I absolutely adored this book! Jude is an incredible heroine, and steps out of the traditional female role to be the perfect mix of dark and cunning while also being gentle and alluring. Holly Black found a way to make a character both numb/somewhat sadistic and innocent to the ways of the world. I applaud her for this character alone, and there are so many other incredible characters present with even more incredible character arcs. Cardan in particular has a past that is both good, in the sense that he did not have to ho through the trauma Jude went through, and terrible in terms of what went in behind the scenes. Black does a wonderful job of reflecting exactly how a character like Cardan would behave, acting like nothing phases him and being mean to push the world away. I remember doing that for a time, but instead of being mean I was silent, resembling Jude somewhat in the sense that I ignored my trauma, so I could avoid dealing with my own issues. Part of why I loved this book so much I suppose. It is a true masterpiece! Thank you Holly Black for getting me into Fantasy YA and helping me to understand that I can get by my past and look toward my future!