I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Are we supposed to root for the protagonist's actions at the end? Because if so, the author's sense of justice is very different from mine. I found this was the same at the end of his A Master of Djinn. I enjoyed both stories until the resolution, both of which have left a bad taste in my mouth.

Eveen is a colorful character whose unorthodox methods and foul mouth drive the momentum of this story. I laughed and shook my head at her antics many times. I loved her friendship with Fennis and building friendship with Sky.

The worldbuilding is complex, weaving together history, cultural celebrations, and cuisine into a living, breathing world despite the story's short length.

The action is smart, dark, and brutal. Each character brings something new to the table to challenge Eveen, keeping the progression interesting.

Sometimes the balance between silliness and seriousness feels off, with the silliness veering into over-the-top unbelievable territory, especially at the end.

Hopefully by the time the book is published the punctuation misuses (especially the dashes) will be fixed. They added unnecessary pauses that threw off the pacing.

You might like this if you like: The Johannes Cabal series by Jonathan L. Howard, Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots, Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao