It’s really good, but it’s really long, and it does drag on in places. 

No romantic culmination in this one, STILL, but it has a good deal of action. 

I found it just kind of middle of the road for this series. You can tell that there is more action and romance impending in the next three books, and SJM probably didn’t want to include too much excitement in this edition. 

Good guys seem to be coming out on top in the end - so - it actually is better than Heir of Fire in that aspect, and the resolution of some of the mini boss bad-guys is badass! And I can tell there’s a lot more in store for Dorian. He’s probably what inspires me most to keep continuing reading, at this point!