As I was reading through this volume, especially its first half, I found myself wondering why it is that shoujo fantasy manga hasn't ever done a lot for me. I've been soaking in manga and anime for upwards of thirty years now, and have given a pass to works that are far more questionable than this, so it isn't a cultural thing.
Part of it I think, is that I'm picky about my fantasy in general. YA fantasy in particular has a huge uphill climb with me, whether it originated in Japan or not. A lot of fantasy manga feels like the author decided to make it a fantasy first, and then started building the world after that... if they bother to do that at all beyond there being castles, and no modern conveniences or guns. As a very minor example in this story, you have even relatively low-status people like Shirayuki wearing clothing with elaborate design, down to carved buttons. It's beautiful to look at! Still, the huge amount of labor required in a pre-industrial society has been swept under the rug. Where are the cooks, the ferriers, the blacksmiths, the seamstresses? All those glass bottles had to have been made by somebody. Even the author herself notices she has far more soldiers than maids in her fantasy castle. :D Fantasy is inevitably a product of the time and place it's created in. As a reader, it's interesting to see which elements the author considers important to their setting, and which not.
As for the story, the first two-thirds of this book just bored me. The stakes are fairly high for Shirayuki, but I don't feel those stakes. Maybe because a prince is on her side, and there is no way on earth he'll break her trust, it's hard to take any of the court intrigue seriously. The last third, with the falcon-like bird, seems to center on a debate as to how best to exploit the animal, whether killing it for its feathers or using it as a messenger. So the story is kinda meh.
Still, this series is finally starting to sink in with me, despite the fact that that it's a YA fantasy, and all those other things above, largely because of its main character. I like Shirayuki a lot, especially how she never backs down. She never loses a stare-down contest, never concedes the field no matter how worldly powerful her opponent might be. I enjoy the herbalism parts of the story, too, and how they contribute to a lived-in feeling for this world, much more than the political parts, which consistently feel underdeveloped.