Fantasy that takes obvious inspiration from the Russian Revolution. Dense, intricate and definitely plot-driven rather than character-driven.

When it comes to contents and storyline, this was more along the lines of Mieville than Martin when it comes to genre. Fascinating worldbuilding/history but characterization is lacking and the plot often hard to find. It’s a rich world but a confusing one where little is explained. The author slowly builds by cue and hint but it can be a frustrating first 100 pages.

Good bones - a bit jumbled and shortchanged on emotional relationships, but good enough to continue to the sequel.