ANOSHE

"The strength to go on. To try again. To trust." - A Conjuring of Light, V.E. Schwab

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Wow, what can I say about this book, other than how much I enjoyed being in this world!

This is my first review, and I will try to do this book, and my experience of it, justice.

Story: From the very first book, A Darker Shade of Magic, I knew that this story would be unique and captivating. The epic finale in ACOL brings to a bittersweet conclusion the initial feelings ADSOM brought to us in the very beginning with the possibilities of magic and humanity, and what happens when they come together. V.E. Schwab creates multiple unique worlds within the framework of a world we are already familiar with, London. She brings to the imagination multiple layers of the same London, some with magic, corrupt or controlled, and some without. Black, corrupted magic. White, dying magic. Red, vibrant magic. And Grey, very faint traces of what used to be magic. In her storytelling, she brings the dynamic between magic, and the element of good v. evil together to display the various aspects of humanity in which we either wish to illuminate, or bury in the dark. For, in her world, magic is neither good or evil. It just is, allowing those who have the gift to will it how they wish. The characters all experience both sides of magic, and you are able to learn along with them the limits of magic, and the influence of imperfect human beings on the powers of the elements.

When I met her at a book signing in Boston, V.E. Schwab told the audience how she loves to explore the lines between opposing dynamics and find stories to tell there (completely paraphrasing, but the concept is the same), and she achieves that in this series. Good versus evil. Magic versus humanity. Free will versus enforced control. Dependency versus independence. The situations in which the characters find themselves force them to make conflicting decisions that will lead them down one path or the other, but equally as challenging. It makes for surprising choices and unpredictable adventures in a beautiful, but harsh world of magic. In the final book, you get to see all of the characters interact together which gives you deeper insight into who they are and what drives them to make the decisions that they make. It is the final challenge to the dark magic that has forced its way into their world and quickly begins suffocating Red London in its desire for control.

This story captivated me, not only because it has magic and fantasy, but there is something undeniably human about the experiences of these characters. We don't have to have magic to experience magic. We can still be good people, but make bad choices. We can both be enticed by and fearful of love, care, and concern for others. V.E. Schwab gives us characters that are strong in magic, and weak in magic, yet having no affinity for any of the elements does not mean you don't have strength. There are characters that have no magic, but still demonstrate power. There are characters that have all the strength that magic can give them, but are weak minded. V.E. Schwab blurs many lines that keep the reader enchanted, and most importantly keeps the reader interacting with the story through thought and reflection. Fitting ourselves into the story and seeing parts of ourselves in the characters, grappling what we might choose to do in the face of insurmountable odds, and unequaled evil.

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Characters: I am not sure I have read a book in which the characters can equally charm you, and infuriate you so successfully. At times you find yourself wishing for them to fail at their task, and a chapter later rooting for their success. Take Lila Bard, mischievous thief turned foolhardy pirate (and always very stubborn!). At first, she makes choices that make you want to shake her and tell her how naive and foolish she is being. You want her to listen more and trust more, but soon come to accept that is not who she is. There is a beauty in her stubbornness and naivety, a will in which she pursues even when odds are 100% not in her favor. Perhaps she infuriates the reader (or maybe just me!), because we wish we all had the nature to have sheer will to persist even when reality says we can't or we shouldn't. At the basis of who she is, how she has built her survival, is a girl who has no concept of "I might fail at this" creating a determination to match no rival. You come to love her, because deep down you wish you were as fearless, and as gutsy as she is, never taking no for an answer.

Kell's disposition seems to be that of an angsty, emotional, teenager, but yet you can't help but to love him. Part of this is his ability to love fiercely, and protect unwaveringly, those around him. He is always sulking, which could really be his mask at trying to conceal all of his other emotions he so involuntarily wears on his sleeve. Sometimes you want to shake him and say, why don't you just worry about yourself! But again, that could be the envious side of me wishing I could be as selfless as he, as he is always willing to put his life on the line for everyone else, even if he does not like them. Kell's journey to save others takes him from surly Antari, thinking he must carry the world(s) on his shoulders, to cooperative ally with two other Antari, to challenge the ultimate evil. You love him, because even though he makes questionable choices at times, he does it because he thinks it is the right thing to do. Even when he makes mistakes, he can admit it and work hard to right his wrongs.

