Sentence Sneak Peek - A Darker Shade of Magic

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

The first sentence from each chapter of A Darker Shade of Magic, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

*Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“Kell wore a very peculiar coat.”

“Between one stride and the next, dreary Windsor became elegant St. James.”

“The Stone’s Throw was an odd little tavern.”

“Sanct!”

“Even at night, the river shone red.”

“He found them in the courtyard, taking a late tea under the cloudless night and the fall canopy of trees.”

“Lila Bard lived by a simple rule: if a thing was worth having, it was worth taking.”

“The Sea King wasn’t nearly as impressive as the name suggested.”

“Barron was standing on the steps of the Stone’s Throw, staring absently toward the docks when Lila strolled up, the top hat and the map both tucked under her arm.”

“Perhaps it should be a masquerade instead.”

“Kell stepped through the door in the world and shivered.”

“The whip cracked through the air, the forked end splitting open the skin of the boy’s back.”

“Astrid beckoned.”

“Kell should have stopped at one drink.”

“The silver jingled in Lila’s pocket as she made her way back to the Stone’s Throw.”

“7 Naresk Vas.”

“Lila trailed the group of thugs through the winding London streets, waiting for them to go their separate ways.”

“Kell could hear the footsteps, first one set and then two and then three—or maybe the third was just the pumping of his heart—as he raced through the alleys and side streets.”

“Kell couldn’t stop the blood.”

“A London away, the city bells struck eight.”

“Lila hummed as she made her way back to the Stone’s Throw.”

“When Kell came to, he was tied to a bed.”

“It took Lila the better part of an hour to hack, slash, and saw herself free.”

“Lila could have simply gone down into the belly of the Stone’s Throw, but she owed Barron enough already—he wouldn’t take her coin, either because he thought she needed it or because it wasn’t hers to begin with—and she needed the fresh air to clear her head.”

“Kell had been standing on the bridge, leaning against the rail and trying to make sense of how and why he’d been set up—the false letter, the humble plea, the compelled cutthroats—when he caught the scent of magic on the air.”

“Lila was soaked to the bone.”

“Kell woke up in Lila’s bed for the second time that night.”

“The rain had ended and left the streets dreary and damp, but despite the wet ground and the October chill, London was beginning to drag itself awake.”

“Barron woke to a noise.”

“Red London welcomed Kell home as if nothing were wrong.”

“Aldus Fletcher was not an honest man.”

“Kell could feel the stone in Lila’s pocket as they walked.”

“It had been no ordinary fire.”

“Booth was beginning to fall apart.”

“Kell and Lila made their way to the docks, invisible to passersby.”

“For all the digging he’d done through the ruins of the Ruby Fields, Kell had failed to notice the alley where he’d been attacked—and where he’d left two bodies behind—only hours before.”

“Fletcher’s shop was built like a maze, arranged in a way that only the snake himself would understand.”

“Kell had only an instant to arrange his features, to force panic into composure, before the guards were there, five in all, filling up the room with movement and noise.”

“Parrish and Gen milled around the festival, helmets in one hand and mugs of wine in the other.”

“The palace rose like a second sun over the Isle as the day’s light sank low behind it, haloing it’s edges with gold.”

“Colors blossomed over Kell’s head, blurs of red and gold and rich dark blue.”

“Lila ascended the palace stairs, the half-cloak of her new coat billowing behind her.”

“Kell spat blood onto Rhy’s lovely inlaid floor, marring the intricate pattern.”

“It happened so fast, the pendant moving at the same time as the blade.”

“The London Sanctuary sat at a bend in the river near the edge of the city, a stone structure with the simple elegance of a temple and an air just as reverent.”

“The room went deathly still.”

“The palace was in a state of upheaval.”

“Lila’s black boots landed on the pale street.”

“Let me pass,” said Kell.”

“The first thing Kell saw when he stepped into White London was Lila brandishing two knives, both of them bloody.”

“A cloud of black smoke hung in the air of the white throne room, a patch of night against the pale backdrop.”

“The White London fortress rose in a column of sharp light out of the shadowed stone courtyard.”

“Athos was laughing.”

“Lila’s back hit the pillar hard.”

“Kell shivered, the strange calm settling over him again.”

“Across Red London, the bodies fell.”

“Kell opened his eyes and saw stars.”

“Red London took shape around Kell, heavy with night.”

“Come in.”

“I could try and take you back,” Kell was saying.”