This is the longest it took me to read a 384 page book. And I am not sure why. The story is actually good, the idea of it is great. It indeed reminded me of Neverwhere by Gaiman. But the first part took me a loooooooong while. I like Kell's character. I hate Lila. I was suspicious of Rhy. I am gonna give this book another try at some point. Maybe I am the problem.

So viele der Charaktere waren einfach flach/ eindimensional und hart unsympathisch, das es manchmal richtig anstrengend war dem Inhalt zu folgen. Es dauert Ewigkeiten bis man versteht wo das Buch hin will - also was das Problem ist das gelöst werden muss. Ich hatte fast aufgegeben dass es überhaupt noch zu einem roten Faden kommt. Auf der anderen Seite konnte man so die Welten/ Londons richtig gut kennenlernen. Die Welt und deren Beschreibungen waren mit Abstand das Beste am Buch. War leider nicht so meins.

This is a great fantasy read & start of the trilogy! ❤️🤍🖤 Throughout reading, I kept thinking this would be perfect as a movie or a tv series! l liked the characters & their backstories, as well as the story & atmosphere of the world Schwab created in general & magic system was intriguing.Will definitely keep reading this series! 😊

Gestern habe ich dieses Buch noch fix ausgelesen. Denn das muss man dem Fantasyroman lassen, er war gut zu lesen und es war eine entspannte Leserunde.   Ich liebe es, wenn reale Städte „verwandelt“ werden, so wie in diesem Buch. Es gibt nicht nur ein London, sondern verschiedene Städte in London mit besonderen Eigenschaften. Kell, der Magier und Protagonist, ist in der Lage zwischen den Städten umherzuwandern. Auch fand ich das Magiesystem interessant.   Mit der Zeit merkte ich jedoch, wie mein Leseeifer etwas nachließ. Und dies lag daran, dass mir die Welt und die Charaktere zu blass blieben. Fairerweise muss man sagen, dass wir hier auch nicht von einem 800 Seiten Schinken sprechen, sondern von 500 Seiten in der deutschen Ausgabe, die auch eher großzügig bedruckt sind. Dennoch hätte ich mir gewünscht, deutlich mehr über die Städte zu erfahren, um besser in die Welt eintauchen zu können. So fühlte ich mich ein wenig wie in einem Computerspiel, in dem ich zwar ein Gebäude noch betreten kann, dies jedoch schon eher spärlich eingerichtet ist. Das größte Manko sind/waren für mich jedoch die Figuren. Diese waren für mich einfach flach. Und selbst der Gegner Knells, den ich anfangs noch interessant fand, verlor für mich mit jedem Kapitel mehr an Substanz. Doch der oberflächlichste Charakter war für mich Knells „Stiefbruder“, der Königssohn. Außer flirten, nölen und flirten (habe ich das schon erwähnt?) konnte er recht wenig. Und selbst Lila, Knells Begleiterin aus dem „richtigen“ London, war für mich recht eindimensional: störrisch, mutig und regelmäßig auf Konfrontation aus.   Am Ende des Buches hatte ich auch den Eindruck, dass die Autorin nicht mehr viele Seiten zur Verfügung hatte und die Geschichte zum Abschluss bringen wollte. Ein Rundumschlag auf wenigen Seiten.   An sich war das Buch nicht schlecht, ich hatte meinen Lesespaß, doch ich habe gemerkt, dass ich einfach ein bisschen mehr „Futter“ brauche, was Worldbuilding und Charaktere angeht. Ich denke da an die Bücher von Christoph Marzi oder auch das eher dünne Buch Niemalsland von Neil Gaiman. Beide beschäftigen sich mit einem alternativen London und beide Male hatte ich das Gefühl, besser in die Welt eintauchen zu können.   Bei mir wird es wohl beim ersten Teil bleiben, es sei denn, ich finde zufällig irgendwo ein gutes Angebot oder werde auf einem Flohmarkt fündig.  

