I really enjoyed this story. The writing was more consistent than in Empire of Silence, and it was good to explore Crispin's inner world. It definitely benefitted his character — we could still see his headstrong and less analytical tendencies without the lens of Hadrian's disdain. It was also nice to get the reflective tone of the full novel without Hadrian's sadboi nonsense. 

I didn't at all expect the enclave of Catholics. It was an interesting piece of worldbuilding that I enjoyed.