I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for ARC in exchange for a honest review.
I requested this book because the cover looked pretty awesome. Am I right? I didn't realize that the main character was gender fluid but once I read the book it didn't bother me one bit. I absolutely love Sal and his wish to seek revenge on those that hurt his family and country. The book can be a bit confusing at times but I thoroughly enjoyed it and I am hoping for a book #2 in this series.

When I first read the description of Mask of Shadows I knew I had to read it. It sounded absolutely fascinating and something just a little bit different than the normal Fantasy Young Adult novels on the market. The first thing that stood out to me was the gender fluid nature of the main character. It was well done. I loved the openness of this book and the fact that it wasn't highlighted too much. I loved how different Sal was and how the gender fluidity was there but more realistic in a sense.

The plot was intense and it kept my attention. I loved how it was Hunger Games meets Game of Thrones meets Selection. It was interesting to read and it had some twists and turns that had me on my toes.

Plot: I was sold on the idea of a competition to pick the next assassin; what I didn't expect was a multi-kingdom revenge story. I was really invested in the story for the first half - Sal was motivated and the competition was cut-throat. Slowly, Miller started adding higher stakes with different parties and something got lost in translation. I wanted more time to understand the world's politics and the intricacies of court life as well as the competition, but it all came across as shallow and underdeveloped.

Characters: Sal's personality was everything I expected: unsympathetic, though, and goal-oriented. Their wants and needs started to get muddled with the introduction of the love interest - Elise. Their love story was shallow and didn't really strike me as necessary. I wanted to know more about the other characters who were being killed off a la the Hunger Games.

And as the synopsis boasts, Sal was gender-fluid and they used the pronouns she/he/them depending on how they felt. I loved how respectful everyone was in terms of using the correct pronouns, but I couldn't help but see the irony in Sal assuming everyone else's gender.

Worldbuilding: For a fantasy world, the world of Mask of Shadows was run-of-the-mill, but in a good way. It had a lot of conflict with court intrigue - buzz words that I live for. Like I mentioned earlier, there could have been more explanation of the worldly conflicts so that I felt more involved had understood the stakes.

Short N Sweet: Mask of Shadows was everything I expected in a fantasy novel, but needed 'more' of everything.

I hate to say it, but I have to DNF Mask of Shadows. It has been sitting at 59% for months now, because I can't force myself further. I was excited when I found out what it had been about and that NetGalley had approved my request of an e-ARC. I felt on top of the world, excited to have this progressive YA fantasy in my hands with a gender fluid character (Sal) as its protagonist. Actually, of all things, that might be the only aspect I did enjoy: the gender fluidity was something natural to Sal, something that they summed up well by explaining that they dressed as they felt and sometimes they felt like wearing traditionally female outfits and sometimes they felt like wearing traditionally male outfits, and they did not identify with gender norms. I loved it, because the cis-gender dichotomy needs to go. I'm a firm believer that the existence of gender fluidity should be accepted, and that it isn't that difficult to understand or work toward inclusion/acceptance. Person X does not feel like either gender (or any known gender--there are many that I am still learning about), and they wish to be referred to as they/them/whatever pronoun they request. It isn't the highest level of math or science requiring years of study before understanding--it is learning the preferences of an individual, which you already do with the people in your life. This book works to show the naturalness of gender fluidity and how it doesn't change daily life, it just changes a very tiny portion of your perspective. Many kudos for this.

Another aspect I did enjoy was that it was made clear that knowledge and skills have power. Knowing what plants are poisonous, how to write, reading the intentions of others from their actions and the inflections of verbal language--among many other examples from the competitors training--I appreciated the emphasis of a strong body being just as important as a strong mind, because being weak in one or the other puts that individual at a disadvantage. Since developing knowledge and skills was incorporated into the competitors' training, it was more believable to me that the winning competitor, who becomes Opal, is the fittest. Ruby and Emerald, the other hands to the queen, tried to even the field by tailoring each competitors training to what they are weak in and lack.

Now, aside from those aspects, the writing wasn't terrible. It was actually pretty good, right up there with other YA fantasy books that I enjoy. What failed in this book, however, was characterization and clarity.

