A Darker Shade of Magic - V.E. Schwab: Book Review



Title: A Darker Shade of Magic

Author: V.E. Schwab

Series or Standalone: Series

Genre: Fantasy 

Format: Paperback


Publication Date: February 24th 2015







Goodreads Summary:Kell is one of the last Antari, a rare magician who can travel between parallel worlds: hopping from Grey London — dirty, boring, lacking magic, and ruled by mad King George — to Red London — where life and magic are revered, and the Maresh Dynasty presides over a flourishing empire — to White London — ruled by whoever has murdered their way to the throne, where people fight to control magic, and the magic fights back — and back, but never Black London, because traveling to Black London is forbidden and no one speaks of it now.

Officially, Kell is the personal ambassador and adopted Prince of Red London, carrying the monthly correspondences between the royals of each London. Unofficially, Kell smuggles for those willing to pay for even a glimpse of a world they’ll never see, and it is this dangerous hobby that sets him up for accidental treason. Fleeing into Grey London, Kell runs afoul of Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She robs him, saves him from a dangerous enemy, then forces him to take her with him for her proper adventure.

But perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save both his London and the others, Kell and Lila will first need to stay alive — a feat trickier than they hoped.

My Review:
The concept that drew me immediately to this book was that it is set not only in London, my dream destination, but in three different Londons. The idea of this novel intrigues me so immensely and I throughly enjoyed the book inside and out. 

Themes such as relationships, magic and identity were explored in the text and helped develop the characters in the novel. The main protagonist, Kell, is one of the last travellers amongst the three Londons, making him the most interesting character and the most powerful. As readers, we view his experiences to form his identity as a person and also his connection with magic. 

In the novel, I developed a strong relationship with Kell's character. The author's ability to create such a strong attachment with not only the character's inside the novel, but with the people reading it was incredible and I am extremely grateful. I truly felt as if I knew Kell. Every time his name was mentioned in the novel (which was a lot) I was on the edge of my seat waiting for the action to happen. Reading this book was an exciting and intense adventure. 

The other main protagonist, Lila, has such a strong female lead. We learn about her hard life growing up, her experiences that explain who she has become and her developing relationship with Kell. I loved how she cross-dressed. The author brought so much potential by bring it into the novel. Lila plays an important role in the story. She intensifies the reader's understanding of the plot. Lila played the perfect role that fit in with the story vastly.

In conclusion, I am beyond excited to continue on with the next book and explore more of Kell and his world. Even though I am quite happy and content with ending of A Darker Shade of Magic and wouldn't really need a sequel, I am so happy that there is. I already know that I am going to be in love with it. 


Plot: ★★★★★

Characters: ★★★★★

Writing:   ★★★★★

Feels/Romance:  ★★★.5

Overall Enjoyment: ★★★★★

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