there are only two details i disliked about this story. firstly, i was a bit upset that this book isn't a continuation to the first one and is instead a backstory which, yeah, was really nice! but i was expecting to see more about greta and minette :( secondly, i never thought that at my big age of twenty i'd be shipping a human with a (mythological) animal 😭 like yeah the ship was cute but that was such a humbling experience for me lmfao.

leaving that aside, just like the first one, this book was so so so so sweet and kinda felt like a hug <3 i was once again gladly surprised at the inclusion of deaf people and it was so lovely to see how a whole village learnt asl just for one person, i wish that was more common in real life. 
as i already mentioned, it was also nice to get a glimpse on hesekiel and erik's past, meet some of their family members and learn why they decided to retire to the village they're currently living in. 

and, of course, i loved the main themes of the story, about how it's never too late to decide or start doing what you love, the "not too late" topic always resonates a lot with me, tbh <3 and the whole finding a home and a place in your community plot was also really sweet.

once again, i really wish i had these books when i was younger.