I love so many characters in this book. All of them have their strengths and their flaws. I love how many strong women there are. I love that the male characters love and support the strength in them. I love that Koli’s strength is his passion. He’s not a fighter, but he has so much heart that he just cannot hide it away, and he’s driving this entire story with it. I love Cup’s no-fucks-okay-maybe-a-few-fucks attitude, how people need to earn her respect and how loyal she is once they have it. I love Spinner, and Catrin, and Jemiu, and Ursula. And Monono.

Something I’ve realised since finishing the book is how much love there is in it. How much the characters come to love and care for each other. And, most importantly, how much of that in non-romantic love. Monono and Koli. Koli and Cup. Cup and Ursula. Koli and his family. Koli and Mythen Rood. Just so, so much love. The only romantic relationship is Spinner and Jon, and even that is not portrayed overly romantically, instead focusing on the respect and trust they have for each other. I just really appreciated that.

If I had one criticism I would say after the climatic ending things felt a little rushed. Spinner spun us through the happenings of what characters did and where they ended up. Characters that I loved, that I would have liked to spend just a little more time with. A little more heart into the final notes of their stories. A few extra pages. But then maybe that’s because I really didn’t want to see their stories end at all.

A longer review can be found at my book blog: Marvel at Words.