I found this book a little hard to get into, but I ended up thoroughly enjoying myself. This is the first Renée Adhieh book, so going in, I had high expectations because I only ever hear good things about her books. The writing felt flat to me, and the main character was annoying. She kept going on and on about her secret past, which seemed more trouble than it was worth. But I loved Bastien, and thought the main character had some growth towards the end. I thought the ending was absolutely WILD! I predicted that Bastien would be turned into a vampire (in a story about vampires, that much seemed obvious) but I was shocked that his sister was still alive. The cover is beautiful, and I am a sucker for a good historical setting, so this is a book I would definitely recommend. I am hoping I like the second book better, as I thought this book was a lot of set up, but I am so excited to get my hands on The Damned!