A darker shade of magic spielt, in drei parallel existierenden Londons: das rote London, das graue London, und das weiße London. Kell, ein seltener Antari mit besonderen magischen Kräften, überbringt für seinen König und Adoptivvater Nachrichten an die anderen Königreiche. Kells einzige Schwäche: er schmuggelt verbotenerweise seltene kleine Artefakte aus den verschiedenen Welten und unbemerkt wird Ihm dabei etwas wichtiges untergeschoben. Das Buch hat mir sehr gut gefallen, es ist eine tolle kreative und innovative Fantasy Geschichte die aber auch über klassische Elemente wie z. B. Monarchie erzählt. Die Sprache war frisch jugendlich und flüssig, Kell und Lila als Protagonisten sehr sympathisch und witzig, mit Verstand und klarem Geist und der richtigen Dosis Moral. Man wird langsam in die Geschichte eingeführt, zwischendurch überraschen einen die extravaganten Namen wie Parrish, Gen und Prinz Rhy. Zudem verfügt verfügt das Buch über eine Kreuzung aus verschiedenen Elementen wie schwarze Magie und Zauberei, paradoxe surreale Situationen und Überraschungen und Twists mit denen man nicht rechnet… Klarer Leseempfehlung für alle FantasyFans.

War okay.... Hat mich leider nicht wirklich abgeholt. Recht einfach geschrieben, generelles World Building wirkt auch spannend. Einige Handlungsstränge eher tollpatschig dargestellt und zu fix abgearbeitet. Figuren wenig greifbar und eher klischeebepackt. Alles eher flach. Wie man aus dem Bisschen allerdings eine Trilogie machen soll, weiß ich nicht.

I would give it free point five stars and I really like the story itself it does have a different view of Magic then over books. It was kind of hard to get into for me because the beginning was Just Not for me but after some time I began to enjoy it and I accustomed to the writing Style which was really descriptive and it is in 3 Person but we get to see the pov from so many small Characters even which I think is quite rare. But the romance was lacking I was told it has a romance subplot which I think is really untrue the romance in this book was a whole sentence long which was quite disappointing... But I did like the Characters and the story it was something different

I already knew the plot of this book because I read it a few years ago but never continued with the series. So now I'm just gonna listen to the audio books 😊 love the writing style and the playful way the characters talk to each other. And of course there are villains and fights and close calls... but somehow the book still had a loving atmosphere. Really looking forward to the next books.

One of my favorite fantasy series! The world in this book is FIRE! The first book was very interesting to read and getting to know the magical world. I love all main characters. Lila and Kell just belong together and I loved reading about them. I also loved Rhy, he was funny even in not so suitable moments. Holland sometimes annoyed me but later on I grew on liking him. One thing I am really jealous about is Kell‘s magical coat! Like hello, i want one too… never worrying again about my jacket not matching my outfit 😩. Anyway, like I said I LOVE this book series. Everything is just soo well written and covered! V.E Schwab really knows how to write (I love her, she’s my fav author). I still have to read The Fragile Threads of Power and I’m very excited about it! Obviously this book deserves 5 stars. (The whole series)

Ein außergewöhnliches Buch, das nicht nur spannend und ohne Längen einen interessanten und nicht so 0815-Plot erzählt, sondern dabei sehr sympathische Figuren schafft und gleichzeitig eine Atmosphäre so lebhaft kreiert, wie man es nur selten findet. Ich mag London als Schauplatz und finde, alle phantastischen Interpretationen von London haben das gewisse Etwas, das andere Städte nur schwer erreichen. Sei es jetzt in Neverwhere, Bartimäus oder Harry Potter, es gibt viele Autoren, die London schon zur Basis genommen haben für ihre magischen Welten. Schwab schafft es aber, noch mal einen ganz anderen Aspekt zu beleuchten mit den vier Londons. Und obwohl es ein Auftakt ist, fühlt es sich doch abgeschlossen an. Es gibt keine losen Enden, nur sehr viele Möglichkeiten, die dazu einladen, mehr zu entdecken über die Welt. Das gefällt mir an dem Ende des Buches, das es sehr positiv und hoffnungsvoll endet, ohne dass Lila oder Kell durch unerledigte Aufgaben zurückgehalten werden und einem schweren Schicksal entgegen sehen. Das lässt sehr viel Spielraum für die Plotlinien von Band 2 und 3 und ich freue mich sehr aufs Weiterlesen.

