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A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic, #1)

V.E. Schwab,

Victoria Schwab

Start date: August 1, 2023

Finish date: August 31, 2023

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What Members Thought

Apr 26, 2018 Jenn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-own, 5-star-reads, signed-copies, do-you-believe-in-magic, read-in-2018, royalty, paranormal-supernatural, fantasy, read-in-2023, cover-love

There's a book where 4 London's exisit??

And then I read about the 4 London's and rethought that happiness.

"There's Dull London, Kell London, Creepy London, and Dead London"

I mean, that's a pretty accurate description I thought, but the London's are more so named: Grey London, Red London, White London and Black London. Let me break it down for you:

Grey London: Ehhh maybe not.
Red London: Yes please
White London: No thank you! Hide me.
Black London: Literally a black hole but I'm gonna go with Kill i ...more

18 likes · Like · see review

Feb 16, 2017 Colleen Scidmore rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, part-of-a-series, currently-on-my-kindle-fire, magic, young-adult, currently-on-my-computer, currently-on-google-drive, dark, historical-fiction, currently-on-my-kindle-app

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I thought the author was so imaginative to come up with 4 Londons that exist all at once but are totally different in the way they live. The only thing they have in common really is magic. Grey London, named because it is so dull in life and color, has very little magic and only a select few know of the other 3 Londons and are always on the lookout to purchase items from the other cities, even though is against the law and a very serious offense. Red London is a city full of magic and seems to b I thought the author was so imaginative to come up with 4 Londons that exist all at once but are totally different in the way they live. The only thing they have in common really is magic. Grey London, named because it is so dull in life and color, has very little magic and only a select few know of the other 3 Londons and are always on the lookout to purchase items from the other cities, even though is against the law and a very serious offense. Red London is a city full of magic and seems to be thriving and the most healthy. Red London actual has a red glow of magic that comes from Grey Londons version of the Thames River. White London is a city that is also full of magic, but it is dying and the people there are dangerous and desperate to get magic from anything and anyone. It is named White London because it is absent of color and actually is a shade of white. And last but not least is Black London that is now sealed and no one can enter. Black London was a source of powerful dark magic that took control and turned it citizens into crazed people that ran amuck giving into the darkness.

Kell the Main Character, is one of the only two Antaris (Blood Magician) left and they alone can move between all of the London's excluding Black London. But his residence is in the palace of Red London. Kell is such a likable character but he has one serious flaw that triggers a chaotic series of events because he succumbs to the thrill of smuggling items from one London to the other.
When Kell is trying to avert the danger that befalls him he flees him home and transports himself into Grey London where he crosses path with Lila Bard. Lila is a wanted thief and robber who has had to take care of herself since she was a young child. She lives life on her own terms with no rules, pushing boundaries, thinking only of herself and always looking for a way out of London and on to a life of adventure.
After Kell realizes that he cannot evade the danger and discovers Lila has stolen the one item he needs to set things right they come to a shaky alliance that allows Kell to retrieve the item in exchange for taking Lila with him into the other Londons.
From this point on Kell & Lila are on a whirlwind mission to save their Londons and only have each other to rely on and keep each other alive.

This was quite a good story. I knew right away I was going to enjoy this book. Sometimes you can just tell after a couple of chapters and this was one of them. The book was really fast paced and kept me on my toes at all times. It's a story of magic, treachery, betrayal as well as loyalty and friendship.
I really liked Kell and Lila both. Kell was really a pretty honorable man, except for the smuggling part, who had such a big place in his heart for Rhy that really endeared him to me. And Lila was such a spit fire, I loved that she could take care of herself on the mean streets of London especially being a girl. She is tougher than most men. Her character really grew as the book went on, I got to see glimpses of some warmth and humanity in her and it was a wonderful transformation.
(view spoiler) ...more

8 likes · Like · see review

Oct 31, 2018 Tbirdplanstoread rated it it was amazing

Shelves: signed, own-hard-back, own-paper-back, 2024-01-jan

Update: 1/24/24: 5/5 stars! I still love this series so much! I need more Lila and Kell!!! Loving this reread!

10/31/18: 5/5 stars!

3 likes · Like · see review

Jul 19, 2017 Maya White rated it liked it

Shelves: july-2017

I had attempted to read one of Victoria Schwab's other books, this one a YA novel, and I enjoyed what I read of that one. I unfortunately had to return it to the library before I could finish it though. So when I picked up this book I was really excited! I'd heard great things about it AND it was by Victoria Schwab, who seems to be a very popular author. However, it turned out to be a bit of a disappointment.
description

When I was reading the book, it was interesting and it kept my attention. However, when ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Sep 28, 2021 Elle rated it really liked it

This was a slow starter for me, but I'm glad I stuck with it. The beginning is a lot of world-building and character introduction that fell a little bit flat and had a bit of a wooden feeling to it. But, once I got my feet underneath me, started figuring out how the worlds worked, and got used to the writing style, the story just flowed.

The personalities of the characters began to expand and become more vibrant quite quickly once the footings were set, filling the pages with a greater amount of ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jul 05, 2017 Kayleigh {K-Books} rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own-physical, fantasy

A Darker Shade of Magic Review on K-Books

"I'd rather die on an adventure than live standing still."

A Darker Shade of Magic is a book I have seen everywhere for such a long time. I bought the series a little over a year ago as VE Schwab was going to YALC and it was one of my YALC 2016 TBR... but still I didn't read it. I had read and loved Victoria's other books Vicious and This Savage Song and it was well past time I finally read this series. Dude why did I not read this book sooner? I absol ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 13, 2017 Megan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: towers-teams-2017

4.5 Stars

A really fun adventure with some great unique elements.

The universe was clearly very well thought out and I loved learning about the history of the four Londons and how their cultures differ. It was really great world building and it just makes me want to know even more!

I enjoyed the two main characters of Kell and Lila although a few of the minor characters were lacking. (view spoiler) ...more

Like · see review