This one is hard to rate because it took me soooo long to get through it, but I didn't hate it. There are tons of diverse characters and I really liked them. And the actual plot was interesting, but it wasn't exactly engaging. I felt like there were a lot of plot holes and too many moving pieces that just don't quite come together to be a 5 star for me. I think it starts off much better than it ends. Overall, I didn't complete love this one but I definitely want to try more by this author because this really had so much potential.

Filled with exemplary worldbuilding, and an intriguing magic system, Of Silver and Shadow, is a book I greatly enjoyed. I didn't review the book, but on my blog, you can find an interview with the author as a tour stop for a blog tour!

I’m not going to lie and say that I loved this book, flew through it, and enjoyed every second. In fact, it took me *a while* to finish Of Silver and Shadow, though I still ended up liking it!
The writing was fun, and I can distinctly remember some comparisons that the author made because they were particularly unique. I really liked that aspect of this book.
The plot was interesting! There was one twist in particular towards the end that I didn’t predict and thoroughly enjoyed! But the ending fell short. It felt *quite* rushed, and I genuinely think the author could’ve written it in a different and much better way.
My FAVORITE part was the magic system. ‘Twas very inspired, in my opinion. It consists of silver wielders, and they can *you guessed it* LITERALLY WIELD SILVER!! Very very cool. They, unfortunately, have to deal with the good old “if you can manipulate silver and aren’t part of the royal family then you get executed” thing, and since it’s genetically transmitted, the main character, Ren, is the only civilian left with it. She mentions that within the first few pages of the book, so I’m not counting it as a spoiler. Anyways the magic system was *chef’s kiss*.
Characters. Probably, aside from good pacing, the most important thing to me. Aaaaand, unfortunately, the ones here didn’t quite make the I now worship you cut. By quite a bit. Oof. While I liked Ren’s snarky remarks, it felt like she wasn’t fleshed out enough. Adley, one of the King’s Children, was fun, and while I appreciated certain aspects of her character *chuckles in queer*, she also fell flat. My favorite character was the king’s youngest son, but he didn’t feel developed enough either. I did not like the romance between Ren and her love interest. At all. I could probably go on a bit of a rant here, but *spoilers*. I think Grunke can improve here, and I think she has so much potential! You’ll definitely be seeing me reading her books in the future! Of Silver and Shadow is her first novel, and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with in the future!

Forbidden magic, society on the brink of war, a secret group of noble rebels, and a master thief.

Told from four perspectives, the rising tide of rebellion is about to take center stage in the kingdom of Erdis. Ren is a silver magic-user whose family died for her power after she was hunted by King Mathis. Although she uses her powers sparingly, she catches the eye of Derrick, the rebel leader, who recruits her for their cause. Unknowingly, the two come into contact with Kellan, a fighting pitmaster, with ties to Adley, one of the King's Children. The four and their companions fight against the many odds to gain independence and control of their lives.

Ren is a strong female lead with clear morals and a predictable character arc. Her steamy sexual tension with Derrick gives readers something to hope for and is not too drawn out. Derrick is a wealthy son of a merchant and the responsible older brother, however, when it comes to Ren he cannot seem to be in control. Adley is one of the best assassins in the King's Children but her status as a babysitter to the youngest Prince has placed her in an unfortunate situation. Additionally, Adley has broken one of the rules for the King's Children falling for her friend Lessa. Lastly, readers experience the anticks of Kellan the pitmaster, and reluctant romantic. Each character's voice and the plot are distinctive from the others, making it easier for readers to navigate between chapters. The action is persistent throughout the story and the romance is entertaining.

The story is reminiscent of the Red Queen series with a dash of An Ember in the Ashes series. However, I would argue this book moves at a much faster pace with more lust and less flirtation.

I thought this was a solid dark fantasy novel about rebellion that kept the reader engaged from start to finish! It's definitely on the grittier side for a YA book, so I think it holds a lot of appeal for YA readers leaning more towards their early 20s or who are looking to slowly transition from YA to adult.

This book saw my reading slump and laughed; it was everything I needed to read and didn't realize!

