Queens? Assassins? Sign me up! If just the title was powerful enough to draw me in, I was jumping up and down in my seat as I opened the excerpt. This is the best length of a book in order to get a proper first impression that I've seen so far. The author was so eloquent in her descriptions, that I was quickly able to dive into the political state of the kingdom. It was so well written, I was captivated to see the origins of a blood vow that drives one of our main characters, as if I was in the room with them. Melissa de la Cruz is so adept at the use of her descriptions, I can smell the longing of Shadow for a true family, see visions of my own of the past, imagine the desire of Caledon to live up to expectations. I was surprised to see who Shadow's mother was and can't wait for the other twists this book has in store. Needless to say, I have no doubt I will hungrily devour this book and am so excited to read more!