While this did take me a bit to get into, I ultimately found the mystery of this very enjoyable, particularly with the ending and what it explored. I do think I'll like the second book more with how this left off, and now that I feel more acclimated to the world. The one thing holding it back a bit was besides our main character and a few of the side characters, many of the characters seemed very similar and some of the character interactions and trust don't make sense given that this book takes place over 2 weeks. But otherwise, a well written exploration of cultures and political intrigue.