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A Darker Shade of Magic: A Novel (Shades of Magic, 1)
V. E. Schwab
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A Darker Shade of Magic, from #1 New York Times bestselling author V.E. Schwab.
Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons: Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black. Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see. Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.
After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.
Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.
A Darker Shade of Magic has all the hallmarks of a classic work of fantasy. Schwab has given us a gem of a tale...This is a book to treasure."—Deborah Harkeness, New York Times bestselling author of the All Souls trilogy.
Shades of Magic series
- A Darker Shade of Magic
- A Gathering of Shadows
- A Conjuring of Light
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Posts about this title from chronicallybookish
chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Sep 15 2025
a very yappy vibes-based fall tbr
I was VERY yappy when I filmed this buckle in besties #booktok #toberrad #falltbr #fallbooks #tbrlist
14 books
Posts about this book from across Bindery
DocoftheDarkArts\ \ Bob Stuntz\ \ • Jun 21
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[Poll:\ \ Do your reading habits change in the summer?\ \ The Sunday Prescription \ \ One reading topic, one week of plans, and plenty of books administered weekly for chronic readers.\ \ Symptoms: Reading in the Summer \ \ Happy Sunday gang, and Happy Father's Day to any of the bookish dads out there! I hope everyone is doing well, and welcome back to my Sunday Newsletter. This week, I've been thinking a lot about summer reading patterns. \ \ As someone who yaps a lot about books online, I hear a lot of feedback about what other people do for reading, and it always fascinates me how different we all are! I have two beach trips coming up this summer, and for me, summer is always a time when I read more. I work from home these days, and the school year means driving kids all over the place, and having a lot of my free time taken up by activities during the school year. So when I get to go on a trip, and during the summer especially, I always wind up reading more. Having less time in the car and less time at teenage kid activities gives me more time to read. In addition, I'm outside working more, so I'm listening to more audiobooks, and generally just consuming more written and spoken stories. \ \ Now when it comes to packing for a trip, I always over do it when it comes to books. For a typical week long beach trip, you will usually find me packing 4-5 books along with my e-reader. As a certified feral mood reader, this gives me plenty of variety. On top of that, I usually find a local beach bookstore and make my way there as well. In terms of what I like to read, this is definitely when I'm going for shorter/less intense stuff. Cozy fantasies like the House in the Cerulean Sea and Tress of the Emerald Sea come to mind (which we're reading right now for our book club!). I of course love it when a book leans into the water, piracy, or hot/desert climates. Which reminds me, I need to start Children of Dune here soon!\ \ However, I hear from other people that when they head into the long, hot days of summer, and go on vacations, they read less. They cite more time in summer/outdoor activities as barriers, and say when they go on vacation they don't want to read more, or are too busy. It does seem an increase in audiobook consumption is pretty well agreed upon, given more time outside, and time spent on road trips in the car. So I'm interested to hear from you all - how does summer change your reading habits? Do you read more or less? Do you read more on vacation? Do you pack a ton of books like some sort of book goblin like me?\ \ The Rx: What I'm Reading and Doing \ \ I did announce this week that I was starting a new Fable Book Club! We will be starting July 1 with Our Sister's Keeper by Jasmine Holmes. The book club is called Dr. Bob's Literary Apothecary, and our goal is to read diverse authors, diverse genres, and try to find diverse books that aren't popping up on your algorithm! I'd love to have you join, we'll do a book a month, and no changes to our usual book club. \ \ In terms of reading, I finished off my reread of Tress of the Emerald Sea, and I just enjoyed it so much. I listened to the Michael Kramer version for the reread as I read it physical last year, and I'm not a graphic audio fan usually, especially abridged versions. I also finished an Arc of Songs of the Dead by Brandon Sanderson and Peter Orullian. More to come on that in a future review. And Today, I'll be finishing up Stoner by John Williams, which is our Dark Travelers monthly pick a book. That has met spellbound at the moment! If you want to read with us you should join up as a Dark Traveler!\ \ I also released this week's YouTube video, which is all about ARC's - what they are and why they exist, what you can do to start becoming an ARC reader, and the major Do's and Don't of reading ARCs. \ \ In terms of what's next, I have a bunch of options and I'm not sure where I'll go for sure!\ \