Rhy's charm and boyishness are a welcomed relief from the exasperating conflict, moodiness, and waywardness from the previous two characters. He is funny and charming, and always has a witty comment to make. We like this right? Well hold on, maybe his witty banter and ease of charm are too reckless. Do we every get to see a serious side of him which doesn't take things too lightly? (Look at us, the reader, never satisfied!). What we end up finding is a character that tries to strike a balance between duty and mirth. Rhy surprises us with the ability to step up when needed, and fill very big shoes while facing the biggest danger to them all. Many choices are made for him in which he has no control, but what he does with the outcomes shows the strength of his character, and his unrelenting resolve to also put his life on the line for others. You love Rhy, because not only would he be the character that V.E. Schwab would most like to hang out with (she said this I swear!), but because of his ability to not let the tough and painful parts of life take away his joy and thankfulness of the other more beautiful parts of life. (Wait, I want to be like this too!)

Without giving away too much about this character, the one I most empathize with is Holland. Although what he's done in the previous books is atrocious, he is a character that explores what happens when all of your will has been stripped from you and how you survive complete hopelessness. This is a powerful magician, an Antari, that has had his free will taken from him multiple times, and somehow finds it within himself to keep going. You hate him because he is at first the ultimate bad guy, no empathy, no care for how his actions harm others, and the ability to make others feel insignificant. But what happens when a bigger, badder, evil comes about? Well you'll just have to read it to find out! You come, maybe not to love, but to understand him, as there is something about Holland that gets us at the core of our humanity. We are left to deal with our own feelings and emotions that have been twisted from hatred at the character, to empathy. This is the ultimate example in how there is good and bad in all of us, and that is what gets us to understand him and appreciate him and his role in this ultimate fight.

The last, but very certainly not the least, character I will highlight is Alucard Emery. His background and true character slowly reveals itself throughout the book, showing the reader we are just in our original assessment to trust him, even though we don't know him. Somehow we get the feeling he is trustworthy, but we don't know why or how, it is just in your gut. In this final book, you get his whole story, and love his even more for it. He is a character that is somehow always genuine but also arrogant and secretive. How do you trust someone like that? I don't know, you just do, because behind all that is a genuine guy who isn't as mysterious as he seems. He is strong, yet aware of his limitations. He knows when to step forward, and when to draw back. He is always good for a well timed joke. You love him, because he has lost so much, but still can have a smile on his face and a quip at the ready.

All the characters have something deep inside that drives them, and through the relationships between them, and the situations in which they get themselves in, V.E. Schwab makes you feel as though you know these characters inside and out. One of the things I loved so much about ACOL is the fact that you get to see more of the characters all together interacting, whereas in the first two books they were separated by their own adventures. You get to see how they decide to work together, and each of their roles in fighting the ultimate evil to save Red London. What is interesting to me is that this group is fighting for a city that has done each of them wrongs, that despite the things they have faced there, they still fight for it. They each have characteristics we want to see in ourselves, and show things that we might not want to see in ourselves.

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Finale: V.E. Schwab gives us the ultimate adventure of magic, wonder, mysticism, and the paramount battle of good versus evil. It is hard for me to give star ratings, because I am admittedly very generous when it comes to my assessments of books :) sue me! If I had to, I'd pick between a four and five out of five. (Five would be perfect, there's no such thing as perfect!). But for story, I give three smily faces, four surprised faces, and two crying faces, just because I experienced a lot of emotions during this journey. I am sad it is over, but happy I was able to experience the worlds of different Londons. It has become my first recommendation for people when they ask me of a good fantasy book series to get into. So go, go now, read it! In the words of the Arnesians, Anoshe, or until another day!