First Read: 2019 [3★] • Reread: 2023 [3★] A Darker Shade of Magic: ist eine Fantasy-Reihe die wirklich sehr großes Potenzial hat! Die Idee sowie der Weltenaufbau mit den vier verschiedenen Londons ist wirklich genial! V.E. Schwab hat hier eigentlich alles richtig gemacht. Wäre da nicht... ...der Punkt, dass mich leider die komplette Reihe (und ich weiß ehrlich gesagt nicht warum) einfach nicht packen kann. Ich weiß nicht ob es evtl. daran liegt, dass ich keine Verbindung zu den Charakteren aufbauen kann oder daran, dass mir der Plot doch zu langsam/langatmig ist.. Schade, denn ich würde es wirklich gerne lieben! Ich hatte die Trilogie bereits 2019 gehört und damals schon als nur mittelmäßig empfunden. Da ich mittlerweile 90% des Plots vergessen habe, wollte ich der Geschichte aber unbedingt nochmals eine Chance geben, vor allem da ja demnächst auch das Spin-off erscheint. Leider hat sich meine Meinung nun im Reread auch nicht geändert. Obwohl ich Anfangs noch begeistert war, verlor ich mit der Zeit erneut mein Interesse an der Geschichte und merkte wie ich immer weniger aufmerksam dem Hörbuch folgte.. Wirklich Lust die weiteren zwei Bände zu rereaden bzw. in meinem Fall die Hörbücher zu hören, hab ich daher ehrlich gesagt auch nicht mehr, zudem diese ja auch recht lang sind. Auf das Spin-off bin ich dennoch gespannt, aber ich werde wahrscheinlich vorher einige Rezensionen abwarten.

"My name is Kell, and I come from another London, and I got into your room using magic." I liked a "Darker Shade of Magic", I really did. But I can't help but feel guilty saying that. Because the main reason I liked it, is because it felt soo much like Doctor Who. Like Matt's Eleventh Doctor, and David's Tenth, and Amy and Donna. And since they are all gone, and I do miss them, I needed this in my life. "Before she could ask, he looked straight at her [] and said a single word. Run." It's the little things, really. Because it is also very different from Doctor Who. Victoria Schwab herself describes it as "a strange little fantasy, [with] pirates, thieves, sadist kings, and violent magic-y stuff". There were no pirates in this one, not yet. But there was magic, wonderful magic, and blood magic. There actually is a lot of blood and bloody scenes in this one, so do keep that in mind if you are feeling odd about blood in books. But the blood magic is a magic system I really enjoyed. I'm fairly new to wizards and witches and magic, but I think "A Darker Shade of Magic" is especially fantastic for people who want to venture into the fantasy genre for the first time. It's not too difficult or mind bending, but still complex enough to keep you interested and guessing until the end. "As Athera. To grow. As Pyrata. To burn. As Illumae. To light. As Travars. To travel. As Orense. To open. As Anasae. To dispel. As Hasari. To heal." What I also loved is the setting. With four Londons, I could not resist this book. And all cities are done and describe really well, they are distinctive enough so you will always know where you are without getting confused, but they are also really beautiful, each in their own way. (I don't mean literally beautiful, a city built on bones is just plain creepy, I just miss London too much, it's been too long…) “I'm not going to die," she said. "Not till I've seen it." "Seen what?" Her smile widened. "Everything.” The characters however, are the biggest problem for me in this book. Don't get me wrong, Victoria Schwab is amazing at creating characters, and all of the bad guys send a chill down my spine just thinking about them, but the good guys… maybe it's just me though. It's kind of like with Doctor Who too. Kell, the main character, is like the Doctor. He is lovable and charming, but does a lot of stupid things simply because he cares too much about other people. But you just have to love him, even if you don't understand him. And then there is his companion, Lila in this book. I liked her alright, her big mouth and how brave and careless she was, when she put Kell into place, and saved him despite her better judgement. But I just really don't understand her, or can relate to her at all. “But the things about people, Kell had discovered, is that they didn't really want to know. They thought they did, but knowing only made them miserable.” If the next book in the series focuses only on her, and the pirate ship she sails off with, then I might not continue this series, it's that bad and confusing. But I liked this book for all the reasons I love Doctor Who, an awesome main character who cares, the four Londons and how every single one of them still felt like London, the companion only as long as she is with the Doctor/Kell, the bad guys that give you nightmares, the settings you can only dream about. If the second book will be about pirates, I'm out. "A Darker Shade of Magic" is still a good stand-alone read, there are no questions left unanswered. 3.5, 4 Stars on a good day...

