Overall this was a decent book but it really felt like it was being written for the teen/tween age group. If that was the authors objective then they did a great job. The characters have a decent amount of back story and intrinsic motivation for their actions. You are led into the secrets of each character over time and in a manner that does not feel forced but their are other parts where the author feels like they wanted an overly dramatic scene so they created one. If you are okay with non nuanced stories or if you are actually a teen/tween who likes tales of magic then this is your book. I am confident to say you will enjoy it. If you want something that keeps you in your willful suspension of belief then sadly this is not your book.
TLDR: Decent characters but overly and unnecessarily dramatic.