-Characterization: I didn't find Sal likable or believable. They were a know-it-all constantly, and I give that personality typecast out rarely. Why? Because everyone at some point acts like a know-it-all. However, once in a blue moon there is a person who becomes the epitome of this typecast, because they eat, sleep, breathe omniscient thoughts, words, and actions--can't go a moment without something big or small occurring and that person interjecting to explain. We don't need the explanation 24/7. We just don't. With Sal I noticed that the inner monologue consisted of them explaining left, right, up, down, in, and out what they were doing. They were like a magician with how they knew things about other people, or knew of key political members that caused the desolation of Sal's people. They also knew things that didn't make sense for them to know, or they suddenly (and conveniently) brought up information that worked to their favor but left me wondering why that tidbit suddenly came to light when it was relevant to something previous (nor do you find out how Sal found it out)... Let me just end this part by saying--I would have been more appreciative and finished this book if this character was portrayed in a way that left me wanting to see where their story went. Since Sal knew everything, there really wasn't much of a story for me to stick around for. The way the book had been going up until 59%, Sal was sure to know how to deal with everything that came their way without any of my concern.

-Clarity is my biggest issue with this book, and it all comes down to keeping track of all the participants in the competition determining the next Opal. I understand why each competitor was assigned a number and given a mask for anonymity, but daggone if I didn't spend more time flipping back and forth, back and forth trying to figure out who is who than I did enjoying the story. By giving the competitors numbers for reference, it was so hard for me to remember who was which number. Yes, there were physical descriptions given, theories as to where someone might be from based on speech and behavior...But a name is really important and is meant to be the first memorable thing you are given to identify one person from another. By using numbers instead, you lost that memorability. With the memorability lost, the story becomes difficult to navigate and leads to frustration. And in my case, not finishing the book. The author would have been better off having Sal create arbitrary names throughout for reference based upon who he thinks each competitor is (in terms of their background, at least).

Overall guys, I'm greatly disappointed. The premise was SO PROMISING, and I'm bummed that I can't get myself to go on. Once it no longer felt rewarding and I had to force myself to continue, I knew it was time to call it quits.

I suggest giving it a try, see what happens. It is possible that there were fantastic improvements made. I haven't decided if I'm going to pick up a published copy. It's also possible that the book is more up your alley than it is mine. We shall see.

2 bitchin' stars from me.

I could not finish this book, I could barely start it. I got to chapter five and didn't see myself reading 44 more chapters of this. I went in with really high expectations because of comparisons to Bardugo and Maas, which is probably why I just couldn't bring myself to continue when that expectation wasn't met. I'm sure if I do come back to this story with a fresh mind and different expectations it's something I might be able to finish, but that's not now.

Sallot Leon is a thief. But Sal wants more from life. After robbing some nobles, Sal finds an announcement that there will be an audition to replace The Opal, one of four powerful assassins that work for the queen. They are represented by four jeweled rings the Queen wears on her left hand - a Ruby, Emerald, Amethyst and Opal. But, auditions to be part of The Left Hand are fights to the death, and only those who prove themselves worthy can participate.

I enjoyed the action in this book. The plot was exciting, and kept me reading. The pace was on target -- fast enough to keep the action going, yet suspenseful enough to add some urgency to things. I also enjoyed reading a book with a nonbinary MC. Sallot is gender fluid, but that was not a main, forced focus of the plot. It's part of the character....part of who Sallot is. The character isn't portrayed as melodramatic or conflicted about life. The book isn't written like the MC was an added "hey look I'm adding in a diverse character!'' forced plot point. WOOT!! That made me extremely happy. I felt that it was done perfectly. Better than other books I have read that seem to want to toot horns and march around trying to prove they are publishing a diverse book. This book is diverse, but not at the cost of the plot or focus of the book. It was a natural part of the character. Loved it!

My one issue with this book is......it has been done before. The plot, that is. There are so many stories about fight-to-the-death tournaments -- Hunger Games being the main one that popped into my head. It's one trope that really has been done to death. I really wanted the plot to be something new and fresh....something to wow me. But, it really is sort of a re-working of things I've already read. A mix of that, and a bit of this.....nothing new. I was a bit disappointed. Not that the action, characters and story weren't good -- this is a good book. I just wanted something, anything really, that jumped out at me as belonging only to this story. Besides Sallot being nonbinary, the rest was pretty much recycled.

So, I'm really middle-of-the-road on this one. I enjoyed it. I thought the MC was outstanding and well done. But, I am left a bit disappointed. That, however, is just my opinion.....many others really love the plot and don't share my feelings. So, read the book and form your own opinion.

