Hola Book dragons!!
How's everyone dealing with extended lockdown? I am trying to utilise it as productively as possible by keeping on top of my blogging schedule and trying to put up with my annoying sister...
But let's stick to books instead of chatty gossips, shall we??
So I know I'm pretty late to the scene with this, but late is better than never, right?? And I still know a lot of people who don't know about this series and I was really excited to gush and talk about it with someone, so I thought, "What the heck? I have my own blog for this very purpose, so why not?" And so here I am.
(You don't need to worry. This review is completely spoiler-free!! )
A Darker Shade of Magic- So this is the first book in the Shades of Magic trilogy, and it takes place in a fantasy world where there exist 4 parallel versions of London. There's Red London, Grey London, Black London, and White London. Grey London is essentially just like the London that we know, that is, without magic, and I think timeline-wise it's around the 1800s. But the other Londons are very different than Grey London. Red London does have magic, and that is where our main character, Kell is from. White London also has magic, but it is ruled by two very very corrupt leaders who just want to use magic for power. And Black London has been closed off through a portal because it was consumed by magic.
So we follow around our main character, Kell who is an Antari. An Antari is essentially a special type of magician or person who has magical abilities who can use bone magic, blood magic and also travel between these parallel Londons. Kell lives with the royal family of Red London as part of their adopted family, but he also serves as an ambassador for the Red London kingdom so he can travel to the other Londons and give information to the king. However, he has his own little thing going on the side as a smuggler. So there are certain rules in these worlds that say that you can't bring any object or artifact from one London to another, but Kell has been doing this for a while now, and one day he accidentally ends up smuggling something that gets him into a lot of trouble. And from there on is where the action and the rest of the plot unfolds. Along the way, he ends up meeting a character called Delilah Bard who is an orphan thief and pirate. Their paths eventually cross and the two end up getting into a lot of unexpected trouble. So that's all really I can say about the synopsis of the book without giving too much away, so let's move forward.....
First of all, I would like to say that I absolutely adored this book! This was the first Victoria Schwab book I read, and I had heard so many good things about it and had so many expectations, and I am so happy to say that it was above and beyond all of them!! I am a huge lover of fantasy, and while it wasn't the most complex fantasy I've ever read because it is more along the lines of urban fantasy, it definitely had all the aspects of fantasy that I love- There was politics, drama, romance, adventure, and magic... Everything that I could possibly ask for in a fantasy!! And don't forget Victoria Schwab's original twist to a lot of things along with her beautiful writing style made for such an enjoyable story!!
I can definitely see why it might not be everyone’s favorite book or it why it didn't live up to the hype for them, because in terms of fantasy, it is a little slow-paced. But I personally love slow-paced books, so that is one of the reasons I liked this book. Of course, it has its action and adventure parts to it as well, but in terms of character development and plot development, it had a clear end goal and we knew where we were headed, but it took its time getting there. And I really enjoyed that because it allowed me to sit through and experience it all as the characters went along. I wasn't rushed to the conclusion without being able to understand what was happening just so that the book could be fast-paced.
I think I finished this book fairly quickly, like in just two sittings, but the pacing of the book itself was what I enjoyed so much. I felt like it took its time to accomplish what it needed to, and it did it so beautifully. I think these books are perfect if you are trying to make a transition from urban fantasy to high fantasy because this really mixes the elements of both genres. It's somewhat urban fantasy because we have Grey London, which is kind of our world set in here, but then we also have those parallel worlds. And in those parallel worlds, we have a completely different culture, a completely different system in the way that those worlds are set up, magic and a whole lot of other things....so you get that high fantasy feeling within some of the Londons, and an urban fantasy feel in Grey London. So that's why I think that this book is really unique and would appeal to both urban fantasy and high fantasy lovers.
Another thing that I love about this book is, of course, Victoria Schwab's writing style. Her writing style is quite the opposite of what I tend to reach for when looking for beautiful writing. I tend to like really flowery and lyrical writing, but Victoria Schwab's writing is really clear-cut and concise. She gets to the point of what she's talking about, and yet she somehow can make it feel magical and flowery and it's just so incredible!!
And let us not forget, Victoria Schwab is a master world-builder!! I usually have to fill in a lot of gaps when I imagine a world or a city when I read fantasy, but I didn't need to do any of it myself because she did it all for me. She didn't tell me what the world was like, rather she showed me, and that is what you're supposed to do to engage all of the reader's senses in a story. The world truly seemed like something that exists. Like the concept of these four Londons was actually conceivable to me....'cause when I was reading this I was like, 'Yeah! I can totally see how these 4 Londons could exist and how Kell could use the blood magic to travel between them!! Like all of it just made sense, which is honestly rare for anyone to feel in fantasy. A lot of it is just really magical and whimsical, and that's good too, but this made logical sense. Like she somehow made magic seem possible, which is my favorite thing about this book!!
And of course the characters!! As you all know, I love character-driven stories, and this was definitely a character-driven story. So I am so glad to say that I completely fell in love with the characters!!
I loved Kell as the main character. He is somewhat of the trope or stereotype of the brooding main character, but there is so much more to him. As I said, he is the last Antari and he does kinda feel used by the Royal family, but he also has this deep loyalty to them that he can't let go of. He has this desire to be free, but he cares so much about this adopted family that he has that he could never leave them. He has a lot of this internal conflict going on which makes for great character development.
And then there's Prince Rhy, his adopted brother in this story who we don't much insight into in the first book, but his character is still so charming and loveable....We definitely go more deeper into his character in the the second and third books and he's truly wonderful. You see so many layers underneath the pampered prince, someone who's so brave and full of love.
Oh, and if we're talking about Prince Rhy we can't miss the amazing Alucard Emery, Captain of the Night Spire. Now I'm not gonna go into spoilers and reveal too much, but I will say that he is someone you will meet in the second book and really love.
And last but not the least, my personal favourite, my QUEEN, Lila Bard. My fearless, deadly pick-pocket. A street-rat with trust issues and an insatiable wanderlust. Her character grew and progressed in every page.
And not to forget other characters like Holland, Astrid and Athos Dane (seriously, sadistic much?) (See my post about the deadliest villains in YA to know more here) and the King and Queen of Red London with a very intriguing past ( you can learn their story in Victoria Schwab's graphic novel The Steel Prince here)
**************
So those were some of my opinions on the Shades of Magic trilogy by V.E.Schwab. I hope you liked it. Don't forget to tell me your thoughts in the comments down below. Have you read some other works of Schwab as well? I'd love to hear from you all.
Till we meet next time,
Your best reading buddy,
Aamna