Ich kann einfach nicht anders und ich will auch nicht anders. *grins* Dieses Buch KANN einfach nicht weniger Sterne kriegen, auch wenn es manchmal Hänger und Längen hatte...aber die werden durch alles andere wieder ausgemerzt. Ein großes Thema und ein großer Pluspunkt dieses Buches sind auf jeden Fall seine absolut einzigartigen Charaktere, die ihresgleichen suchen. Da hätten wir den Reisenden Kell, der mit der Königsfamilie aufgewachsen ist und die Magie wie einen Verbündeten ansieht. Ein großer Magier, der mit einer guten Portion Selbstbewusstsein durchs Leben schreitet und seinen eigenen Kopf durchsetzen möchte. Delilah Bard ist eine Diebin in eine parallelen London, die davon träumt, in ferne Welten zu reisen und die ihren absolut einzigartigen Humor, Charakter und Kopf hat. Die in ihrem eigenen Universum lebt und für niemanden außer sich selbst lebt. Die, die niemals zurückschaut. Die, die für ein gutes Abenteuer und für ihre Unabhängigkeit nicht nur ihr eigenes Leben aufs Spiel setzen würde. Holland, einen anderen Reisenden, der Magie kontrollieren will, aber auch selbst kontrolliert wird. Jemanden, der verschlossen ist und keine seiner Gedanken nach außen dringen lässt, und das aus reinem Selbstschutz. Dann hätten wir noch einen Prinzen, der zwar viel Charisma besitzt, aber keine Begabung für Magie und ein Zwillingspärchen, das eindeutig zu viel Magie benutzt. Wie kann man denn bei der zusammengewürfelten Truppe nicht schon gespannt auf das Buch werden? Die Idee der Parallelwelten ist mal wieder nicht neu, aber trotzdem toll umgesetzt. Da wäre die Unterteilung nach Farben – Rot, Grau, Weiß und Schwarz – was alles noch viel plastischer macht. Denn die Städte heißen nicht einfach nur so, nein sie leben ihre Farbe regelrecht.So ist im roten London die Themse rot und die Menschen farbenfroh, im weißen London ist alles verblichen und glanzlos, denn die Magie muss sich selbst verteidigen und wird nicht so genutzt, wie sie sollte. Im grauen London ist alles grau und stinknormal nachdem sich die Magie zurückgezogen hat. Insofern hat man gute Unterscheidungsmöglichkeiten und – so komisch das sich auch anhören mag – Charakterzüge der Städte. Großartige Idee – weltenüberschreitend umgesetzt! Ich habe noch nie ein Buch gelesen, in dem die Magie als solche so schön umschrieben wurde und, eben wie die Städte auch, charakterisiert wurde. Denn die Magie ist hier nicht einfach nur da, nein sie ist auch noch ein lebendiges Wesen, das man sich nutzbar machen muss – als Diener oder Verbündeter. Die Magie ist fließend und vom Blut bestimmt. Reine Magie ist schwarz wie die Nacht. Aber Magie richtig eingesetzt kann vieles Gutes bewirken. Magie falsch eingesetzt kann sehr viel Schlechtes bewirken. Ich kann den Zauber, der diese Magie umwogt, gar nicht beschreiben, denn ich finde es einfach wahnsinnig schön zu lesen. Es hat mich wirklich verzaubert und sprachlos zurückgelassen. Wunderschöne Sätze und Formulierungen! Ein großes Unterscheidungsmerkmal dieses Buches sind auf jeden Fall die äußerst realistische Gewalt, die hier ohne Frage als Stilmittel eingesetzt wurde, dass es in sich hat. Die Gewalt wird natürlich zum Schock eingesetzt, aber nicht als letztes Mittel, sondern einfach ganz natürlich, so wie es auch im realen Leben passieren würde. Es wird nicht groß geredet, sondern tödliche Schnitte und Verletzungen werden ohne Nachdenken gesetzt, allerdings niemals so, dass es plump oder „too much“ wirkt. Alles ist punktiert und gut dargestellt. Gewalt, so, wie sie sein soll: Schnell, schockend und wunderschön Was mich allerdings erstaunt hat ist, dass es V.E. Schwab geschafft hat, mich durch EINE EINZIGE SZENE einen Menschen hassen zu lassen, ihn umbringen zu wollen und das gesamte Problem aufzuzeigen, was sich in dieser Szene widergespiegelt hat. Ich hätte diesem Menschen danach wirklich alles zugetraut und genau darum ging es. Durch eine einzige Szene wurde mir verdeutlicht, mit welchem Gegner es zugeht und auf was man sich gefasst machen muss. Eine beachtliche Leistung, die mir bis jetzt noch nicht untergekommen ist! Ein ganz großer positiver Aspekt sind außerdem die Metaphern, die hier nicht besser hätten verwendet werden können. Größtenteils mit der Magie verknüpft ergeben sie einfach unfassbar schöne Sprachbilder und verdeutlichen Gedanken, Gemütszustände, Gefühle oder Charaktere. Eine schöne Sprache, angereichert durch tolle Wortakrobatik! Leider, leider gab es auch negative Aspekte, aber nur winzig kleine, aber die müssen schließlich auch erwähnt werden: Im mittleren Teil gab es einige Längen. Das lag nicht daran, dass nichts passiert ist, sondern irgendwie gab es eine Lücke im Schreibstil, die das Lesen anstrengender machte und den Spaß ein wenig dämpfte. Allerdings haben sich diese durch das grandiose Finale und die letzten Seiten wieder wett gemacht. Die Dialoge zwischen den Charakteren sind zwar der absolute Oberknaller an Sarkasmus, Intelligenz, schnellem Denken und tollem Humor, aber manchmal kam mir zu wenig die Bindung oder die Beziehung zwischen den Charakteren rüber. Daran könnte man leicht arbeiten und ich denke, dass dies auch im nächsten Buch passieren wird

