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A review by claragweny
A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"She bent most of the rules. She broke the rest.”
A Gathering of Shadows is unequivocally Delilah Bard’s show and it is so much fun. Lila is such a brash and unapologetic character who we get to follow on her journey of magic, mistakes, and growth. We end the story knowing who she is at her core while still questioning what she really is. But we know she is special. After all, she is “not like most girls.” (A direct quote from the book. A bit too on the nose maybe but this is YA!)
Kell and Rhy are having a tough time in this story. Rhy is grappling with the consequences of Kell’s spell on his life. Meanwhile, Kell is grappling with the emotional toll of losing the trust of the royal family and Red London as a whole. They’re -both- struggling together, poor boys. I really started to feel Kell’s sense of confinement and Rhy’s loss of control.
Then we start the games - and these are so fun. I got through this part of the book the quickest because I was enjoying how cinematic it was. Everything was described so vividly it was so easy to picture everything.
I was surprised we actually got some romance(s) in this book too. It wasn’t something I expected but enjoyed and felt natural to the story - not added as an afterthought or an edit at a later date.
If you’re not a fan of fantasy tropes or most YA fantasy, you might have some problems with this book. But if you’re alright with tropes and not interested in critically analyzing the story I think you’ll probably enjoy A Gathering of Shadows and recommend continuing the series. I will warn you in advance that it ends on a very big cliffhanger so you should have A Conjuring of Light ready and waiting!
A Gathering of Shadows is unequivocally Delilah Bard’s show and it is so much fun. Lila is such a brash and unapologetic character who we get to follow on her journey of magic, mistakes, and growth. We end the story knowing who she is at her core while still questioning what she really is. But we know she is special. After all, she is “not like most girls.” (A direct quote from the book. A bit too on the nose maybe but this is YA!)
Kell and Rhy are having a tough time in this story. Rhy is grappling with the consequences of Kell’s spell on his life. Meanwhile, Kell is grappling with the emotional toll of losing the trust of the royal family and Red London as a whole. They’re -both- struggling together, poor boys. I really started to feel Kell’s sense of confinement and Rhy’s loss of control.
Then we start the games - and these are so fun. I got through this part of the book the quickest because I was enjoying how cinematic it was. Everything was described so vividly it was so easy to picture everything.
I was surprised we actually got some romance(s) in this book too. It wasn’t something I expected but enjoyed and felt natural to the story - not added as an afterthought or an edit at a later date.
If you’re not a fan of fantasy tropes or most YA fantasy, you might have some problems with this book. But if you’re alright with tropes and not interested in critically analyzing the story I think you’ll probably enjoy A Gathering of Shadows and recommend continuing the series. I will warn you in advance that it ends on a very big cliffhanger so you should have A Conjuring of Light ready and waiting!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence