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

2.0

It was entertaining, but it has all the problems a middle book can have. The trap the villain was building didn't spring until the end of the book. The tournament didn't have a clear point: the author didn't elaborate on the fights to make me feel really excited about them, the participants she made you root for (Kell, Lila) didn't make it to the finals (it was a really disappointing moment, as it was narrated as "oh, she lost" rather than making it exciting), and I didn't understand what the plot, characters, or even the worldbuilding gained with all of it. In summary, it felt just as a filling book.