Maybe 3.5 stars? That's such a tough call though! I was really, really liking this book until about 50-75 pages to the end. Things seemed to go downhill after that. While it wasn't enough to ruin the book for me, it definitely changed my overall feelings.

The characters were fun, Ismae was a tough gal and I loved seeing the story from her POV. She's practical and initially not one to give into her emotions, not too surprising seeing that she is a trained killer and all. Of course Duval was wonderful; he was charming, chivalrous, and swoon-worthy. The idea of a convent raising girls to become Death's handmaidens is awesome and for the most part I think it was done really well. I enjoyed the history and the setting too, it had the feel of a historical fiction with just enough paranormal aspects and romance to make it blend together.

I think my main issues with this book lie in the fact that I really feel that it should have been an adult book. I think labeling it as YA held back the potential to be a really awesome adult paranormal romance and honestly, it was too mature for the younger range of YA readers.