Whereas while Gavin/Alistair and Reid/Isobel are similar in their worst traits, instead of feeding into them, it made them want to be better.

anyways, big fan. 10/10 would recommend.

Excellent follow-up with high stakes, lots of plot, and even more character development. Foody and Herman's writing is so evocative and gripping that I read this book in one sitting, staying up until 2am to finish!
Also. Bisexual Alistair means so much to me and I love him with my whole entire heart.

Gavin

and I will share the presidency of his fan club.

Slow burn, enemies to lovers, fight to the death, shady adults

This is the best book that I've read all year. (Well, the best duology I've read.) The characters are incredible. The story is incredible. 

The beginning is really fast, the middle stretches for a bit, and the end is just rapid-fire until the Blood Veil comes down - one way or another.