First off, the use of perspectives was so well done! Each character POV had such a clear voice and was necessary for the story. Sometimes things can get muddled with more than two (and sometimes even then) POVs, but I loved what each character brought to the story. Ren is a complete BA in need of a hug, Darek is the perfect combination of soft and strong, Adley just exudes hope (albeit, murderous hope!), and there is so much more to Kellen that meets the eye.

Also, even though it's nearly 500 pages, it does not feel like it. The pacing was just right and the storytelling was crisp. So much could have been added in (and I would have happily read it) and I feel like in the hands of other authors it could have been bogged down. Everything had a purpose without being heavy-handed. This was the kind of story that I nearly didn't want to finish because that would mean I'd have to be done with these characters! I know it's a standalone, but I would read anything else involving them, or written by Jennifer Gruenke in general.

I adored this book and highly recommend it for anyone looking for a strong cast of characters and fast-paced storytelling! Especially with this being a standalone, it would be a great introduction to the genre. The writing is absolutely beautiful; I went to look for favorite lines, but there were so many I couldn't settle on just one! This feels like one of those books I need to go back and re-read just to highlight my favorite parts.

As a quick aside, I really just feel the need to mention how much I love this cover. The design of it is so brilliant, I don't think I'll ever be over how perfect it is!

So okay, I liked this well enough. It was definitely a character. driven novel, because I felt that the characters were really well developed and fleshed out, while I felt the world building was lacking a bit. I would have liked more about their world, plus more explaining the magic system. Overall this was action packed, fast paced, and while it started out a bit slow, it really picked up. Highly recommend this.

I just want to start off by saying this has been the best reading surprise I’ve had this year. This book sounded interesting to me, but honestly I wasn’t expecting to love this book as much as I did! This has been one of the best debuts I’ve read in a long time, so bravo Jennifer on such a strong first novel.

I love stories with political intrigue, court politics, and so on. What I also also love is dual POVs from characters on opposite sides. Of Silver and Shadow did this so well, and you found yourself getting invested in both characters, even though they were presented as enemies.

I freaking loved our MC, Ren. She reminds me very much of Lila Bard from A Darker Shade of Magic, with a hint of Nesta from the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. She is so witty and snarky, I loved it. She had some really great banter with the other characters in this book.

Speaking of characters, there were so many great ones in this story, it was definitely more of a character driven book, in my opinion, which I absolutely love. The plot of rebellion was interesting and the magic was cool to read about, but I really loved these characters, and that’s a huge part of why I enjoyed this story so much.

This was a fairly fast paced book. The ending was just a tad bit rushed, and wrapped everything up almost too nicely, but it also left a few things up for interpretation that balanced everything out quite nicely. I’m almost sad this was a standalone because I think I would enjoy reading more about Ren, Adley, and the crew, but I always appreciate a good fantasy standalone, especially when they are done well. Which this one was.

Some things I didn’t expect from this book were the f/f romance (which I loved and would have liked a bit more of) and the violence. There were some very dark parts in this book, including some mildly graphic torture.

Overall, this was a spectacular read, and I’m almost sorry I put off reading it for as long as I did. If you enjoy a good YA fantasy standalone with sassy characters and witty banter, than you should definitely pick up Of Silver and Shadow.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Good book, great plot. I really hope there are more books after this one because it was quite the read.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

Since the end of my finals month I have been in a severe reading slump and Of Silver and Shadow managed to get me out of it. I found the beginning a bit slow but after like 15% I was completely compelled by the book.

The writing style was fluid. However, I found the chapters to be a tad bit too long at some points. I would have loved them to be shorter in order to have a more fast-paced reading, but it was seriously just a minor thing that bugged me.

I also enjoyed the action in this dark YA Fantasy novel. Because, yes there’s a lot of it in this book and that’s amazing. My attention was completely focused on Of Silver and Shadow.

Overall, I can highly recommend this book to every dark fantasy lover.

