Rich and immersive, this book kept me on my toes and excited about what happened next. I enjoyed the main character, Sunny, quite a lot, although the scowling and crankiness felt forced at some points. Ethan is a delight for most of the book and their sexual tension was good. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator(s) were fantastic at pronunciation and character voices. Most importantly, I have really been craving stories based on non-Western fantasy and this delivers. I learned a lot and cannot wait for the next installment.

That said, there seemed to be tangents set up to explain the setting of the next book in the series, with time spent on side characters we only interacted with once who didn't really progress the story. Clearly the second book is going to be about

Spoiler

the Kingdom of Sky, these side characters, and especially her training and Trial. It was as if someone suggested to the author that they add in those chapters to either hook readers into the next one / set the scene for it. Which is fine, it was just a different vibe than the rest of the book.

Anyways, yes, read this book. Read if you like fantasy and main characters with gumption. Sunny has a lovely arc of self-acceptance which is likely a metaphor for the immigrant experience, but it's not heavy-handed at all. Def recomment.