This is Linsey Miller's debut novel. A second book is due out in 2018. I'm definitely going to read the second book to see how the plot and characters progress!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Sourcebooks via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are solely my own.**

Mask of Shadows was one of those books that I wanted to like. An assassin competition, a gender fluid protagonist, YA fantasy at it's finest, sounds like the perfect fit. Unfortunately this book was really nothing more than average for me. 

Let me start with Sal. Miller's main character is gender fluid, preferring he/she/they pronouns depending on the situation, which is clearly stated in the story (though not until a little over 10% in). To be honest, I don't know much about gender fluidity and that alone had me intrigued as to how this character would interact with the world. I think normalizing Sal's gender fluidity in the text really worked here and the way in which Miller did it made less confusing for me, a reader who isn't very familiar with it.

My biggest issue with this book came down to, well, everything else. Sal had potential to be an amazing character but fell flat for me. I wasn't invested in Sal's story and part of that is because I've read it before. Sal could be any of the stereotypical protagonists I pull off my shelves and that made them a forgettable character. Which I think it really unfortunate because I haven't read about a gender fluid character in YA fantasy more and it seems that despite that, the execution of the character (and story) wasn't enough to sell me on this book.

Don't get me wrong, familiar plots aren't anything new but this one read far too much like a mash-up of Throne of Glass and The Hunger Games. An assassin competition last-person-standing style? I've seen it, I've read it, I'm no longer interested in it. Not unless it's done in a way that really stands out and this didn't. 

Maybe I read a different book from everyone else but I was missing the world-building. This book had too much of so parts, not enough of others, and left me feeling like I read a summary of what could be a much longer book. I wanted more depth. The whole beginning part felt very rushed and then when Sal goes to audition to be one of the Queen's assassin's, everyone gets a number and suddenly loses whatever made them unique. It might sound odd but I couldn't really visualize the characters in this book. They were voices and personalities in my head as I read but I couldn't describe them to you if I wanted to, not clearly at least. I want people, not numbers. 

In the end, the info dumping, the descriptions, the things that fantasy is known for (unfortunately) did this book in. I was bored reading it. Nothing kept me moving through except a self-induced obligation to read the book from start to finish for the sake of this review. Mask of Shadows had SO much potential but fell on familiar tropes and left me with a story I've read before, but done. . . better, frankly. Yay for gender fluid protagonists but can't cheer for predictability.

I thought Sal was a great, complicated protagonist, and I loved having a genderfluid main character! I liked watching their character develop as they realized that they had more to live for than just revenge. I thought the competition aspect was really well done, and I didn't think it was too reminiscent of the Hunger Games at all. I would have liked a little more background on the shadows and the runes that people had on their skin, I thought that was a bit underdeveloped. But I'll still definitely recommend this to my teens who enjoy fantasy! Thanks a lot for the ARC.

Mask of Shadows is the story of Sal, who has grown up working as a thief to stay alive. Sal also happens to be gender fluid and prefers the pronoun that best matches how they look, or “they.” Sal finds out about a chance to become part of the Queen’s Left Hand, essentially her assassins, and decides to join the competition in order to avenge their family and former home. The competition is a fight to the death, with all competitors wearing masks to hide their identity.

While this makes it difficult to connect with any of the other competitors, there are still plenty of other characters without masks we get to know throughout the story. The story was fast-paced and action packed. I couldn’t put it down. I just had to keep reading to find out what would happen to Sal. I absolutely loved this book!

I think the fact that the main character is gender fluid is so awesome. However, if you’re looking for a book about gender fluidity or its impact on the character, this is probably not the book. Rather, the main character happens to be gender fluid and the story develops separately. So in my opinion, this is great because it helps to normalize non-binary gender identities. Sal is relatable and strong as well as frustrating at times, so in this way, Sal’s gender fluidity is only PART of them, not ALL they are. Which is important to me. Though, being a straight cis gender female, I may be completely off base in my assessment.

This is not a book or series I would typically read; yet I was somehow drawn to this one. The book does have a lot of animosity, intrigue, and craziness. There is a lot of fighting, training to fight, and spaces between where killing is acceptable. I feel like this was a crazy version of Hunger Games meets crazy-land. The characters faces stay covered and it is kind of hard to feel anything for the characters. I am not even quite sure how I feel about this one yet...

