What an amazing start to a new series!!! This had so many things that I liked: espionage, classes, romance, and action! Evie is such a great character who is trying to do the right thing. At the same time, she is trying to figure out what the right thing is, and maybe the right thing can change. Cassian is likeable, and his Dad is such a villain. I hope we get to see his bitter end in the next book. I thought the division of classes was very interesting. A good problem for a story to take place.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Half-Class.

I can see some people not enjoying this because it's a lot less plot heavy than the description would make you think (also this is barely if at all a fantasy but the cover and description really lay into that) but I'm a character reader so I didn't care. I'm genuinely obsessed with how much time and care was put into developing the characters here. They were all real, likable yet flawed, and it was really easy to root for a main relationship born over a shared love of a fantasy series.

I did not expect this book to explore heavy topics, but I am amazed by how well the author did it. The story illustrates real-world problems while also showing characters with complex personalities. For me, the plot was foreseeable, but what makes this book special is that I ended up caring a lot about the characters. I guess this is the type of story that makes you see that people's actions are not always black or white, but grey. I will definitely be reading the sequel.

On another note, plotwise, this story did remind me a little bit of The Jewel by Amy Ewing, so if you like that book, I highly recommend this one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Independent Publishers Group, I had the opportunity to read the eARC in exchange for an honest review.