Us Against You

Wasn't sure where the story would go after the first book, but the beginning takes the next part of the ‘saga' in a natural, logical, and smart direction. It even levels-up the stakes with new characters that come with intrigue and mystery surrounding them from the get-go creating what feels like a fresh conflict in the same world built in the original story. #2 jumps right back in close to where the last one left off, but in a good way- with pace, intrigue, and progression that the history of #1 allows it to build upon.  Good groundwork was done in building the new characters, while additional layers to everyone, and almost everything, were exposed along the way. Really sharp use of storytelling devices, structure, and writing-style continued to move things along at a very good and engaging pace. This is especially evident in the countless teases of the future fate of many of characters before filling in some, but not all, of the blanks later on. The openings to a lot of chapters were very effective in creating mystery and intrigue around what big happenings are to come. Also featured strong use of the bait-and-switch around a big climax heading into the last third that showed really clever writing, as you only see/read what the author wants you to. While I liked the first book and moved onto the second one quickly, I liked #2 even more.