This book is considered #11 in the Newford series, according to Goodreads. What that tells you is that if this the first book by this author that you've picked up, you're coming in pretty far in a series. However, if you haven't read any other Newford books, you won't be hopelessly lost. Although it does help if you're a little familiar with some of the characters and settings from previous books.
Some readers have mentioned that this seems to be the closest thing to a sequel that de Lint has written and it does seem like a sequel to The Onion Girl, taking place two years after the events in that book and featuring some of the same main characters. However, if you didn't read The Onion Girl, you'll still be able to catch on to the storyline. I have read many of de Lint's books and enjoy some of them more than others. I've read this one more than once, but hadn't re-read it for a while, so there were a lot of elements I had forgotten. One of the things I enjoy about de Lint's stories is that he brings together interesting characters, settings and elements of fairy and Native lore. He also gives you multiple character viewpoints, which can make the story much more interesting (and also can make it confusing if you forget who's who). In this story, I felt like there could have been a little editing, especially with one of the characters. However, the story moves along pretty smoothly and there's some climactic action about 3/4 of the way through. However, that means you still have 1/4 left and that's a little droopy. The pacing has some falters in it, and that's one of the drawbacks of having so many character viewpoints. But, I still enjoyed the book and found it to be a good re-read.
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