I loved the main character of this character so much. I loved how she was gender fuild and how hat was such a small part of the story. It was so well done in the story and put the focus on so many other then her appearance. It gave me massive throne of glass vibes to the assissan elements and I will admit the way the characters were named did add to my confusion. The story did kept me turning the page and was a great first book in the series but I am curious where book two will go and what will occur next. It made want to keep reading but i do hope the world building is expanded in future books in this series because I still have questions

I unfortunately found MASK OF SHADOWS to be a disappointing and tedious tale of assassins who spent so much time learning dull things that I nearly fell asleep before they got to the exciting part of the plot. The info-dumping was at levels: unreal and intense. And the plot was so cliche, just starring events and characters that could've come right out of Assassin's Heart, The Orphan Queen, Throne of Glass, and Nevernight.

However! It was endlessly pleasing to see a badass gender-fluid protagonist in epic fantasy! I definitely think we need more diversity in fantasy so yes please and thank you.

•My biggest issue was: I was super bored. The book is 80% descriptions of training. How to fire a bow and arrow! How to tell poisons apart! How to run through the woods! How to pick a lock! How to learn to read! And I just about died of extreme boredom. Where was the spark and pizazz and engaging plot? I'm not here to fire a bow, I'm here to be engaged with a fast-moving plot that keeps me flipping pages and invested. This did none of that. In a time when assassin-YA books are super common, this needed way more to stand out. If Sal hadn't been gender-fluid, the entire book would've been extremely bland. It also turned the plot very predictable.

Also I was confused at Sal's actual personality. Sal has very clear traits of being a freaking psychopath. They're sitting there going "killing is totally cool it's just a job" which is what a psychopath would say. And that's fine! I like reading about psychopaths. But the thing is...Sal would turn around and care deeply about a servant. They show kindness to their crush. They want justice for their wronged people!! They don't steal a family heirloom to be kind. These are not psychopathic traits. So I could never get a full grip on who Sal was because their personality traits seemed all over the place. It wasn't consistent, making it entirely unbelievable. Sal never once felt bad about killing, yet, if they weren't a psychopath, they should've been at least freaked out by this at some point. It made Sal distant and completely unrelatable with this cool and calm way they handle murder. I enjoy assassin books, but when the assassin is very clear about how they're bad.

The info-dumps were so full on. Good news is, this country has a very detailed history. Bad news is, it didn't make me care before it shoved it down my throat.

I also couldn't handle all the characters being referred to simply by numbers. It made it too confusing for me and I never could tell them apart.

Definitely not a book to suit me, but would more work for fans of Throne of Glass and Nevernight. I had too many frustrations with the tedious plot and world-building to actually enjoy the story. And Sal pretty much scared me with their intense calmness for blood-lust.

I thought this was fantastic! It was honestly everything I wanted Throne of Glass to be (don't get me wrong, I liked Throne of Glass but it was missing a little something that this book had). It definitely has an edge that puts in more of a "new adult" than "young adult" category, if that's a thing you pay attention to and/or prefer in a book. I can't wait for the next one!

2.5 stars

While I definitely think the premise of this book was promising, I don't find that the execution lived up to my expectations. I really appreciated the main character, Sal, being gender fluid and I found that I liked the way Sal's gender fluid-ness was explained within the text. Many of the characters respected their gender identity and I appreciated that. However, I can't help but feel that Sal's gender identity would have been more efficient had the story been written in 3rd person. That way the author could have used the various pronouns used to describe Sal that they insist upon in the text. I've never read a book with a gender fluid main character that shows us the use of pronouns in that way. I feel it would have been even more effective.

I feel the rest of the issues with this book comes down to bad writing. The majority of characters within this novel are either referred to as numbers or long, fancy names that match characters that you don't get to meet for most of the novel. This was incredibly confusing. It wasn't until the end of the book that I felt I could tell any of the auditioners or members of the Left Hand apart. They didn't have enough distinguishable personality characteristics to really stand out from one another. I don't feel like Amethyst and Emerald had very different personalities and none of the auditioners had any personality aside from Sal and Five, who is set apart as the "bad guy." The descriptions of the old lords and mages from the history of this world were incredibly confusing because of how the names in this story read. There are still many characters that I'm still not sure who is who.

