I came to the book having read the first couple chapters on the author's web site.  I had all settled in for a decent "sword and sorcery" piece, but my expectations were certainly subverted at the plot twist and genre change right about at the halfway point.  The main character demonstrates no small amount of resourcefulness throughout, but what drew me most was the relationship she builds (and then has to rebuild) with her "sister".  While I believe the cliffhanger this book ends on does set up nicely for the next one, I came away wanting a greater sense of closure.  A TV series might have a season finale end on a cliffhanger, but I think of a novel series like this more like a movie with several sequels planned.  Each movie with sequels I've enjoyed has given the audience something to look forward to in the next one but also gave some sense of closure of the story arc within.  At the time of the closing scene of this book, I observed no reflection by any of the characters regarding great victories or triumphs or even deep insights or appreciations.  There was some pretty heavy stuff laid on our heroine right at the end.  I would have liked to have read more about how it impacted her emotionally at a guttural level, driving her to set forth anew at the start of the next book with a renewed sense of purpose (and an axe to grind!)