A review by laurak483
A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This is a fantastic sequel to A Darker Shade of Magic and just gives us more of everything I loved in the first book. The worlds get even richer and more fleshed out, our characters are facing more complex inner struggles that are so unrelatable yet entirely relatable at the same time, and there is action and adventure and just a nice undercurrent of romance lying under it all. The only thing that is keeping it from being a full 5 stars for me is this book, despite being great and immensely enjoyable, felt a lot like set up for the third book. And I remember once the pivotal plot device/events of the book started happening, I noticed there really weren't many pages left and I just found myself thinking the whole time "how is V.E. Schwab POSSIBLY going to have this resolve in any satisfying way with what time she has left?" It's because it wasn't going to resolve, it was set up for the next book. The ending is an ABSOLUTE cliffhanger so I'm very glad I am reading this when the trilogy is already complete and I can get my hands on the next book right away.
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