I found the premise of this book to be pretty interesting, both in a retelling of The Masque of the Red Death (since I feel like I haven't seen that one done before) and the whole charade Seraphina is putting on and the appeasement of a near-mad king. I liked Seraphina, and I thought the look at a world so deeply ravaged by plague and death was interesting, and I especially liked the examination of how Seraphina's experiences are shaped by being Jewish and how that affects her place within the kingdom as a whole.
Still, I really wished this excerpt was more atmospheric--this empty, rotting castle surrounded by death could've felt so gothic and just had a really palpable atmosphere, and I didn't really feel like the writing ever achieved that for me the way I wanted it to. I also wasn't particularly interested in Nico's character, but that may just have been because he appears in this excerpt less.
Overall, I found this pretty intriguing!
Still, I really wished this excerpt was more atmospheric--this empty, rotting castle surrounded by death could've felt so gothic and just had a really palpable atmosphere, and I didn't really feel like the writing ever achieved that for me the way I wanted it to. I also wasn't particularly interested in Nico's character, but that may just have been because he appears in this excerpt less.
Overall, I found this pretty intriguing!