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I learned about this book just this morning, thanks to an interview with Tesh on Nerds of a Feather. I am a huge fan of her Hugo-winning "Some Desperate Glory" so this was a no-brainer to pick up, and since I had a flight to PyCon today, I started and finished it on the plane.

It's a good, fun read; it's a magical school fantasy, told from the perspective of a faculty member, in a modern world "plus"; it's got good relationships, a hint of darkness, and some really dry humor. It leaves one bit of motivation hanging, I think, that I'd like to have had cleared up, but otherwise ties things up in a satisfying way. Definitely worth a read!

This, and the 4 books after it (so far!) have been engrossing. I'm enjoying them way more than I expected to, and I expected I'd enjoy them.

Now we get the viewpoint of some of the other characters. Spoiler, the Dark Mysterious Lord is very, very horny.

It sets up some interesting plot threads for the next book, and I'll be honest, kinda leaves me wanting more. Admittedly, though, I am skimming over the sex scenes. I don't find Maas' erotic writing particularly compelling. She's a decent Fantasy writer, though!

The main plot arc of the first three books is finished off here.

I am so, so tired of the Disney-esque "dead, but wait!" trope that basically removes all stakes from death in the plot. The author is trying to have their cake and make me feel it too, and I'm just through with it. I could absolutely see it coming.

Oh wow, I thought the age gap thing was a bit much last book.

The plot moves along well, and the characters introduced here are believable, but lemme just say that the "Oh, you thought this darkly handsome romantic villain was bad? Well, check out this city of artists! The whole "bad to the bone" thing was just an act!" bit... eh?

Still gonna finish; I want to see how some of the plot threads, including the incipient romances, turn out.

I decided, after hearing about it from more than a few friends and acquaintances, to give this series a try. The book is... decent, I guess? It has a serious case of YA, and some very creepy age dynamics, but the core story is pretty good and the protagonist manages the Katniss: being not great, but having an interesting inner life while being unrealistically Good At Everything.

Decent enough I decided to read the next 2 and a novella.

This was ... decent, I suppose? It's hard for me to take seriously a story where a planet's population is decimated and of the population that remains, somehow they all stick together while everyone's split into groups.

I think the core narrative is done better in the Baru Cormorant series, and I'd recommend that trilogy over this, unless the next few books pick up dramatically.

This one is always a joy. This was my introduction to Cherryh, all those years ago, and I've loved it every time I read it.

Holy shit, did I ever hate the protagonists in this book. It's saying something when the rapist space captain manages somehow to be the least unlikable character. The story ended, and I don't even remember how their arcs did, nor do I care. Comfortably my least favorite of this series.