I did not know that this was a sequel until after I finished it. I don't know if I'll pick up the first one or not, but I guess it worked well enough on its own! Nothing really happens in this book, but I enjoyed it. You get to know the main character well and you get deep in her head. It kind of reminds me of those old boarding school books like Catcher in the Rye or a Separate Peace. But Selin is a woman in college in the 90s who reads a lot of books - so I know most of the pop culture and literary references and I can relate to a lot of her thoughts and musings.