4 solid stars. I was keen on liking this book, and I did. Only it didn't throw me off my feet and into a bucket of enthusiasm head first, as I had hoped it would. What I definitely liked about it was the idea of the four Londons propped on a chain of magicality (yes, this is an English word - not my fault the OED classifies it as "rare") to normality, with Grey London being modelled on the actual city in the time of Mad King George and Prinny, and the whole world-building. I loved the idea that there would be fixed points (like that one tavern) which would appear in all the Londons at the exact same place. And speaking of world-building, I also was amazed at the perfect match the author was for me: just when I was beginning to feel I'd seen enough of that and might get on with some story now, Schwab set off the plot proper. On top of that, I did love the fact that a convincing would-be pirate queen teams up with the mage to save the prince, not the princess - though I fear that there is a love story lurking there with Kell and Delilah (who also might turn out to have had an Antari eye like him at one point which would be ever so corny in combination...) What made me smile and sigh at the same time, and also substract a star, was when I realised that, for all the new and bright ideas for her world, the author had made me read a Lord of the Rings condensed replica, concerning the main story: Kell (Frodo) comes into possession of a powerful magical stone (ring) and after contemplation decides it is best to go and return (destroy) it to(in) Black London (Mordor, Mount Doom). On his journey he is accompanied, not to say dragged along, by his less "chosen" but also less distractable companion Delilah (Samwise) and hindered by dubious character Holland (Gollum - sorry for that one) who wants the stone (ring) for himself. Troublesome journey, near-escapes from death, etc., and in the end not Kell (Frodo) sends back (destroys) the stone (ring) to (in) Black London (the fires of Mount Doom), but Holland (Gollum) does, possibly (definitely) dying in the process. That was somewhat too close and put me off being after the next part as keenly as I might have been. Still, it was done so covertly and felt rather like an hommage than plagiarism which reconciled me to the book so that I might read on at some point anyway, I suppose.

Ich hatte erwartet, dass ich "A Darker Shade of Magic" mögen würde, denn die Idee mit den vier verschiedenen Londons, in vier verschiedenen Welten mit unterschiedlich viel Magie und einem Magier der zwischen den Welten hin und her reisen kann, klang schon echt toll. Dennoch hat es das Buch geschafft mich positiv zu überraschen. Die Geschichte konnte mich von der ersten Seite an fesseln, ich konnte es kaum aus der Hand legen und habe mir nachdem ich diesen Teil beendet hatte sofort den zweiten Teil gekauft. Doch die Geschichte ist nicht nur echt spannend und die Magie super cool, am meisten konnten mich die Figuren überzeugen. Kell und Lila sind total verschieden, doch sie haben gemeinsam, dass sie beide irgendwie nirgends wirklich dazugehören. Sie waren mir beide von Beginn an sympathisch aber zusammen mochte ich sie noch mehr, die Dialoge zwischen den beiden sind einfach toll. Doch auch die Nebenfiguren waren echt interessant, besonders Holland und Rhy, beide aus ganz unterschiedlichen Gründen. Mir hat das erste Abenteuer mit Kell und Lila super gefallen und auch wenn das Ende nicht gerade ein Cliffhanger ist, macht es doch neugierig auf den nächsten Teil.

