I finished this book in less than 24 hours. I found the pacing to be refreshing, the plot to be intriguing, the characters drew me in and I had a blast reading. I tend to be a character driven reader. I enjoyed the relationships, the character's history built into the book, and the unique dynamics. I would recommend this book to readers who tend toward fantasy romance, paranormal romance and are looking for something different than the usual. After reading the book, I looked back at the book description and I am realizing that the story felt much deeper and more complex in terms of relationships, group/culture/community loyalty, and personal growth than I initially anticipated--based on the preview description of the book.

Things I really loved:

-The characters--they had distinct voices/characteristics, were unique, and had great chemistry overall with their potential partners.

-The love story--and all related romantic interactions

-The mystery--I am constantly questioning various motives for each group/community and the individuals in this story--it keeps me on my toes. I am looking forward to discovering more as we peel back the layers with the next book.

-Descriptions/scene set up/transitions--for the most part, I felt this was done very well. I frequently find myself irritated when authors over describe what could be left to the reader's imagination. On the flip side, I acknowledge the issue that occurs when authors leave readers completely confused by lack of description or worse when the scene/transitions are so vaguely clarified that we become completely lost. I felt that the author did an exemplary job providing just enough description to leave me clearly knowing where, when, and with whom I was with--without making me feel bored or annoyed with overly descriptive paragraphs.

-Tie in--I love that we see things planted from earlier in the story tie into later developments and I am hoping this is a clue for further tie in details in the next book.

-I was never bored

-Character voices felt genuine/writing felt consistent and solid

Things I did not enjoy:

-The copy of the book that I had access to definitely had errors within the text. Sentences were at times broken up and interspersed with seemingly nonsensical words. I suspect that somehow various sentences were unintentionally merged. This occurred at least 3-4 times throughout the book.

-The ending wasn't the worst thing--it sets us up for the next book and didn't leave me wanting to break something (I can name so many other books I've read this year that have). I still want to read the next book--so that's a good sign! However, I must admit that I felt the ending was abrupt. It didn't feel like a natural place to end the first book in this story.

I received a review copy for free, and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.