The hardback editions of this trilogy sold in huge numbers, so this is already established as an impressive tale. Sonea makes for a feisty and fairly sensible protagonist, and the city of Imardin has been sketched in broadly (and then more finely) to make for an intriguing setting. It is one of those books that doesn’t take very long to read, as pages turn like lightening due to wanting to know what happens next. First there is Sonea’s thrilling game of cat and mouse as she tries to elude the magicians, and then we are wondering whether she could bear to turn against her own people and side with the corrupt Guild. This is a story about loyalty and about people’s ability to incite change for the better. Atom is a juvenile imprint, but this is the sort of novel that just as many adults would enjoy, adding another notable name with Trudi Canavan to the already impressive list of authors who write "crossover" novels for adults and older children.