Thanks for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased and unpaid review.
This book is about magic, repression and rebellion. I loved that the magic in this story is a different kind of magic - it's the Silver in the title. Ren, the main character wields the Silver magic, though she has to hide it from everyone because only the King and his successor is allowed to have magic, and they assassinated all the other families who had it, to ensure their rule. Now, there is a growing rebellion against the monarchy, and Ren is just the person to help light the match.....along with the youngest Prince. He offers her money, with one catch - she won't see a single coin until they have overthrown the king.
This is an excellently written book with strong characters and a well built world. I look forward to seeing more from this author #netgalley #ofsilverandshadow #fluxbooks #booklover #bookstagram #booksparks #bookreviewer #fantasybooks #magicbooks

I was very much looking forward to reading this book. I thought the premise/synopsis sounded really intriguing. When I first started reading I found myself fully invested in the story and characters and wanted to read more. As the book went out I felt less and less attached to everything. Which really disappointed me. Overall the story was just okay, nothing mind blowing but also nothing terrible. If that makes sense? The book was written well but I didn't connect with it.

I really liked the pacing of the story and I thought the execution of it was very unique! This book was badass and I enjoyed every second of it. It does get slow in the middle a bit, so beware of that. Other than that though, it was amazing!!! High recommend you pick this book up, you will not regret it one bit!!!

I received this and as an eARC to read for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and North Star Editions for giving me access.

So much happens in Of Silver and Shadow and I need more. I loved the multiple POV and how she gave each character a voice. The author did an amazing job at tying the whole story together. Where we knew some of Ren's history, things really came into view towards the end and it was something I wasn't expecting.

This is a great read for fans of Red Queen and Blood Heir.

I absolutely love this book!!!!
I need moreeee

cannot explain my love for this book in words wow

I’m not even going to pretend that I didn’t add a new book boyfriend to my never ending list.... ok two, I added two. But honestly, you can’t blame me, Kellen and Darek made my heart spiral all out of sorts.

The fact that this is a stand-alone saddens me immensely. I need more of this world, these brilliant characters, this magic system and beautiful writing. (Pretty please. Even just a novella or two.)

There are certain components of a novel that instantly hook me. Things like ‘rebellion’, ‘corrupt royals’, ‘forbidden magic’, ‘forbidden love’, ‘hate to love’, ‘political intrigue’ you get the idea. All of these excite me and bring me immense joy andddd Of Silver and Shadow had all of these and so much more and I loved every single minute of it.

It was wonderfully written, engaging, captivating and such a phenomenal fantasy. My only complaint is that it ended too fast for my tastes but given that it’s a stand-alone it’s to be expected. I really wish this was a duology at the very least or hope to see more books in this world (spin-off/prequel I’m not picky).

I highly recommend this if you’re a fan of YA fantasy in general and to fans of the Throne of Glass/ Red Queen series.

4/5

I really enjoyed this book! I liked the diverse cast of characters, the world building, and the plot in general. I thought it was fun and I can’t wait to read more.

I really liked the weaving of plot lines and characters journeys throughout the book. The dramatic irony was insane, but I love it. Ren is easily the coolest person I know and I love that she’s tall (I don’t know why but most YA are usually short, or I picture them short)

Anyway, this book is great and fun and exciting and you should read it.

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I cannot believe this is a debut novel. It is so wonderfully done, full of beautifully flawed characters, plot twists, and the perfect balance of horror and hope. The world Jennifer created is intriguing and captivating. I certainly wouldn't want to live there but I cannot help but be immediately sucked in, right there along with the characters.

I want more. Things are wide open for a continuation and I would love to spend more time with these characters. I have no idea if there will be a sequel but if there were to be one, this book ends perfectly. Things feel resolved for the time being but clearly not resolved. If this remains a standalone, the ending feels a bit rushed. There was a beautiful build-up and it wrapped rather quickly.

All that aside, this is an amazing debut and it deserves your attention. The richness, the depth of character, the world and its breadth, they're incredible to behold.

This book kept me captivated from page one, but the last hundred pages or so were overwhelmingly delightful. In the most wonderful way, the pace of this book made it hard to put down because I felt I would miss some of the action as it raced though.
The action and the romance were both sweet and thrilling - keeping you on your toes until the last moment as you hold onto that hope for our heroes.

An easy book to recommend both to our upper YA readers and adult fiction readers as it easily crosses the border of both.

I was really intrigued by this book. I love books with a lot of political tension and the idea of rebellions are always something I'm drawn to in fantasy stories. I liked the magic system and I enjoyed the characters. Unfortunately, I think the story didn't hit me quite as hard as I was expecting it to.