This is a YA book pretending to be adult. None of these people acted their ages. It's a shame because the setting is fairly interesting - German-inspired with lots of folklore. The fairytales peppered throughout the book felt organic and enhanced the narrative. But ultimately I felt this was a missed opportunity to do something different. 

The main character Lorelei is truly unlikeable. She has such an unpleasant personality and always jumps to the worst conclusions about people. Why does her love interest fall for her? Lorelei is so cruel to her. The author tried to write enemies/rivals to lovers but couldn't pull it off. There's no chemistry.

All of her relationships were underdeveloped really. Ziegler as the mentor, the rivalry with Sylvia, Lorelei's family. All thin and not convincing. There's lots of interpersonal drama but not enough backstory to back it up, so it falls flat. 

When Lorelei decides to betray Sylvia, my attention perked up again. Maybe this book will surprise me. I would have respected the author for making a bold choice. But of course, she backs out and it all works out somehow. Boo, how boring! The romance was already on thin ice for me, but I can't believe Sylvia forgave her so easily.

The book's lore concerning magic and politics was all over the place too. I couldn't get a grasp on how I was supposed to feel about Lorelei's magic or the king and his empire. Cool concepts, but lots of wasted potential and poor development.