The Throne of the Captive continues the story of Oak and Ren and – unlike the first book – here the perspective is focused on Oak, which completely changes the dynamic. This means we get to know his thoughts and dilemmas better, but at the same time, Ren becomes more mysterious, which for me was both a positive and a negative. On one hand, I wanted to understand her more. On the other hand, it maintained an interesting tension in how we manage trust.

I really liked the way Oak deals with his relationship with Ren – that there is still something there, even though everything pulls them to stand against each other. There is intense emotional charge, and I liked that Oak, although sweeter as a character, is forced here to become tougher. Ren, on the contrary, remains complex and tough, but she doesn’t give herself easily – and that worked for me.

The finale? It reminded me quite a bit of the feel of the Heartless Prince trilogy (which I personally love), in the way betrayal and trust intertwine. There were moments that kept me reading non-stop and I can't wait for the next installment.

If you liked the first one, I believe the second will satisfy you even more – it’s more mature, more "political," and has a lot of intensity in the relationships.