Review: A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab (Spoiler-Free)

Recently I haven't been able to find a fantasy series that sucks me in for a good binge read since I started the Grisha books in spring of last year. I've finally found what I'm looking for. If you are searching for a fantasy with thieves, cities, alternate Londons, amazing characters, pirates, or any of the above, you need to read this book. This was awesome. I started the second half of this book this morning and could not put it down again until I was done. I was just so invested in the plot and the characters, and was having such a great time reading. CHARACTERS -Kell: A sassy little munchkin who reminds me a lot of Howl from Howl's Moving Castle and of course that's automatically a good thing. I think the best way to portray how amazing the characters are is through their witty banter: "'I wouldn't throw that if I were you,' he said, crossing to the window. 'Why's that?' she growled. 'Because,' he said, sliding up the glass. 'You're going to need to saw yourself free.'" - (150) -Lila: If you thought that Kell was the more feisty of the pair, you thought wrong! Lila is an expert pickpocket who longs to be a pirate (who doesn't?) and she is not afraid to speak her mind. "'I apologize for shooting you in the leg,' said Lila. 'I was myself entirely.'" - (395) "'You have a house if not a home,' she spat. 'You have people who care for you if not about you. You may not have everything you want, but I'd wager you have everything you could ever need, and you have the audacity to claim it all forfeit because it is not love.'" - (235) "'The ones who think they're ready always end up dead.'" - (345) -Holland: You know the book is good when you find yourself pitying characters that you're supposed to hate... PLOT -I went into this book knowing nothing of the plot save for the parallel Londons. I found that to be a great way to dive into the story, as now that I've read the synopsis after reading I feel as though it gives away too much (like most book synopses do), and I'm glad that I went into this story blind. -Throughout the whole story, the plot was amazing and their were so many twists and turns (and deaths hehe) that made the whole journey a super fun time. I literally could not wait for the sequel so I immediately walked to the library and got the next two books... commitment! I'm so excited!! To finish the review, here are some quotes that I really liked that didn't fit in to the rest of my review: "'You know so little of war. Battles may be fought from the outside in, but wars are won from the inside out.'" - (294)

Song I was reminded of while reading this book: Trouble