Review: Shades of Darkness by N.K. Leem

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Release Date: December 27th, 2020

Genre(s): Adult fiction, fantasy

Publisher: Amazon

Pages: 394

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Content Warnings:

Death of a prominent character, mentions of past traumas, violence

Note: Thank you to the author for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis

The execution is in two weeks, and without his allies, it seems impossible to Thaleon that he will be able to stop it. But Thaleon will continue onward to Varle, even if it means death for him. Dawyn is in disbelief that Thaleon is still alive, and believing that he was taken captive, embarks on a quest to find him. But the Crown is searching for Thaleon, and the both of them will be killed if anyone finds out about his plans to help him.

Review

After reading the end of book three of the Ledgers of a Dark Mage series, I couldn’t wait for everything that was bound to happen in book 4. And after reading Shades of Darkness, I feel like I got everything out of this book and more. Between the action, the emotional scenes, and the progression of the plot, there was so much going on in this book (much like the others).

It’s been a while since I’ve consistently read series, and this book was a reminder to get back into them. The characters are so well-developed from the start and having that experience from the journey made me so invested in them throughout the book.Additionally, the worldbuilding that went on in the early books contributes to the story so much over time, leaving so much room for the progression of both the story and the characters. And while I don’t mind increasingly complex worlds over time, I found the balance of this book especially perfect as the story progressed.

Other than that, my raves about this book are so similar to the other books in that my investment in the characters really drove this. There were happy moments, sad moments, tear-inducing moments, and everything in-between. This is definitely a good series to read if you enjoy fantasy series and like to experience the journey with the characters (with both the good and bad)!

This is by far my favorite book in the Ledgers of a Dark Mage series so far. While all of the books were packed with intense storylines and a rollercoaster of emotions, this book was my most anticipated in the series so far, and I’m glad to have finally read it.