Disclaimer: I received a copy for review from Hidden Gems.

I would give this book a solid 3.5 stars. I struggled in the beginning as the prose was a bit awkward, and I couldn’t tell where this book was going. I also got some Harry Potter vibes at first. That vanished fairly quickly and the book developed into a good rhythm. I would have liked a little more character development for the main characters, but all the other secondary characters are completely shady acting from the jump so you can’t be sure ‘who done it’ as the saying goes. From a murder mystery perspective I really enjoyed it, but from a fantasy perspective there just wasn’t enough world building etc. to make it full on fantasy. I would say it’s a classic murder mystery with a sprinkling of fantasy thrown in. I gave it 3 stars which in my books makes it a really good story. I wouldn’t re-read it, but I’d pick up the second book to see where the story continues and this novel set up for a series very well.