A little late to the party, but I’m jumping on the train to read this before I start watching the Netflix series. Enjoyed it more than I expected to! For better or for worse, it feels exactly like a ya fantasy book - chosen one, magic school, dark one - nothing too surprising here. But it was well done and didn’t miss any beats. The tone and world of the novel feel consistent and enchanting, and I enjoyed the writing. The characters all sort of fit into the normal ya fantasy mode, but I had fun reading about them. And I know she's making the right choice, but am I a bad person for kind of wanting Alina to run off with the Darkling and rule the world together? He's not entirely wrong... I’ll have to pick up the other ones and see what happens!