First off, while the sample ends with indications that the missions would be primary, that's very much not the case. In fact, the first mission doesn't appear until about 25% in. However, once I realized the missions were not primary, the actual beginning made more sense as was a bit more representative of the overall story after all.
Instead, this is a romance story, one that feels much like a high school one for better or worse. After the sample ended, I very much got the vibe that these were mostly just high schoolers by their actions, especially since their romance stays in the "everything he/she says and does is perfect and sexy." Only later did I realize that the two main protagonists were actually adults.
As to my impressions of Jasmine and Noland, I didn't find any cause to not like them. Sure, they act impulsively rather than use reason, but they also felt like nice people who wanted to do good. And I also wanted them to succeed in their romance.
The world is still fairly interesting. I felt the magic system was a bit unique though maybe not fully fleshed out or explained properly. At the same time, it did not matter but acted more like a buffer to give the reader a break, which I liked. The hellish creatures were legitimately frightening, so I'm glad I didn't pay too much attention to the details and read before bed.
That being said, part way through, I thought the system would also become more important, but that proved to be the one occasion the characters act differently than I would have expected based off the intro and their impulsivity. Though maybe it's more appropriate since it would have required a little thinking to actually come to with the action. It's really a pro and con because it gave the nice interwoven pace-changing, but the book would later show that it was possible and more likely.
Now the missions, despite not being as primary, are still important to the story. That being said, i have mixed opinions about the actual preventing suicide cases. There are authentic points to keep in mind, but some also felt cheating. That being said, the actual growth of one of the characters is a nice realization. Again, recognizing that this is a love story, with some action and magic, helps in enjoying the story for what it is.
Perhaps that's a good segway into the controversial elements. No matter your opinion on the matter, I think it's good for readers to know what to expect. The first being that there is a sex scene and characters with multiple partners. To be fair, the world gives an explanation why it could be considered okay in the spirit world, but it still fits the bill of controversial. Related on a technical level, there are maybe 5-10 f-bombs scattered. And also related on a technical level, there is "encouragement" of a trans character to proceed with the operation. Personally, on a philosophical level, I see it similar to the suicide cases as a mix bag. It touches on some of the important underlying issues, but missing one I think is critical or distracts from it since the whole subject is addressed only emotionally. Finally, the last point that might be controversial without the proper understanding is the spirit world. There may be a few Christian references, but I would assume this is certainly not a Christian spirit world but should instead be considered the author's "magical" world.
Now the rating. I consider stars to represent relative enjoyment and as such I'll give this 4 out of 5 stars. Even though it has controversial elements, focus was not on what I expected, and raised some questions about actions, I did emotionally like the story and was eager to continue reading through to the end. The fact that it's a complete story is also a plus to me. Would I recommend to teenagers? No. At least not my kids without also talking about the controversial elements inside.
The reason why I would require discussion is because the author did a good job of emotionally appealing. However, relying purely on emotional reasoning can lead to dangerous results or actions. And since teens hormones are not balanced, and they feel more attached to emotional reasoning, I think it can be too dangerous for them without a good conversion to help baseline.
