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A Darker Shade Of Magic by V.E. SCHWAB




TITLE: A Darker Shade Of Magic (Book 1 Of SHADES OF MAGIC series)
AUTHOR: V.E. SCHWAB
PUBLICATION YEAR: 2015
GENRE: Fantasy
PAGE COUNT: 384
FORMAT: Paperback
AVAILABLE  AT : amazon

Recently I saw a video where the content creator talked about how “ The Shades of Magic “ series by V.E. Schwab successfully distracted her while she was going through some tumultuous times. Lately I have been feeling a bit low myself ( due to pregnancy mood swings and occasional anxiety) and I wanted something like that which could engage and engross me. So,  I bought the box set of “ The Shades of Magic “ series hoping that reading these books would work for me the same way it worked for her. Guess what..!! It did. 😄

I just finished the first book to the series “ A Darker Shade of Magic” and I have to say – it is not the most intellectual or literary novel but it most certainly is highly entertaining. It is a page turner which will keep you hooked right from the start till the end.
SYNOPSIS-  The story is set in 4 parallel Londons- Red London, Black London, Grey London and White London.  Each of them has a different setting in terms of magic. The main protagonist is a magician named Kell who has the ability to travel through all these 4 parallel Londons. One day he accidentally misplaces a magical stone and trouble ensues. The female lead is Delilah Bard who is a clever thief who somehow stumbles into this whole mess.

WHAT I LIKED?

→ I loved how incredibly fast paced it turned out to be. I was infact, able to finish this 384 page long book in no time- 2-3 sittings to be exact. This is the fastest I have ever managed to finish something.

→ I was so engrossed by the story that even when I wasn’t reading it , I was thinking about it. There was not a single dull moment . Usually, when I read fantasy, I end up skimming/skipping certain pages or even chapters because I find them boring. I am always eager to get to the end. But with this one, I couldn’t do this because it was that entertaining.

→ I think that One of the things that attributes to its fast pacing and intrigue factor is the fact that the chapters were pretty short. Each chapter ended with some sort of cliffhanger or twist or revelation of some kind . This enhances the curiousity of the reader to get to next chapter as soon as possible.

→ The main leads Kell and Lila were incredible characters to follow. I loved their dynamic and their constant banter was to die for. The supporting casts were also amazing . I particularly liked the brotherly dynamic between Kell and prince Rhy.

→ The magic system and the world-building in this story was also fascinating. It was based on a cool concept of parallel London. Each of these places have a different set of rules when it comes to magic. The people and their historical backgrounds were unique as well. I had a great time getting to know each of these fascinating worlds.
 
I can't think of any negatives , so I have to give it a full 5-rating.
RATING - ☆☆☆☆☆  (5/5)

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