Heart of Mist

i accidentally finished the book as soon as i did but honestly – this is one of The Best fantasy books I have read....in a long time / ever

it's just the right amount of adventure & darkness & humor, with an emphasis on the commonality of the human condition and the complexity of human nature.... brilliant!

the characters are very well written - for...i think the first time?? i actually loved all the perspectives. like, there are times when you just want to skip a POV bc the character might not be interesting or like there's another POV you might be looking forward to but honestly – this story was riveting, and I enjoyed reading from the different perspectives.

Maybe I'll develop this later, but I liked the contrast of the Patriarchal land ruled by King Aden (Arden? w/e the stupid guy's name is) vs. the Matriarchal Valarian (or is it Valian? i might be mixing it up w GoT LOL) rule... and other similar parallels in the book btwn the characters.

There's also just enough foreshadowing and things coming together... man, I look forward to seeing how the rest of the story develops/unfolds & to see how all the pieces come together !!

And the ending man... glad all the books are out LOL but also - i cannot be reading rn!