This is a very well written book, with vivid world-building and interesting yet easy to grasp magic and fantasy. The characters are complex and intelligent. The tone is somber and heavy, with a sense of dread that builds from the first page and hardly relents. Arguably, the plot is a series of events going from bad to worse, a constant downward slope without many ups. For my personal preferences right now, I would have preferred there were more bright pockets to balance the reading experience. I ended up finding the plot somewhat predictable because I started just assuming the worst possible things could happen. If a slow, serious fantasy quest story is what you're in the mood for, this will work better for you.