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A review by incrediblemelk
A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Having picked up A Darker Shade of Magic at random a few years ago and enjoyed it, I borrowed the sequel A Gathering of Shadows from the library and found it very gripping to the point that when I got to the cliffhanger ending, I ran straight to the library and borrowed this, the final book in the trilogy.
I read it in several long luxurious binges. It’s very dramatic and I enjoyed the worldbuilding. The ultimate ending was never in doubt but I found myself sometimes surprised by some of the plot twists. Schwab isn’t afraid to kill off characters to raise the stakes.
That said, this is a very chunky novel and I found myself noticing some of the schlockier moments that pad out the writing. eg people don’t have ‘hair’ when they can have ‘curls’
and there’s a lot of lavish description of the colours and textures of things, and that trope which always annoys me in fantasy fiction of people’s eye colours changing like mood rings.
I don’t think we really needed chapters from Osaron’s perspective as it (he?) was a dull character with only one motivation – consuming power. And it felt like several threads in the novel (to take up the ‘threads of magic’ metaphor that was riffed on again and again here, having never been a major focus of the previous two books) weren’t followed through, eg the Grey London plotline was squared away very briskly and the questions about Kell’s and Lila’s mysterious pasts were brushed over.
Which I guess is fine – I am always complaining that people need every tiny thing in a story explained away to them and so it’s good that some things are left mysterious for the reader to ponder.
I read it in several long luxurious binges. It’s very dramatic and I enjoyed the worldbuilding. The ultimate ending was never in doubt but I found myself sometimes surprised by some of the plot twists. Schwab isn’t afraid to kill off characters to raise the stakes.
That said, this is a very chunky novel and I found myself noticing some of the schlockier moments that pad out the writing. eg people don’t have ‘hair’ when they can have ‘curls’
and there’s a lot of lavish description of the colours and textures of things, and that trope which always annoys me in fantasy fiction of people’s eye colours changing like mood rings.
I don’t think we really needed chapters from Osaron’s perspective as it (he?) was a dull character with only one motivation – consuming power. And it felt like several threads in the novel (to take up the ‘threads of magic’ metaphor that was riffed on again and again here, having never been a major focus of the previous two books) weren’t followed through, eg the Grey London plotline was squared away very briskly and the questions about Kell’s and Lila’s mysterious pasts were brushed over.
Which I guess is fine – I am always complaining that people need every tiny thing in a story explained away to them and so it’s good that some things are left mysterious for the reader to ponder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Homophobia