A review by bbyrer
A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

5.0

A Darker Shade of Magic reimagines magic and it’s relationship to people. By situating magic with its own sentience that interacts with humans in a multitude, Schwab forges a different type of reality against the common conception of magic we have all grown up with as children or adults (e.g. the Harry Potter series or The Night Circus). The juxtaposition of humans and magic engender complexity with a tension that exists more prominently and inherently than the typical trope of good vs. evil as manifested within humanity. This grants the book depth and confusion that many readers will not have previously experienced with typical stories of magic. Placing all of this within a multiverse further expands the troubling of our hero as he relates to his particular London, the other Londons, and the people within each. A spectacular build with exciting prose, I’d recommend this to any lover of fantasy.