Willa has never been a particularly useful dweller: she isn’t very good at chores, she isn’t very good at worshipping, she isn’t very good at not having opinions, and she isn’t very good with rules—but none of that matters anymore.

The rules are changing.

The dwellers are trying to make their own way in the world, and Willa can’t seem to help getting tangled up in their plans.

Luckily, she has the Abcurse brothers to help her out—until she doesn’t, and suddenly she’s alone again in a world on the brink of chaos. With the Abcurses gone, she’ll have to rely on her wits, and her sister Emmy, to stay under the radar and survive.

Because someone wants her dead.

Okay, so this book didn’t go in the direction I expected, which was fabulous, really, because I didn’t see all the pieces coming together and ended up being surprised.

Willa is quite possibly the most chaotic character I’ve ever come across. If there was ever a character I found the most relatable, it would be her. My brain never stops talking, like Willa’s inner monologue, so over the last three books, she’s carved out a special place in my heart. She’s the kind of weird person you wouldn’t mind meeting in a dark alley. There was honestly so much for her to experience in this book, and where other characters might show resilience, strength, or vulnerability, Willa is there by happenstance and excited not to have died.

There is something special about Willa. Something has been apparent since the first book, but the reveal in this book didn’t match what I expected, which only made me more curious about who she is and what her power means. It is also clear that another player on the board is as curious about her as I am.

I haven’t really talked about the other player before, but he is called Cyrus, and he is the ‘God of Neutrality’. He was specifically created, it seems, to keep the gods in line and be the voice of reason. What is clear, however, is how invested Cyrus is in keeping Willa alive and in carrying around hundreds of secrets. There is definitely more to his character that I have to learn. He’s almost like a cheeky Merlin, or Gandalf when he’s pretending not to interfere. He puts up with a lot from the other gods and the Abcurse brothers and seems to take it in his stride. I’m sure he does have a limit, but I haven’t seen it yet. I am curious about what further influence he will have on the plot.

I didn’t mention it in my previous reviews, but the five Abcurse brothers are not super gifted sols but actual gods. They are also the only gods who were born, not made. It’s a whole thing and is causing a storm of chaos with the other gods. Personally, I think they are their own brand of chaos, fighting the system and changing the status quo, but what do I know? I’m just a reader. Yael, Aro, and Siret are triplets; Rome and Coen are twins.

Rome – Strength

I’m starting with Rome this time because I think I might have dismissed him slightly in the previous book as a quiet character, and while that is true, he has more depth. He clearly feels strongly about Willa, and he protects his brothers. He’s the first one who pushed back against the pack they all made without Willa’s knowledge, and while the pack was a stupid, manly idea, I have to give him props for being the first to understand completely that it was Willa’s body and only her consent mattered. I was also beginning to think this series would be a reverse harem without any smut, so I was pleased to finally get a glimpse of it and for Rome to be on the receiving end.

Yael – Persuasion

Yael’s competitiveness hasn’t changed. He’s still fighting to be referred to as ‘one’ by Willa (something she refuses just to rile him up), but I got to see him with his guards lowered a bit in this book and see more of his vulnerability shine through when he interacted with Willa. It’s nice to see the shift in his character. I can’t imagine having the gift of persuasion, but it must get confusing sometimes to tell whether a person is acting of their own accord or whether you’ve accidentally persuaded them.

Coen – Pain

I’ve come to realise that Coen is very overprotective of Willa, but considering she can fall flat on her face tripping on nothing but air, I’m not surprised. I think Coen and Rome struggle most to be around Willa because of their gifts. I think they see their gifts as overwhelming and one step away from punishment, which isn’t completely out of the box, but I also think they underestimate Willa and overestimate themselves. We see more of Coen in this book, and also Rome, which makes sense since they’re twins. The dynamic between brothers and the dynamic between them and Willa is different. Each character has their own thoughts and feelings, and those change depending on who they are interacting with. Coen has a soft spot for Willa, and it is interesting to watch him express it.

Aro – Desire

The book is named Seduction, but that doesn’t mean that Aro is front and centre. If anything, it relates to the fact that this book is the first of the series to have a little spice action, and I do mean little. The plot drives the story. Aro tends to use his gift sparingly or at full force, but he will also use it on Willa to dull pain or calm her when she is experiencing difficult emotions. I think having Willa in the group has altered how all the men see the world. I think being punished caused the men to act out with their abilities, and having Willa with them has cooled that anger slightly, but I do think that sometimes Aro worries whether Willa is generally attracted to him or whether it is his desire at work.

Siret – Trickery

I felt like I got to see less of Siret in this book. Maybe it’s just that he’s been heavily featured in the previous two books, but I felt like he took more of a backseat here. He is still fashioning Willa’s clothes and making them tight on purpose, but that is true to his character, and if anything, it makes Willa frustrated and the reader amused. The brothers say that they stay together as one unit, which is why they are all participating in the punishment caused by Siret’s trickery, but I think beyond that, they want to look after him and don’t rate his chance of survival without them – i.e. he would cause carnage without them, and they wouldn’t be able to save him from pissing off the wrong person.

I do feel like this book gave a lot of hints about what is to come and where the plot might be heading. I got some vague answers to some of the questions I had, but I fully expect them to be revealed in full as the series continues.