- A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab - probably next\ \
- Jade City by Fonda Lee - researching for next month's book club!\ \
- The Photonic Effect by Mike Chen - sent to me by the publisher, and sounds cool.\ \
- Valor by John Gwynne - Really want to continue, and my TBB versions should show up soon. \ \
- What Blood Remembers by C William Phillips - probably next on my e-reader. \ \
- Of Monsters and Mainframes by Barbara Truelove - Up next on audio!\ \ \ I also picked up an Assassin's Creed game for the Nintendo Switch, which I'm interested to give a try, and I heard a rumor that I might be getting a sweet Lego set for Father's Day!\ \ Like Discounts and Helping Me out? \ \ Did you know I have a bunch of different affiliate codes? I you head to the link in my bio, you'll see a bunch of affiliate codes. Some of these, like the Flowers and fantasy 10% off, the 15% off TBB regular publishing website, or the Pango books $5 off your first order codes, will save you money! Others, like the Broken Binding special edition code, my Bookshop.org Affiliate, and my wishlist are more just support for me. I also have links to all of my social sites if you're looking to follow elsewhere as well!\ \ Join for free or login](https://docofthedarkarts.binderybooks.com/item/RSKW1H0xzYOUFRxqBpH1/)
The Sunday Prescription: June 21, 2026
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Kist Reads\ \ Kist\ \ • Feb 20
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[Some have you have already seen it but I'm super hyped to announce that we have a new development to announce. 2026 is the year A Complement of Scoundrels by S.V. Lockwood releases and to celebrate, Bindery is launching our own Kist Reads, Sickos Society book box!\ \ This is my highest-tier membership, built for readers who love morally gray chaos, have impeccable taste, and want to support the future of the kinds of books we actually want to exist.\ \ Sicko Society is for readers who want to go deeper than recommendations and become part of the inner circle supporting my creative work and the Kist Reads publishing mission.\ \ It combines everything from my previous tiers with a quarterly book box, exclusive extras, and a deeper way to back bold, tastemaker-led publishing.\ \ This year’s theme is Year of the Scoundrel: a curated journey through fantasy’s most iconic liars, thieves, con artists, criminals, and criminally charming masterminds.\ \ Across four quarterly shipments, you’ll receive handpicked heist and/or scoundrel-centric novels, plus my personal commentary, additional online discussion, and a community-driven reading experience.\ \ By joining Sicko Society , you:\ \
- Support the mission of Kist Reads imprint\ \
- Help fund the discovery, championing, and success of bold new authors\ \
- Back ambitious editorial projects and tastemaker-led storytelling\ \
- Get a community-driven, premium reading experience in return\ \ \ Every Sicko Society member receives:\ \
- ALL perks from previous membership tiers including advance e-books + exclusive\ \ advance print copies of original Kist Reads books, tour name in the "Thank You" page of\ \ to-be-published books\ \
- A quarterly curated fantasy novel each quarter\ \
- Exclusive notes and commentary from me\ \
- Priority access to future perks and benefits\ \ \ $25/month, billed monthly. Limited availability. Cancel anytime. Physical benefits unlock after 90 days. Shipping available to U.S. residents only.\ \ Sicko Society is for readers who want to go deeper than recommendations. It’s for the people who:\ \
- Trust my taste\ \
- Love villain-coded characters and/or a good ol' heist vibe\ \
- Want to support the publishing mission I’m building\ \
- And want to be part of the inner circle shaping what comes next\ \ \ If that’s you, welcome. Let’s cause some literary crimes together.\ \ FAQ’s\ \ Does Sicko Society include perks from lower tiers?\ \ Yes. Sicko Society includes ALL perks from previous membership tiers, plus premium physical benefits and exclusives.\ \ How much does it cost?\ \ $25/month.\ \ When do physical perks start?\ \ Physical benefits unlock after 90 days of active membership.\ \ Can I cancel anytime?\ \ Yes, cancel before the next billing deadline to avoid future charges.\ \ Can I join mid-year?\ \ Yes, as long as you join before the cutoff date for each shipment.\ \ Is shipping international?\ \ Shipping is currently available to U.S. residents only. (I'm hoping this changes soon as we have wonderful folk from all over the world here and I would love to be able to include them. From a business perspective it's just not feasible right now but I promise you we will continue to revisit this)\ \ Is this a limited program?\ \ Yes, this is a limited pilot with capped spots while we test demand and fulfillment.\ \ What books are planned?\ \
- The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch\ \
- Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo\ \
- The Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick\ \
- A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab\ \ \
Announcing the Sicko Society Book Box!