Wow the first book ended in a (for me) surprisingly nice way! I really rooted for the protagonists. Lila is a badass! Her interactions with Kell were amazing and I'm very fond of his habit to collect stuff (from other London's). The concept with 4 Londons is pretty intriguing and I wonder if we'll ever see Black London.

Kell is Antari meaning he is one of the few people who can travel between the parallel universes. In Red London, his home, magic is abundant. In Grey London magic is virtually forgotten. And in White London people and magic are fighting. There was another London, Black London, but it fell to its own greed and hunger for magic and it was that event that closed the doors between the worlds. King George from Grey London is a man with dementia that everyone dismisses as mad. Kell, though, is very kind to him, offering him more words than his Queen, coins from his world that he doesn't believe carry any magic but that the King does. Kell is also sassy and also a small bastard to the people he doesn't like but is forced to interact with (namely, the Prince Regent of Grey London). One of his eyes is blue, but the other is wholly black (white part and iris alike) that is what marks him a traveller, that eye is pure magic. And Kell plays with magic so absentmindedly it's beautiful! Kell really loves magic, he is soft and sweet and kind and I love that in him. He is a revered person in Red London, best friend and brother of the prince, has been taken in as part of the family by the Royals and is very powerful. But he hates it. He hates that he can't pass as a commoner because people treat him as a Royal. He feels like he is more property than family (and that earned him a black eye from Rhy). Rhy also seems to be a very decent Prince, good to his guard and smart behind the charm, even without an affinity to magic. (When it's established that Rhy is bisexual my first thought that is that him and Kell were OTP.) Lila is a mischievous character. She's not bad, but she's not wholly good either... She's a thief and a damned good one at that! She can pass for a boy, using appropriate clothes for that and thus people have no idea that they are actually searching for a girl. The man who gives her shelter is a drunk and tries to take advantage of her. I'm almost scared for her, but she has skill (hand to hand combat, knives and pistols) and overpowers him and kills him. The little pirate wannabe is forced to set the ship on fire, taking only her clothes, a pocket watch she stole and a map with her as she goes to the Stone's Throw for shelter. Rhy cares and tries little when it comes to his magic studies. I don't know how Kell doesn't scream at him when all he talks about is his birthday party. He is incapable of understanding that magic cares not for status or charm and requires work and concentration, which he has none. The only thing he has an affinity for is fire but his focus slips so fast that he almost burns down a table, forcing Kell to extinguish the fire with blood magic. But still, Rhy is a good person and has a lot of amazing qualities, but he is a little too spoiled sometimes... White London is scary. It's vicious due to being poor in magic and it rebelled against the people who try to enslave it. The world had been bled of colour and warmth and it's dangerous to have too much and too little magic. The King and Queen (twins) are two cunning sadists with a taste for blood (literal and metaphorical). The King has a knack for binding spells and has stripped mind and soul of every soldier, forcing them to do what he commands, and enslaved his Antari, Holland, to do whatever he commanded (because he went against the twins when the previous King died and tried to take the crown for himself but lost). Kell is so shocked that they make Holland bleed into a goblet so they can drink his blood that he gets a little too drunk and ends up practically being forced to take a letter to someone. Kell, still a little out of it because of the Danes, goes to the address he is supposed to deliver the letter but feels someone else there. So he checks the letter, only to find it empty. He is then chased through the city by three men and tries to hide in his hidden apartment in the Ruby Fields. Opening the parcel the woman gave him he finds a stone with a rune on it, a rune that means magic. It's from Black London! The men after him crash into his room as he escapes out the window and fights them in the street. Kell helped create a blade for the royal guard that prevents magic from being used and in the fight with one of the men (under a compulsion spell) he is cut. By some miracle, Kell is holding the black stone when he speaks and the magic within freezes the man that is about to kill him. Later that same spell, made of pure magic, sips into the man's body, turns his veins and eyes black. And thus Black London's "plague" is in Red London. Meanwhile, Kell is still running for his life and blood magic doesn't immediately respond to his command to take him to Grey London. When it does he literally runs into Lila. And what does a thief like her do? She