I enjoyed it, though I wasn't as impressed as by the previous two volumes. In particular, some of the characters' motivations never rang true to me. I think I'd have bought them more if less had been left off-screen--for example, if we'd had any first-hand evidence of Sinja's feelings for Kiyan (rather than just hearing him talk about it a lot), or gotten a more detailed flashback to Balasar in the desert. The closing scene was perfect, though.