This novel had very impressive worldbuilding and mysteries. I was pretty taken with the narration for the first half. Then, in the second half, while the plot continued to be interesting, the pace changed very quickly and it felt like a lot of character arcs were abandoned. The characters kind of started acting the same. In the first half, personalities and actions felt meticulously chosen and crafted, but then it all kind of led...nowhere. For example,

we kept being told how dangerous Sajaki is, how capable, but we didn't see it in action at all.

It was jarring and it took me out of the plot, this switch up. It undermined the respect that had built up in me. I'm going to keep reading the series, but with a big chip on my shoulder.