I would suggest reading book 1 in the series before this prequel, because a lot of the suspense in book 1 would be missed if you’ve already read the prequel. This is a great optional read for the set and I really enjoyed getting a better insight for the story

I flew through this book in 3 hours, super fast paced and you’re never bored. I highly recommend, romance isn’t really a big part of the book but it was still slightly there. I also really liked the characters and their development.