A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab (Spoilers*)

》AS TRAVARS《

Another book review? Who am I? Totally kidding, I’ve been sitting on this one since I finished A Darker Shade of Magic New Year’s Eve and just now collected my thoughts about it.

*I added a spoiler warning in the title just in case, but I tried to be as vague as I could so as not to spoil things too much.

This was my first time reading ADSOM and I was hooked! I had read the first few chapters a while back via e-book, but that’s not a format that really works for me, so I put it down despite having had a physical copy since 2018. 😅 I also did something I don’t typically do — buy merch for a book/series before I’ve read it. Now, that’s not to say I don’t have merch for books I haven’t read, because I do. But that’s usually only if it comes in a subscription box. I don’t generally buy merch before I’ve read a book, because what if I don’t like said book? I digress.

First off, I adore Kell! He’s definitely the kind of character I find myself falling for in books/tv shows. The character that does things that aren’t necessarily morally sound, but they’re done for noble reasons. That’s at least what I was getting from him during this book. (We shall see what the next two hold for me!) Second, Lila wasn’t necessarily my favorite, but I did have a big ‘DUH!’ moment when a pivotal bit of information was brought up in Part XII (no spoilers in case you haven’t read it, if you have, feel free to DM me if you want to chat). I have thoughts as to what this could mean for the future of the series, but again, I don’t want to spoil myself by looking it up and I’m honestly shocked that I’ve gone this long on bookstagram and not been spoiled. Good on ya, folks!

Lastly, the magic system seems rather straightforward, which I like. As far as villains go, I think I like Holland but the jury is still out after all the events of the book. The Dane twins can eff right off because they’re horrible individuals, but I think that was the whole point?

Overall, I quite enjoyed this one and, while I’m kicking myself for sleeping on this series, I’m glad I’m reading it when I am because it’s a nice escape from the shit show that is the US government right now.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐//5

All items in the first and third circles are from A Noble Design Shoppe.
The bookmark in the second circle is from Lovely Bookish Marks.