For a book about magic and monsters and the end of the world, the book is surprisingly straightforward. It’s YA story with a couple adult scenes. Vers has a worryingly abusive backstory but a good heart. I thought the romantic timeline was too rushed and Ver’s behavior came off as too assimilated for his backstory of no friends, no casual acquaintances. The motivations of everyone seemed to lack depth. But the saving grace was the, well, grace of the protagonists. It’s easy to root for characters who are kind. And a lot of times, characters went against stereotypes in a good way – when I thought there would be a misunderstanding, they didn’t fall for it! It was really nice to run into. Seb’s sister is the real gem. There’s a bit of a mystery with ooky blood rituals and a rushed romance but the reader at least knows that the nice people making offers of friendship & housing made the offers in good faith. If you’re looking for a fantasy book that’s a little dark but maybe not too dark in these trying times, I think this would suit. Steam: med low. M/M kind of on page. Good consent aside from Ver’s background. That was one of the disconnects for me – Ver was portrayed as up for the relationship but someone with his sequestered background should have been incredibly naive so I wondered if he was ready. Seb did not shy away from the less human parts of Vers which was nice, and might be more excitingly steamy in future. Narration: Pretty good. I listen to this narrator a lot. This effort was decent.