Most of my childhood was spent in a pre-Harry Potter world. This wasn’t necessarily a bad world to be in: series like The Babysitters Club were on their way out, while well-written fantasies were starting to catch on. I lived and breathed books like Song of the Lioness (Tamora Pierce), Crown Duel (Sherwood Smith), and Ella Enchanted (Gail Carson Levine).
Harry entered the scene in 1997 … For a couple years, he was just another children’s series. His subsequent popularity changed the publishing world. It became apparent that there’s a huge market for YA/NA fiction.
I missed the YA/NA renaissance by a couple years. By the time the first of these post-Potter mass-market books caught on (Twilight and The Hunger Games come to mind), I was out of high school and mid-way through my undergraduate degree. I read a couple of books on the recommendation of my roommates (Twilight – you promised me it was good, Tom) and sister (Poison Study – absolutely loved it!) … But, for the most part, didn’t pay much attention to new releases.
Last year, I lived with a girl who was a YA/NA connoisseur. She loaned me a a couple books – ones that I’ve seen again and again on social media, like The Raven Cycle and Cinder. I hated them. The exact phrase was “mind-numbing tosh”.
I was a little bit exceptionally skeptical when one of my classmates recommended A Darker Shade of Magic. I’d seen the book all over social media — and, out of habit, had filed it away into my mental mind-numbing tosh folder.
She insisted.
Lesson: Accept book recommendations from smart people with whom you share similar interests. (I suppose, on reflection, that seems rather obvious … )
A Darker Shade of Magic starts with the idea of parallel, interconnected universes: four overlapping Londons (dubbed Grey, Red, White, and Black), which differ in their political organization and magic. It’s a complex, interconnected world — but one that’s masterfully rendered, rule-bound, and – as such – largely believable.
While the basic ingredients of the story were familiar, – magic, royal plots, a protgaonist with special powers – the recipe was refreshing. I can’t compare this book to anything else I’ve read before. And, kudos to Schwab for not having a romance-driven plot.
What didn’t I like?
- The female lead, Lila. Brash, ultra-masculine, stereotyped, and unrelatable in the worst ways. (Check out The Authentic Observer’s video essay on this.) I’m sure it didn’t help that the audiobook narrator adopted a super annoying Dick Van Dyke-esque accent for her.
- The plot. While there is a fair amount of action, it didn’t feel like the characters had a quest/purpose until abut half-way through the story. Once the plot emerged it moved at a good clip – and you were sufficiently invested in the characters to want a happy ending.
The Details:
- The Book: A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab
- Published: 2015, Tor Books
- My Copy: Audiobook, thanks to the KFPL
- Read date: November 30-December 2, 2018
- Rating: ★★★★☆
- You should read this if you like … world-jumping smugglers
- Avoid this if you dislike … cross-dressing pirates
The Geeky Jock 
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