Just an absolutely beautiful series. Brings such beautiful imagery and world building.
Super exciting read, I loved it!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book. A gorgeous 3 star read book from me. What an exciting plot, vivid storytelling and relatable, rich characters. I couldn't put this book down – absolutely loved it.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the eARC.
This book has great worldbuilding, characters development and political intrigue. Jai navigated his role as a hostage to the Valor (yes, he became a hostage again) then he was thrust into a world of politics and his role as a ruler all of a sudden, but he used his wisdom, the knowledge that he gained from the Valor as well as Leonid's and what he knew of his father's past to navigate all of it skillfully. I hated how he sometimes 'lost himself for a moment' while looking at/ being forcefully kissed by another woman and having to remind himself of Erica.
The worldbuilding is extensive, the author created an entire culture, their traditions (fair warning, I found some of them a bit grotesque like when they drank khiroi blood or mixed it with milk) and way of living from scratch. While this was amazing, it took about the first 100 pages to achieve this which made me almost DNF the book at the beginning, but I stuck through and it was worth it. The pacing completely changes after that and you find yourself thrust from one event into the other.
The focus in this book is mainly on Jai's getting to know his people's way, settling into his role as a khan and ruling his people while getting ready to face the sabines which is normal for a second book (as it acts as a bridge in the series), so Winter didn't have a main role here , it was all up to Jai. you will meet lots of new characters. I loved some of them and hated others, I want to elaborate, but can't do so without spoiling. I found some of the decisions made by the characters in this book to be not in line with their personality or it was as if they suddenly changed.
All in all, it was an enjoyable read and I really liked it.

I rated this book 5 stars because I couldn't put it down for a second. It was so good and the author is a genious! I totally recommend everyone to read this book as fast as they can because it's really good and the characters are fantastic.