Okay, Aria is the real one. Normally I would hate people like her, but the people around her on a daily suck even worse. Mielle and her little band of evil need to go.
Yesssss she seemed like a very bad person and she seems to think it so. But slowly you realized that everyone around her is mean and bad that kindness would only be trampled. I actually think she is quite clever, seeing that she took advantage of what she knew and planned for the future. She only insulted those who insulted her and I think she has the right to do so. She knew she had to use other people because her enemies has many allies. Going to war alone is stupid.
Spoiler
At the end of the novel, I understood her anxiety because she fell in love and it would be heart wrenching if the other person told her that her ways of doing things are harsh, so she was hesitant to reveal who she was to Asher. She knew who she was and how her thought are sometimes cruel. But I understood why Asher fell for her, not because of her beauty (which is shallow) but because of her personality and ideas match his. He was twisted as well, he thought out how to execute those nobles so Aria isn’t the only villain in this relationship. They fucking match well and I love it.
I have so much I wanna say but...geez, firstly, this is so good. Every moment had me begging for more. Second, what the heck church?! I'm religious and this isn't even what we're like. Far from it. This is that olden times obsession with correcting people in terms of using God as their scapegoat. I hate when people do that. It makes the real religious ones look bad. You can't keep using God to justify your actions. It's sneaky and wrong on so many levels, natural and spiritual. Third, the Prince...boi I can't even with him. Just because you're a prince doesn't mean you can have whatever you want. And lastly, poor Nora. He truly doesn't deserve to get treated like this. He deserves so much love. Lots of it. Okay, rant over. I can't wait to see the next chapter.
I don't know what you were meaning with the church but churches were like that in the past and this is set in the past(?). Also, the prince hasn't noticed he can't get everything he wants because it's never been true for him.