45.2k reviews for:

One Dark Window

Rachel Gillig

4.28 AVERAGE

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
dark mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I. loved. this. book. I'm mad at myself that I waited so long to read it. Elspeth and Rayven were so sweet with each other. The vibes were dark and perfect. The Nightmare was by far my favorite character. The sassiest mean best friend you could ever have. It wasn't a 5 star because some of my questions weren't answered by the end. I assume the second book will have the answers, so maybe my rating will change. 
challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No
dark mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

EXCUSE ME
dark mysterious tense medium-paced

“To the quiet girls with stories in their heads. To their dreams—and their nightmares.” -Dedication

Beware magic always comes with a price. Oh this was deliciously dark and oh so good. This was a perfect book to put me in the mood for fall. It’s full of monsters, magic, dangerous highwaymen, intrigue & treason. I love a good atmospheric read with dark forests, a magical mist that can drive you mad, riddles, rhymes & ancient prophecies. It’s a unique magic system where those who own prophecy cards can wield magic but all magic comes at a price. 

Elspeth needs a monster but the monster might just be her. “She calls him the Nightmare, an ancient, mercurial spirit trapped in her head. He protects her. He keeps her secrets.” But the Nightmare is slowly taking over her mind…

“I'm just the wind in the trees, the shadow, and the fright. The echo in the leaves...the nightmare in the night.”

I loved every minute of this deliciously dark fantasy & that ending has me immediately picking up the next book.

"Nothing is free. Nothing is safe. Magic is love, but, also it's hate." 

“There once was a girl,” he murmured, “clever and good, who tarried in shadow in the depths of the wood. There also was a King—a shepherd by his crook, who reigned over magic and wrote the old book. The two were together, so the two were the same: “The girl, the King… and the monster they became.”

Heads up for a cliffhanger, one mild open door scene & some swears. 
adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
dark mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
dark mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This was my read for my book club this month. One Dark Window has been on my radar for a while so was pretty happy when it was picked. 

I loved the world building in this and Gillig’s writing style is beautiful. The magic system was really interesting and liked how an infection would give people magic and powers that come at a prices. 

However I couldn’t connect with the characters really. It definitely got easier and the story went on but I had a struggle becoming invested in the story. I think this could be because my last read was 5 stars and this can’t compare to that for me right now. In saying that I did like the romance and the ending was really interesting although I’m not too sure if I’ll continue the Duology. 
dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes