As I'm sure we've all learned by now the start of a fantasy series is always a gamble. However, I think after a couple of chapters this one did an amazing job of keeping me invested in the story. I think it does a phenomenal job of adding the world building throughout the entire story. I really enjoyed the magic system that was created in this one and the cards the use for magic. I really liked that in this world magic comes with a price and you can use the cards but overuse has repercussions. I really liked the idea of some of those who work closely with the king being part of a treasonous plot to be honest. I love how well written the characters are and how they all have individual motivations for the choices they make throughout the story. 

 Elspeth is a really great character to me. I think the dynamic between her and the Nightmare is incredibly interesting. The book has a lot of found family elements and Elspeth finds a lot more acceptance among the group she begins to work with than she did her own family. I honestly think Elspeth is very stoic in the way she handles the reality that slowly she is losing to the Nightmare. I really enjoyed the last like thirty percent or so of the book because so much action starts taking place. It was an intense build up to the critical parts of the story and we got some twists and turns throughout that part that were surprising. I think the ending really nailed the you are going to want to keep reading this series motivation. I am honestly very curious to see how the rest of this story plays out.