A Darker Shade of Magic

I finally got the chance to sit down and start the Shades of Magic series. I know, I’m so behind the times, but I’ve had a lot going on. I’ve really been missing out. I cannot wait to start A Gathering of Shadows now. 

SynopsisKell 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.


The story starts with Kell, our handsome magical traveller stopping into Grey London (the London we all know and love) to drop off a letter to the Mad King. Delivering correspondence between the different Londons is his job as one of two living Antari. Antari are magicians that have power over blood, which allows them to travel between the Londons. What I found most intriguing is that magic is not hereditary. No one ever knows when an Antari will be born and who the Antari will be born to. Delilah Bard, Lila, is a strong woman in the 1800s. She wants freedom and she will stop at nothing to get that. She has been stealing from the rich so that she can save money to buy a ship and become the captain of a pirate ship. I was very intrigued by Lila. In Lila we are presented with someone who thinks of herself as a bit of a scoundrel. She will do whatever she needs to in order to ensure her survival and success. When push comes to shove, though, she is a good person. She tries to protect and save Kell. She ventures with him to White London. She fights the Queen of White London to buy Kell more time. Lila and Kell are brought together by a black stone that is from Black London, the London that has been sealed off for centuries and is the stuff of children’s nightmares. Kell must send the stone back to Black London, and Lila makes sure Kell takes her along for the adventure. I won’t go into the specifics of the book but I can honestly say I am very intrigued by the relationship between Kell and Lila. I’m not sure if there is some sort of sexual tension there or it is going to turn out that they are related in some way. Kell’s mentor references Lila’s glass eye. Lila says she can’t remember not having a glass eye. I think we are going to find out that Lila is also Antari. I am so interested in where the story goes. I want to know who Kell’s family is. I want to know more about why Antari are so randomly born. Most of all I want to know all about Black London. What happened to it. What is happening there now that the doors between the worlds have been sealed. I thought the book was awesome. I loved the action, the characters were very relatable. They were not perfect, instead each of them is dealing with his or her own demons. The banter between Kell and Lila was fun and I can’t wait to see more of Rhy, Kell’s “brother.” V.E. Schwab set up a beautiful world filled with magic and science fiction. I am excited to see where the worlds and characters take us.

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