steals none other than the black stone. When Kell magically enters Lila's room in search of the stone he collapses. Lila thinks he is dead for a moment but quickly understands he's not, seeing his eyes, freaking out and hitting him with a book (I shouldn't be laughing). She ties him to the bed and when he wakes up starts asking him questions. Despite being in Grey London, where magic is mostly forgotten, Lila doesn't dismiss him completely and doesn't even seem all that surprised by Kell burning his ropes. She is more than happy to use the stone in her favour. As it clouds the thought, Lila uses it as if it's a great way to get what she wants, and even makes that sword and scabbard she wanted so. Later though, she understands that the magic is wrong and clever and that's more dangerous than anything. She also makes a Kell. He is living, per se, but he quickly starts gaining a sort of awareness (as she makes him strip). At last Lila heeds Kell's advice and tries to dispel the new Kell but is unable to. Seeming to understand what she is trying to do, he lunges for her, making her lose her hold on the stone (and that's when she realizes that that magic stole her energy). It's only Kell's blood magic that dispels the other him but he doesn't think to do the same for the sword before he leaves. And, because the magic in the black stone is a thief and the sword feels the same as the stone did, Lila throws it out the window, where a drunk passerby grabs it, in his greed, and the magic forces him to stab himself so it can burrow inside him as it did with the cutthroat in Red London. Way to spread the Black London's plague guys! Holland finds Lila in a tavern and forces her outside, where he uses his magic like a beacon to Kell and hurts her too, forcing her to call for Kell. All because he smells his magic on her. And of course he comes running, even though he knows it's a trap and that he should be running the other way. Holland wants the stone and Kell tells him to let Lila go and fight him, which is a big mistake. Holland is stronger and faster than Kell, so he overpowers him rather quickly. Then he uses the stone to shackle Kell and make him bleed from the inside out. Kell can't form words, can barely think and is dying a slow and painful death by the time Lila comes back and clubs Holland in the head. She too wanted to keep running but Kell had come back for her so she came back for him. It's hard but she carries him back to the Stone's Throw. I think this experience softened Lila a bit, but it also exposed her to the very real danger of magic and its wielders. Still, she rummaged through Kell's many coats and pockets to find something to help mend his cuts, goings as far as to test it out in her before, lest it was poison. So she seems to start to care for him. When Kell wakes up he is forced to tell Lila about the other Londons, explain their history. And he realizes then that the only way to safely dispose of the black stone is to take it back to Black London. They get into an argument because, of course, Lila wants to go on this grand adventure with him. She wants to live a little, not just survive! She wants to have an adventure and the traveller is her way. They are both kind of scared to rely on the stone's power to grant her passage, but it works. For some reason, they don't get dropped off at the same place, Lila is near the river and the royal parade, where she gets the hard attention of the prince for wearing his missing brother's coat. When Kell catches up to her is to save her from a merchant that caught her stealing. And his reaction to Kell forces him to tell her the truth about him, but the way he feels it: that he is a possession of the royals, not family, not truly. And in her anger, she reveals her more vulnerable self. When they reach their destination, the Ruby Fields, where Kell has his secret room, filled with the trinkets he brought from the other Londons, they find it burned to the ground, nothing left behind. Holland, who was behind that attack, comes back to the inn, feels Kell there, knowing Lila is with him, and taunts them, saying Barron died because she is a coward. But Kell, having heard his approach, used the spell to conceal them from sight and hearing and the world around them passes through them, as if ghosts. Using that power, and because his every trinket was burned away to nothing along with the building and the people inside it, they go find Fletcher, a man that is basically the black market of Red London. When they reach his shop Lila sees the stone's magic has seeped like poison up Kell's veins, turning them black. While he recuperates, she tells him the short tale of her first murder: her father, who tried to use her flesh to pay his tab. And he tells her the long one of Rhy's abduction and (near) death. How Kell himself almost died to save his brother because he didn't know that healing magic takes a little longer to react and cut his wrists to save him. Rhy forgave his captors; Kell did not. The Grey London dark-magic-infected fool died when he was hit by a carriage. His body was falling apart