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Beverly Books\ \ Kristian\ \ • Sep 26 2025
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chronicallybookish\ \ Kaley\ \ • Sep 15 2025
a very yappy vibes-based fall tbr
I was VERY yappy when I filmed this buckle in besties #booktok #toberrad #falltbr #fallbooks #tbrlist
14 books
Kist Reads\ \ Kist\ \ • Mar 25 2025
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\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login](https://kistreadsbooks.binderybooks.com/item/TyOXrxO8bhKOJ7E6wwdg/)
(EARLY ACCESS) Popular Fantasy Books & Things I Didn't Like About Them
Enjoy this YouTube video two days early, comrade Sickos!
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Moonlit Fables\ \ Rupali\ \ • Feb 27 2025
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🌙 FAVORITE FANTASY SERIES🌙 *As of now LOL. I’m always looking to read new fantasy series so this list is constantly updating. And to be fair, the Stormlight Archive & Legendborn are still releasing books, but so far they’re both AMAZING!!! I want to read more fantasy books this year, so drop some recs in the comments! What’s your favorite fantasy series or standalone fantasy book? Series Mentioned: ✨ Shades of Magic by V.E. Schwab ✨ Elements of Cadence by Rebecca Ross ✨ The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson ✨The Legendborn Cycle by Tracy Deonn ✨ The Daevabad Trilogy by S.K. Chakraborty ✨ An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir #fantasybooks #favoritereads #bookish
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Kiln Books\ \ dylan joseph\ \ • Feb 20 2025
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Have you read this series yet? If you haven't, read this series NOW 😤
Have you read this series yet? If you haven't, read this series NOW 😤 if you love me, you'll read it!
⬇️ BOOKS MENTIONED ⬇️ A Darker Shade of Magic A Gathering of Shadows A Conjuring of Light - @veschwab (published by @torbooks)
#books #booktok #reading TBR, reading, review, 2025, VE Schwab, fantasy, romantasy, magic, pirates, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, recommendation, underhyped, overhyped, games and trials, onyx storm
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Kiln Books\ \ dylan joseph\ \ • Feb 19 2025
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The best special editions I've ever seen
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Skies Press\ \ Emma\ \ • Jan 14 2025
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10 Book Recs for TikTok before I go (Part 1)
Don’t forget me!! (or my recs) 😭 #bookrecs #booktok #bookrecommendations #booksilove #favoritebooks #fantasybooks #scifibooks #themaskofmirrors #macarrick #thespearcutsthroughwater #simonjimenez #adarkershadeofmagic #veschwab #littlethieves #margaretowen #juniperandthorn #avareid #coldhearted #heatherguerre #wolfshifterromance #romancebooks #emmaskiesreads
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Scribe Tribe\ \ Jahid\ \ • Aug 6 2024
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10 Characters From 10 Books Who Can Do No Wrong
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Skies Press\ \ Emma\ \ • Jul 19 2024
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Books you may not know are on Kindle Unlimited
I had no idea about any of these 👀 These are on KU in the US at the time im posting this. If youre in a different country or seeing this video six months from now i got nothing 📚
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Fantasy & Frens\ \ Zoranne\ \ • Apr 12 2023
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what are some of your favorite books from the past few years? here are mine! 😊📚 ##favoritebooks##bookrecommendations##fantasybookrecs
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