A Darker Shade of Magic Collector's Edition

So A Darker Shade of Magic has a great idea, characters to like, especially Lila, and feels a bit like an errand job in the beginning without much meaning. It's a way to introduce you to the worlds of London.

Yet, compared to other works I recently read it's a good fantasy book, but I wasn't hooked that much into it. It kind of even felt a bit soulless and I wasn't feeling that much about the story, the characters and such.

I am still going to read the other two books of the series and really liked V. E. Schwab's style and appreciated how the book is structured.

You'd think that there isn't much room anymore in the fantasy genre for something different. But I found the world V.E. Schwab created here - 3 (or, rather 4) connected very different Londons - quite inventive. The 3 different worlds are brought to life quite vividly. What I really appreciated is how the author thought about how the existence, the potential disappearance and the absence of magic would influence a society. That seems like an often neglected aspect. The story is a good mix of mystery, intrigue and action, if a bit oddly paced at times. And to me, it was quite a page turner. This is the first part of a trilogy but the story is self-contained.

You'd think that there isn't much room anymore in the fantasy genre for something different. But I found the world V.E. Schwab created here - 3 (or, rather 4) connected very different Londons - quite inventive. The 3 different worlds are brought to life quite vividly. What I really appreciated is how the author thought about how the existence, the potential disappearance and the absence of magic would influence a society. That seems like an often neglected aspect. The story is a good mix of mystery, intrigue and action, if a bit oddly paced at times. And to me, it was quite a page turner. This is the first part of a trilogy but the story is self-contained.

Even I didn't know at first I got hooked with the main characters and the possibilities the world(s) the author created, is an fast and easy read (even though it took me a while). I can easily recommend this to anyone how likes fantasy novels, but I'm gonna wait until I read the entire saga, the next book is already on its way.