fast, magic being almost non-existent there and the dark magic being unable to survive long. The one from Red London though was a willing recipient as well as more powerful, so it took it longer to come apart. And he has more than enough time to sleep around and spread the plague around the city. It's chaotic in such a thriving environment. This kind of magic can only truly survive inside Antari due to their deep magic resources, was made for them. While Lila and Kell search for the white rook, Fletcher comes in. He says he won't sell to Kell but to Lila, and it's more a sex trade than a sell. But he gets what's coming to him. He called the guards on Kell (and Lila was smart enough to use the stone to conceal herself) and when they take him and knock him out, one of them kills the shop owner. Lila finds what they were looking for and then sets out to find and save Kell, going to the masquerade, not wanting to use her friendship with Kell to not have to pay but not having another choice. She does owe the shop keeper a favour though. Gen and Parish, Rhy's guards, are out in the market when they see something strange and follow it. It's the man that tried to kill Kell and fell to the black magic. He shoves his hand in Gen's chest, Parish kills him and Gen, who was infected by the magic, kills his friend. Astrid, Queen of White London, infiltrated Red London with a possession spell. She uses Rhy to make Kell tell him the whereabouts of the stone and beats Kell up too, for good measure. He stalls trying to draw blood so he can free himself from the magic-dampening cuffs. Lila finds there is something off, vacant and hollow, in the King and Queen so she goes about searching the palace for Kell, finally finding him. She gets shot by Rhy but uses the stone to get back to the room while Astrid stabs Rhy and throws the compulsion necklace to Lila. With the prince dying and a guard having been thrown off his balcony, the guards that were outside are swarming the room. Kell and Lila barely gave enough time to escape with Rhy to Kell's room and out through a door he created to a sanctuary. He does the stupidest thing: uses the stone to bind Rhy's life to him (the only way he could save him). The stone then attaches itself to his hand and doesn't let go and also creates a Soul Seal between the two boys. Kell's teacher comes running into the room and, after a brief talk, he takes them out of the Sanctuary. He asks Lila how she lost her eye and tells her she has dormant magic, and I wonder if she is Antari... If her family thought her an abomination and craved out her eye... The other two Londons have travellers, why not Grey London? As Lila and Kell are crossing to White London, Holland pulls him back and Lila is left to defend herself in a magic-thirsty world. And Kell is forced to kill Holland (who is relieved after a lifetime of suffering at the hands of his King and Queen), bringing his body back to his London and saving Lila from magic-starved lunatics. The two of them go in separate ways so they each defeat a monarch. Kell goes after the King and it's a long fight that is so bad for Kell. It's not until he uses the stone that things turn. But it's only when he goads the other man to find a more creative death for him and then kill him himself that things end. When the King tries to dispel the monster he made it turns on him, as Lila's Kell did before, and kills him, giving Kell the opportunity to kill it and retrieve and mend the stone. Meanwhile, Lila tries to kill the Queen while she's wreaking havoc in Red London and fails due to a protective spell around her. Undoing the spell unleashes the Queen, who almost kills Lila in their fight. Luckily, she wants to kill Kell more, so she glamours herself as Lila and goes to him. But he knows that not his Lila and kills the Queen. The stone's magic then overpowers him and he collapses. He tries his best to fight Vitari (magic itself) but it's only when he distantly hears Lila that he knows how to do it, and even then it's a struggle to dispel it. Good news: magic mutants in Red London are dead. Bad news: the Prince was linked with Kell by Black London's magic and now only Kell's magic is tethering them, which may make his recovery harder. But he is well, and even flirting with Lila, so that's good! The kingdom is mostly back to itself, even though now people don't trust Kell as much as before... This book was awesome! The story is a little slow, I think, but the world building had to take priority. And how well written it is! It's brilliant and vivid, the different Londons so distinct from one another! The plot was really good, but the characters were perfect! They were flawed and made mistakes but they also recognized those mistakes and made amends. They were kind-hearted and good and so easy to fall in love with! I loved to know what was happening outside of their view but at the same time hated it because I wanted more of my babies! But it was a truly beautiful and amazing and fantastic story, filled with magic and fighting and two characters that didn't start on the right foot but built a great friendship.