I would have given this 4 stars but the length and speed of the book prevent me from doing so. I liked the book, but there are some issues with it.The book could've had 200 pages removed and it would've been just as strong. I haven't read the 3rd book yet, but some of the events seem arbitrary and hinder the overall pace of the story. I did enjoy it, but found that I couldn't sit and read it for long periods of time because it was crammed full of too many details that became redundant. TLDR: too much repetitive exposition and not enough pay off.