Rating 3.5

We pick up 6 months after the failed coup at the end of Mistress of Lies book 1. The nation is thirsty and the blood supply is quickly depleting. We continue the story with themes such as the patriarchy, political intrigue and trans identity. Out of the gate I could tell that this books writing style surpassed book one. You can clearly see the improved world building. A bit darker then the first edition to the series and I appreciated that.

With that being said it the book also seemed to focus more on the poly relationship in this book then the last book did. So if you are into spicy romantasy books, you will enjoy that but if you prefer more plot less spice you may find yourself a bit disinterested at times. I am the later. So I found myself skipping over those portions of the story. So there is a trade off depending on your preferences. Luckily the story was still strong enough to hold my interest and keep me immersed.

Overall well written with better world building then the first book. It retains its dark and atmospheric vibes. At times a bit darker, which I appreciated.

it was a perfect book 2 and set up book 3 in a way that I am now foaming at the mouth.
I can't wait for the public to read this masterpiece

Continuing the story begun in Mistress of Lies, full of political intrigues and blood magic, we see some realignments among Shan, Samuel, and Isaac. Both Shan and Samuel have prominent roles with their King, and while one of them tries to convince themselves that it is all a means to an end to work for reforms from within, the other becomes more convinced for the need to work toward the without. Meanwhile Isaac, has his own role to play. The story twists further with more machinations, getting darker and more complicated. I leave the content warnings to the author, but only add that though there are several explicit scenes in the book, the romance and even the gore is secondary to the plot of the story and the chicanery takes center stage. Though early on, I had somehow expected the turn that comes toward the end of this book, I am none the less interested in seeing how it turns out in the last book of this series. Lord of Ruin admirably did its job as a second book of a trilogy in that it kept my interest and left me wanting more.
I received access to this ARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher, Orbit Books) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.