Book Review: A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab

Book 3 in the Shades of Magic trilogy

Published in 2017

624 pages

5 out of 5 stars

Goodreads Sypnosis: 

Witness the fate of beloved heroes – and enemies.

THE BALANCE OF POWER HAS FINALLY TIPPED…
The precarious equilibrium among four Londons has reached its breaking point. Once brimming with the red vivacity of magic, darkness casts a shadow over the Maresh Empire, leaving a space for another London to rise.

WHO WILL CRUMBLE?
Kell – once assumed to be the last surviving Antari – begins to waver under the pressure of competing loyalties. And in the wake of tragedy, can Arnes survive?

WHO WILL RISE?
Lila Bard, once a commonplace – but never common – thief, has survived and flourished through a series of magical trials. But now she must learn to control the magic, before it bleeds her dry. Meanwhile, the disgraced Captain Alucard Emery of the Night Spirecollects his crew, attempting a race against time to acquire the impossible.

WHO WILL TAKE CONTROL?
And an ancient enemy returns to claim a crown while a fallen hero tries to save a world in decay. 

My Review:

To be honest, I don’t think any of my attempts to review this book would do it justice: but I’m going to give it a try. 

From book 1, “A Darker Shade of Magic”, I was obsessed, in “A Gathering of Shadows”, I was even more enamoured, and here at the conclusion of this flawlessly trilogy, I actually feel satisfied in all the ways, but empty at the same time! Satisfied, because this book was all I wanted, and more; it was utterly magical and thrilling all the way through; I felt a constant rush of adrenaline and all of the feels! But empty, because I don’t have a fourth book with these amazing characters; and that’s what they are, Kell, Alucard, Lila, Rhy and Holland are all among my favourite characters in existence; each one holds a special place in my heart! I was so emotional as I was reading this, I tried to savour it, and I did; but once I reached a certain point, I was like “nope, gotta do it”. 

This was essentially my feeling from the very start of the book: scenes with Lila and Kell, Luc and Rhy had me fangirling so hard, like: all these characters, together and apart, went through so much in these books, and this last installment was no exception:

It was all perfection, characterisation and action alike; I had so much expectation on this book, and I was not let down; my emptiness is definitely being taken over by a rush of adrenaline; and you know how your mind thinks of just daily things, and you think “what would Lila Bard do or say?” The pirate thief inspires me so much! Whilst I utterly adore the others, she will always have my heart! From the start, I love the journey she went on, and everything that happened when she met the other characters was so freaking awe inspiring and exciting!! These books, and the author, are definitley favourite of mine, Schwab has changes how I think about magic; for the better! I adore her writing; she packs so many feels and oh so much magic and action and world building into these books; what a brilliant mind she possesses! And just when you think you know what might come along; BAM, plot twist, or character action. Schwab’s Holland is such a tragic, brilliant character: I never would be expected that! And I was feeling so hard with those flashbacks! So heartbreaking; all throughout the book, the writing was so visual, I felt like I could clearly see everything happen, which was so brutal and nail biting at times, but naturally, I loved every minute, even when I was shocked and saddened to my core!

If I could fault this book, I couldn’t.  Every moment  was such a thrill: at times, I was hugging the book to my chest, or squealing in nervy anticipation for what might come; the plot twists, I mean;

I could rant and rave endlessly about this majestic series, this wonderful finale and those characters; but I will conclude by saying I will not think of London the same, but ah, which one do I mean?! 😉 

Happy reading, Brooklyn 💖