Rating: 3.5 stars 
 I liked this book but there are things that took away from it, in my opinion. It's a good book, but it had several issues. 
 First off, I wasn't annoyed by Mal as many people were. He wanted Alina to reach her potential and did everything he could to aid her in her quest. He's a good guy. I mean, their relationship bored me ( God, did it bore me) but they loved each other so whatever. 
 One of the issues for me was that this was a continent heavily plagued by war and that was such an important theme in this story but it was just brushed away. Being orphans was very central to who Alina and Mal and emphasis was placed on how many had died in these endless fruitless wars but in the end, not even a glimpse of how this issue would possibly be resolved was given. Instead, they just housed more orphans ( REALLY???) 
 "No land, no life. Just a uniform and a gun." 
 Maybe I just expected more from Alina. I guess I wanted her to want to fix it, become queen maybe but she chose to distance herself from it all. I respect the fact that wanting to make the world a better place just is not on everyone's agenda, I do respect that, but Alina showed such fire and initiative numerous times, she went on and on about how she was a force to be reckoned with so you just kinda expect more from her. I wanted to see Daenerys shine through but she just fizzled out. 
 She stated numerous times that she loved her power and she loved being stronger but in the end, she reverted back to who she was before any of this happened. It just saddened me. 
 One of the biggest themes of the Darkling's campaign is the need to end the wars that have ravaged Ravka. He went about it all wrong, of course, but it would have a lot more interesting to see both Alina and him 'rule as equals' as he stated. To have Alina temper his ruthlessness, create a balance. Or really, just for her to rule alone. Set things right herself after killing the Darkling. 
 On the plus side, the scenes were she visits the Darkling are so incredible and one the major highlights of this book. But seriousy, the ending the Darkling got was just right. In some ways, it was what he needed. 
 I felt bored in some portions but overall, I was always curious to see what would happen. Plus, I really loved all the secondary characters ( Bahgra in particular) and the scenes with Nickolai were always a treat, as expected. 
 It's a good book. I just get the feel of missed opportunities. Of greater story lines that could've been had but were neglected. Of the potential for this to have been a great book. It just.... saddened me.