I also felt like the descriptions and actions were equally as confusing. There were many instances when Sal would be in one place and the very next sentence they'd be in another place with no description of how they moved between the two points. Sal would be performing one action before suddenly be doing another, without any transition between the two. That was super confusing because I constantly found myself having to reread passages and asking myself, "what?" There is one scene where Sal is walking before suddenly crawling in rafters before suddenly walking again but it's never said that Sal is moving between these places.

The plot and world-building weren't very original and, again, quite confusing. I'd also have to say that the first half of the book was quite boring. However, I very much enjoyed the second half once the plot got more action packed and the court intrigue got more intense. I can't say I enjoyed the romance for the pure fact that Sal and their love interest fell head over heals over the span of a few days. They were basically ready to die for each other and Sal essentially threw away all of their convictions and hatred for Erlend after knowing their love interest for a few days. It was way too intense, way too fast which kind of soured it for me, even if I thought their interactions were cute.

Overall I appreciated seeing a gender fluid main character and I'd love to see more characters in these underrepresented minorities in the future. However the rest of this book fell low for me and I'm unsure whether it's compelling enough for me to want to continue the series.

4.5 stars

A daring debut novel, Mask of Shadows is definitely on the top of my favorite 2017 fantasy releases. Breaking bounds in LGBTQ+ representation in YA literature and mixing it into a fantasy world, Linsey Miller's novel mixes action, adventure, and magic into one stunning debut.

Gender-fluid Sal has been living their life as a thief under the overbearing Grell. Sal is an orphan as their family and most of the people of their country, Nacea, were killed by the shadows. They have a thirst for vengeance as the Erland people in the north retracted their soldiers from Nacea in order to save themselves from the shadows, which in turn demolished Nacea.

Now, the shadows are gone and Sal is taking their chance at doing something besides thieving for Grell. Living under the Queen who has united they try out to be one of the Queen's Left Hands who are her personal assassins. There is Ruby, Amethyst, Opal, and Emerald, one for each gemstone ring the Queen wears. Opal has died, and there's now a competition for the empty place.

Sal is ready to get out of Grell's hold and get some revenge on the Erlands who killed their people. The competition is to the death, and Sal will have to face deadly opponents if they want to be Opal.

Can I just say WOW because doesn't the summary sound so exciting? And the story really is.

One of the first things I'd like to go over is Sal's gender fluidity. Some days they want to be a he, while others they'll want to be a she. Depending on the gender Sal chooses, they'll dress accordingly. The entire concept is explained well, especially for readers unfamiliar with the use of gender neutral pronouns, etc.

I know some people have criticized the lack of conflict pertaining to Sal's gender fluidity, but do we really have to make such a big deal out of this? Isn't it better to send a message that says "Yeah, gender fluidity should be accepted. Look at how cool all the characters in Mask of Shadows are acting--this is what life should be like"?

And it's not true that there's a lack of conflict. Five repeatedly messes up Sal's gender and doesn't bother to correct himself, and Sal reacts. The acceptance of Sal's gender fluidity is not perfect in Miller's fantasy world, but it's definitely improved.

The way Miller addresses their gender fluidity is subtle and poignant as this is what our society should aspire to be. We should be accepting of those of LGBTQ+ nature. It shouldn't be something to overreact about.

The gender fluidity in Mask of Shadows isn't the focus of the novel, and sometimes I feel like people forget that. It's definitely a plus diversity-wise, but this isn't a contemporary novel about finding yourself and learning about the big message in life. It's a fantasy with all sorts of action and adventure that keeps you on the edge of your seat.

And speaking of keeping me on the edge of my seat, Mask of Shadows was such an enjoyable read that I absolutely sped through. The pacing was smooth and there weren't any moments that the narrative lulled since, remember, you're in a fight to the death.

It's fast paced, action-filled, and this definitely makes Mask of Shadows an enjoyable read.

The plot isn't very twisty, and you know who the winner has to be if there's going to be a second book. Nevertheless, Miller still throws a few twists in near the end, all of which are justified.

I've also read that people think this is a Hunger Games knockoff, but I don't agree. Mask of Shadows is not as dystopian and Sal's less empathetic. Sal wants revenge & honestly just to get out of Grell's hold, while Katniss was all about saving her sister and was greatly influenced by her emotions.

The case is much different with Sal who's a pretty logical character--smart, cunning, and sometimes apathetic. It's justified that Sal's this way because if they want to win, they have to be willing to kill other people to do it. They're an assassin and they should do their job correctly, even if it is a job of an unsavory nature.

