Kell is one of the last Antari―magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.
Kell was raised in Arnes―Red London―and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.
Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.
After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.
Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.
I've been wanting to start this series forever but I didn't have the physical books so somehow, the series kept getting pushed to the back of my TBR. Then lucky for me, I won this Book Depository giveaway and absolutely HAD to get this exclusive edition of A Darker Shade of Magic! There's gorgeous artwork inside (Click
here to see), exclusive tales from the Shades of Magic world, an author-publisher interview and cherry on top is, it's
SIGNED! After I got such a beautiful copy, I
HAD to read it and boy am I glad I did!
5 reasons to read A Darker Shade of Magic -
1. Kell is a sweetheart. sometimes idiotic, but definitely a sweetheart. He's kind, understanding, and sometimes quite reckless. It's weird that Kell, throughout the book does things he's not supposed to; reckless things, and yet he has this calm demeanor about him that makes what he does seem not-reckless. Also he has a really cool coat with many sides. I know that sounds confusing but you'll see what I'm talking about in the very first page of the book.
2. London. The fact there are four Londons. In Lila's words there's "Dull London, Kell London, Creepy London, dead London" and it's AWESOME! I really love the idea of taking a normal real life place and gives it this magical quality. Somehow these kind of places feel so real and I was totally pulled into the Londons in the book.
3. The world-building. We learn so much about the world as the story goes but at the very beginning Ms. Schwab makes sure we know the basics to understand how it works. There are four Londons and only the magic possessing Antari can move between them. I really loved the concept of inter-dimensional travel and the magic system of this world.
4. Bromance. Kell and Rhy are adorable! I really wished we'd seen more of Rhy but word has it he'll be present more in the rest of the trilogy? I can't wait to know more about him.
5. The writing. The story isn't as fast paced but the writing is so wonderful and there's never a dull moment. The action scenes are also writing wonderfully and oh this book is OH SO quotable!
Okay now that I've told you guys what I loved, time for one small unpopular opinion.
I'm not a fan of Lila bard. Yup, there, I said it! *
Holds up Captain's Shield to escape the rocks being thrown at me*
I'm sorry but I find her too cliched and I just don't like her so much. We're constantly told by Lila herself and other characters that "she wasn't like other girls" and it's said in such a superior sense as if being like other girls is a bad thing. And I got so sick of it. And everytime Lila sees any girl being remotely girly, she has to be a jerk about it.
Girls in dresses? Oh there's Lila rolling her eyes.
Girls talking about boys and dancing? Oh is that Lila rolling her eyes so hard they went into her head?? Everytime she comes across other girls of her age in dresses and talking about dancing, Lila is scornful and looks down upon them which is
SO uncool.
So, sorry Delilah Bard, despite your badassery, wonderfully witty dialogues and your adventurous soul, I'm not a fan of you.
But other than that little quibble, I thoroughly enjoyed this wonderfully written magical tale set in the most intriguing world ever.
.
Actual Rating - 4.5
***
Have you read this trilogy? Did you like it? Tell me in the comments below!
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