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A review by enchantedfiction
A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab
5.0
Can I just start with wow? Now that I know I am finished with this series, I am in mixed emotions. I'm happy that I finally finished, and really enjoyed all three stories. But I'm also sad because it's over....
I really loved the way that A Gathering Of Shadows left you on such a cliff-hanger ending, and that A Conjuring Of Light picked up right where AGOS left off. It killed me personally just because I waited until the US paperback edition came out....almost a year after I finished AGOS. So it was pretty much like waiting for it to come out the first time.
This is where it might (let's be honest, will) get a little spoiler-y. Because I want to shout to the world what I loved, and didn't love so much.
So Kell, Lila, Rhy, Alucard, and even Holland are all characters that I would love to make a shrine to and worship. Is that taking things a little too far? I don't care. And I'll be honest, I kind of felt some annoyance with Kell in A Darker Shade Of Magic at the beginning. I just wanted him to see what he was doing was wrong by bringing things back to Red London when it was against the law. But then I got to thinking about it, and if I was one of two known magicians that could go between worlds, I'd want to bring things back home with me too! It's like getting souvenirs on vacation, and I'll be honest, I'm kind of a sucker for those. So after I got over that, Kell became my favorite, followed closely behind by Lila. I love that Lila isn't the perfect character, she doesn't let stereotypes define her, she wants to do what she damn well pleases. And I liked that she didn't instantly know how to control magic the second she realized that she had it, and it seems like she never actually gained full control over what she was doing, which in my opinion, is awesome. In this sense it almost broke the stereotype for fantasy writing because in a lot of works, it seems like whoever acquires a special skill or type of magic almost instantly can wield it like they've been doing it from birth.
Okay, enough about stuff in the past stories right? Let's get to ACOL.
This book took me almost a month to read....and I'm really sad to say that. Although it is a rather large book, 624 pages, usually the pace set by Schwab and her writing style are very easy to fall into and then not realize that you've stayed up 3 extra hours just wanting to know what happens next. (I'm pretty sure I was in a bit of a book hangover from Furyborn when I started this though, so I kept getting distracted by everything else). I did really like that it picked up right where AGOS left off, and I really felt satisfied with the story overall, it was a nice ending to the series. I think I was also feeling sympathetic frustration throughout the middle of the book because it literally felt like nobody could do ANYTHING to Osaron to stop him, so they all just milled around the palace.
Good things - 1. I just absolutely LOVE this world(s) so much and I want them to be real. I felt like I could see each of the Londons and what their people would be like, which is huge for world building and drawing a reader in. It continued through this book, as it started to feel like Red London was starting to turn into Black London. 2. The characters are amazing. I really can't say enough about them. I feel like each character, no matter how small their part is, has a back story to go with them even if we never hear it. They're just written that well. 3. The overall plot to the story is great, and was completed in a way I definitely wasn't expecting, although once I knew the angle of what they were going to try and do, it was a little bit predictable for me as to who was going to use The Inheritor and that everything would be okay. 4. It felt like a believable, satisfying ending to the series. I know people usually choose to hate Holland, but I liked him, and felt like his character developed the most. I think he got the end he deserved. 5. Who doesn't want to believe in the types of magic that are inside these worlds? Seriously.
Since I just finished the book, I really can't put my thoughts into much more coherency. I feel like I'm rambling as it is.
If you haven't picked up the Shades of Magic series, you're seriously missing out. And we can't be friends until it's at least in your possession.
I really loved the way that A Gathering Of Shadows left you on such a cliff-hanger ending, and that A Conjuring Of Light picked up right where AGOS left off. It killed me personally just because I waited until the US paperback edition came out....almost a year after I finished AGOS. So it was pretty much like waiting for it to come out the first time.
This is where it might (let's be honest, will) get a little spoiler-y. Because I want to shout to the world what I loved, and didn't love so much.
So Kell, Lila, Rhy, Alucard, and even Holland are all characters that I would love to make a shrine to and worship. Is that taking things a little too far? I don't care. And I'll be honest, I kind of felt some annoyance with Kell in A Darker Shade Of Magic at the beginning. I just wanted him to see what he was doing was wrong by bringing things back to Red London when it was against the law. But then I got to thinking about it, and if I was one of two known magicians that could go between worlds, I'd want to bring things back home with me too! It's like getting souvenirs on vacation, and I'll be honest, I'm kind of a sucker for those. So after I got over that, Kell became my favorite, followed closely behind by Lila. I love that Lila isn't the perfect character, she doesn't let stereotypes define her, she wants to do what she damn well pleases. And I liked that she didn't instantly know how to control magic the second she realized that she had it, and it seems like she never actually gained full control over what she was doing, which in my opinion, is awesome. In this sense it almost broke the stereotype for fantasy writing because in a lot of works, it seems like whoever acquires a special skill or type of magic almost instantly can wield it like they've been doing it from birth.
Okay, enough about stuff in the past stories right? Let's get to ACOL.
This book took me almost a month to read....and I'm really sad to say that. Although it is a rather large book, 624 pages, usually the pace set by Schwab and her writing style are very easy to fall into and then not realize that you've stayed up 3 extra hours just wanting to know what happens next. (I'm pretty sure I was in a bit of a book hangover from Furyborn when I started this though, so I kept getting distracted by everything else). I did really like that it picked up right where AGOS left off, and I really felt satisfied with the story overall, it was a nice ending to the series. I think I was also feeling sympathetic frustration throughout the middle of the book because it literally felt like nobody could do ANYTHING to Osaron to stop him, so they all just milled around the palace.
Good things - 1. I just absolutely LOVE this world(s) so much and I want them to be real. I felt like I could see each of the Londons and what their people would be like, which is huge for world building and drawing a reader in. It continued through this book, as it started to feel like Red London was starting to turn into Black London. 2. The characters are amazing. I really can't say enough about them. I feel like each character, no matter how small their part is, has a back story to go with them even if we never hear it. They're just written that well. 3. The overall plot to the story is great, and was completed in a way I definitely wasn't expecting, although once I knew the angle of what they were going to try and do, it was a little bit predictable for me as to who was going to use The Inheritor and that everything would be okay. 4. It felt like a believable, satisfying ending to the series. I know people usually choose to hate Holland, but I liked him, and felt like his character developed the most. I think he got the end he deserved. 5. Who doesn't want to believe in the types of magic that are inside these worlds? Seriously.
Since I just finished the book, I really can't put my thoughts into much more coherency. I feel like I'm rambling as it is.
If you haven't picked up the Shades of Magic series, you're seriously missing out. And we can't be friends until it's at least in your possession.