Despite the less emotional personality, we can still connect with Sal when looking at their romantic relationships.

I don't want to spoil anything, but Sal has a very large soft spot of their writing tutor, who's a pretty, kind of nerdy, dark-skinned Erland girl. They have a very cute dynamic and I can't wait to see more of how it progresses in the sequel.

On a small side note, the diversity isn't ever forced or awkward like it is in some books. I almost didn't catch the tidbit about the tutor being dark-skinned, but I can just imagine how pretty she is, glasses and all. Like with the gender fluidity, it shouldn't matter what skin color the characters are. They are all people, and that's what's important.

All of the people participating in the game are given numbers (Sal is 23), and they never show their faces which are instead covered by a mask. It's enlightening to see how you can still bond with characters even if you don't have names. Miller does a good job of picking out what you need to know as she develops the important characters and skims over the unimportant ones.

I think all the characters were developed nicely, and if I were in their shoes, I wouldn't be too expressive either. The other contestants are ready to kill you so you try to keep information about yourself hidden.

I didn't see anything exceptional in the prose; nothing stood out to me as positive or negative. This is what contributed to the drop by a half star for me because with such a rich and interesting new world, I wanted details. I think the world-building was done nicely in explaining the dynamics of the past years and the strenuous political balance, but I think in explaining the politics of Nacea & the other states, Miller had to X out some of the description.

I still got a good idea of some of the landscape, but I still have many burning questions of what the world looks like. It was still very nice to have the political balance of the world explained instead of leaving the readers in the dark about what happened with Erland and Nacea.

I can't wait to see more of Sal's world in the second and final book! All in all, I would recommend Mask of Shadows to anyone who's looking for a fun, action-packed read. It was always entertaining to read, and I will definitely buy myself a copy (though I'm not sure if I want to wait for a box set to come out 🤔).

2.5 stars.

*

Mask of Shadows is an YA Fantasy novel with lots of action, intrigue, a sprinkle of romance and a wonderful main character. The plot is rather light on the Fantasy aspect, as the world-building lacks development and falls a little flat, and the magic get some mentions but no explanations. The premise is also familiar — different people fighting to death for a place as the Queen’s new assassin —, giving readers a huge sense of deja vu and making the story a bit boring to follow

Linsey Miller’s writing is good. It’s easy to follow the story along, and Sal, our main character, is a great narrator. The way the author addresses Sal being genderfluid is incredibly well done and definitely the highlight of this story. Unfortunately, Sal is really the only thing that grasped my attention in this novel.

Sal really is amazing. Their determination and drive throughout the novel are really gripping. They grow and develop as they face the obstacles put in their path, and aren’t afraid of recognizing their mistakes. Once again, the way the author addresses Sal’s gender identity is also great! That is just a facet of Sal’s character, instead of being the entire center of their character.

When I say the premise is familiar, I mean it reminds me a lot of Throne of Glass. Seeing as this has been marketed towards fans of Sarah J. Maas, it does make sense. Sadly, this doesn’t really do the book any favors. The familiar premise doesn’t bring anything new and exciting to the page, as it does give readers the feeling they’ve been here and have read this before.

The lack of world-building also makes it difficult for readers to connect and understand this world. The little bit of history and magic mentions we get throughout the novel are really interesting, but they are mostly left unexplored as the story progresses. There isn’t a lot for readers to hold on to besides the assassin competition, which turns repetitive the more you read.

It is also extremely difficult to connect to and care about any of the side-characters. The characters competing with Sal are referred to by numbers, making it really hard to remember who’s who and causes trouble when trying to differentiate between names and when another character is just… counting down to something. They also sound a lot alike, with the exceptions of Maud and Elise.

In the end, Mask of Shadows feels like a book you’ve read before. The unexplored world-building and undeveloped characters make it hard to connect with the story. Sal, as wonderful as they are, can’t carry the book by themselves. I might have liked this if the plot didn’t feel as familiar, but as it is, this book was not for me. New YA Fantasy readers might have a better time with it than I did.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars (release date Aug. 29, 2017)

I have mixed feelings about this book. Overall, it is an ok book. It's a quick, uncomplicated read, but is definitely not without flaws. The book is a standard YA novel that wants to be compared with Sarah J. Maas' books, but falls short. The main character, Sallot, is a thief that is part of a crew that steals from wealthy travelers. (Sallot is gender fluid, so "they" switch genders throughout the book.) Sallot discovers that the Queen is having a competition for a new assassin and leaves the crew to compete. Much of the book centers on the competition.

The problems with the book start almost immediately. The story is set about 10 years after a devastating war that killed thousands of people and tore the country apart. Sallot is an orphan of war. Nacea, his/her country and people, were obliterated during the war. He/she blames the lords of Erlend for abandoning the country and leaving them to the slaughter of the "shadows".

There is little to no world-building, so the reader is left wondering why the nations were at war, who was involved in the war and how the kingdom is now structured. Brief descriptions of the "shadows" atrocities are given, but what they are, how they came to be, why they did what they did and how they were vanquished is told in bits and pieces throughout the book and is still not clear in my mind even after finishing the book. All I know is that "shadows" are bad and allegedly they have all been "killed" by the Queen and can no longer threaten people any more. Apparently they were formed by certain mages using magic, but that's about all I know. Erlend left Nacea unprotected and the shadows killed everyone, except Sallot. Therefore Sallot's life is dedicated to avenging the death of his/her family and people. Hence, entering the contest to be one of the Queen's assassins.

The book is part of a series, but I'm not sure how many are planned. I will probably check out the next book in the series, but if more answers aren't provided early in the book, am not sure I will stick with it.

MASK OF SHADOWS was such a nice surprise. The assassin in this story is gender fluid. In fact, no where does it say whether Sal Leon is a male or female. Now that I have explained that, let me try to use the proper pronouns in this review.

Sal’s homeland of Nacea was massacred by Shadows. Sal is one of the only ones to see a Shadow and live. Living now as a thief at the latest heist Sal finds a flyer to audition to become the Queen’s Left Hand. Opal, named for one of the Queen’s rings, is open for auditions and either an invitation or a proven skill is necessary to join. Sal easily proves worth and enters the game. Sal becomes Twenty-Three, named for their number in arrival to the competition. Sal needs to win so they can serve the Queen but it is not for the reason everyone believes. Sal only wants to infiltrate the royalty to gain revenge for what was done to Sal’s homeland.

This story jumps right in with Sal finding out about he competition and then in the competition as Twenty-Three. I had no trouble understanding Sal’s nature with the way it was broken down.

“Address me however I look” I was both. I was neither. I was everything, but that wasn’t exactly a friendly conversation.

In this story they use swords, knives and poisons to kill so there is an old-timey feel to the story. There is mostly acceptance to Sal’s gender-fluidity, but there were some people who voiced issues with it. Sal can’t be the only person in this place that lives that way. I had to keep in mind that this story is just Fantasy, so the author really had free reign to define this world and the people in it however she wanted. I had no problems with the way Sal’s gender was handled.

Sal is a baddass assassin whether dressed as a man or woman. Sal grew up fighting in the streets and stealing to survive. Those strengths come in handy for the competition. There is an anonymity to the story as all 23 would-be Opals wear masks with their numbers on them. At first, all the assassins have free reign to try to kill each other, so long as the killing isn’t witnessed. I loved Sal’s wit with his opponents and clever preparations to avoid being killed by the competition. Sal gets a little help from the maid and I really liked seeing how Sal treated “the help”.

Sal also starts a relationship with a royal love interest named Elise. She teaches Sal to read the Queen’s home language (there are a few languages mentioned in this book and I can’t remember the name or location of any of them, sorry). Elise also teaches Sal manners and how to act at court. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see Sal put those skills to work so I have high hopes for the next book. I did like the beginnings of this romance. I’d like to see where the author takes that as well.

There is a few things I have to mention about this book that I didn’t like. Other than Sal, we don’t get much character depth. That should be a huge deal for me, but the story moved so fast I was just going along and didn’t notice that I didn’t know anyone really until they died. Also, the world isn’t really explained well. The scenes are well described but I know very little about the world. I wish I had a map or something. I don’t know how far Nacea is from where the competition took place and that bothered me some. Other than that I really enjoyed this read. I am looking forward to the sequel.

Interesting YA fantasy, it covers a genderfluid person trying to become an assassin. Sal, who is quite interesting as he/she changes however he/she wants to be. Sal enters a contest to become the new Opal, a queen assassin. While training Sal has a bit of a romance with a girl that was his tutor. I wished there was more into it that killings but it was a different story of what I usually read.