Everything I wanted this book to be and more. After such a long wait for an eagerly anticipated return to the universe, Schwab doesn't disappoint. There's so much to love about our old friends, and I find myself massively fascinated by our new ones. Something tells me my heart isn't ready to handle what's to come just yet.

I really wish I could put into words how lovely reading this was - coming back to this universe was so refreshing. I read the first trilogy when I was 17 and now I'm 22 reading this one and I just really can't conceptualize how much I loved it. I cried (unsurprisingly, VE Schwab is good with their consistency on making me cry). Because it's been a while, I don't remember the specifics from the previous books, but stepping back into the world I didn't find myself lost. You'll probably appreciate the book a bit more with the background of the Shades of Magic trilogy, but I think it's still pretty accessible for newer fans.
tldr: v.e. schwab, you've done it again

You know me…. I don’t read synopsis very often. I read them even less when it’s an author I know I love. That was the case here. Imagine my surprise when I started reading and realized I am back in the world of magic (Schwabs Shades of Magic series). I was oh so happy to see what the characters I grew to love were up to after reading the series earlier this year.

The whole crew is back in this one Kell, Lila, Rhys and Alucard. Plus some others and a few new ones. The story gives the reader a glimpse into what happened between the time the last book ended and now. I would say there is a fair amount of story building happening which made this one a bit on the slow side but will make for some really good storytelling in the future books.

What I loved most about this book was that I didn't feel lost even though it had been awhile since I read the Shades of Magic series. This can happen to me sometimes in fantasy books. I would even argue that you don’t need to read the other series to know what's going on in this one. The author does a great job of explaining the gist of the magical world.

I really can't wait until the next book but I have a feeling I will be waiting awhile.

When I was approved for this book on Netgalley, I was both thrilled and nervous. Would it hold up to the Shades of Magic trilogy, one of my favorite series of all time? Would I get to meet my favorite characters again? Would the long wait between Shades and Threads have dampened the magic of the worlds that Schwab created?

Well, it took me a little bit to read this one, but mostly because it was so damn GOOD that I kept having to put it down so it wouldn’t end. The characters - both old, and new! - were rich,intriguing, terrifying, and wonderful. The worlds - all three (four?) of them - were just as I remembered. The magic, though changed, was as complex as before. And the way this book was written - going between characters, time periods, and worlds - was so fun, and made the book even more difficult to put down. I loved meeting the new characters, revisiting old ones, seeing how the worlds had changed, learning more about Antari magic … and of course, getting absolutely wrecked by that cliffhanger at the end (damn you, Schwab)!

Super grateful that I had the opportunity to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Publishing September 26, 2023.

If you loved the Shades of Magic series, you’re going to be so happy. If you’ve read her other work, or are V.E. Schwab curious, or see it all over Bookstagram this fall and want to jump in—this is a good place to do it.

So good! V.E. Schwab kills it with her plot crafting and beautiful writing, once again. Obsessed with this world, these characters, the power system, the setting, the atmosphere. A read that truly transports you.

It is *incredible* to be back in the Londons.

One of my absolute favorite fantasy series is back - we pick up seven years down the road in Red London with the Antari. How is the King Rhy adjusting to his power? Has the city been to forget the atrocities it witnessed? And what is this red hand plastered everywhere??

In White London Holland is gone and in his place a new Queen has been crowned, Kosika. Can she restore White London to its glory days?

But my favorite new character of all is Tes, the tinkerer who has uncanny abilities with magic but continues to find herself in less then appealing situations.

This is technically a new series but please do yourself a favor and read Shades of Magic first (the trilogy) this will be tricky to follow if you don’t and you will miss out on SO much of what I love about these characters - especially Delilah Bard.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Once broken, soon repaired...

Fall back into the world of ADSOM with TFTOP, it is the perfect bridge between the two series. Threads introduces us to a new cast of characters as well as reprises some old dear ones.

Set seven years after the events of ADSOM, our OG main characters have had a lot of growth. I love how they all developed but still stayed the same at their core. Tes is a fantastic new main character, her hesitance to be known and her fears lead her to make some really interesting choices that might not be classically "main character" but that made her all the more intriguing to me. Also, Kay was a little dramatic and made me chuckle but then he would do something really hot, like murder, and it made his flare for drama okay.

As with all Schwab books, this has a slow start PLEASE just bear with it. I personally LOVE their slow builds because it gives me time to really sit in this world that I adore and get to know the characters well before they're really thrown into everything. There are a lot of flashbacks to the events of the past seven years that I think created a really clear picture of why the characters have become the way they are. And the ending...the end will have you reeling, that's all I'm gonna say..

There were a couple moments that I thought seemed a little thematically repetitive but I liked the new twists they had. But honestly its Schwab's world, the fact that we got to see any more of it is enough for me. I am really just along for the ride.

I do fully recommend reading the OG series first, I don't think this can stand as a "companion" series. It is truly a sequel series.

I am sat for the rest of this trilogy and will be LOSING MY MIND until I can find out what happens next!

I am a huge fan of V.E. Schwab and could not wait for this book! It is a return to the world of her Darker Shade of Magic trilogy and if you are a little worried that the characters we loved from that series would not appear or would just be a quick cameo. I am here to put your heart at rest. Although we also have new characters, our ADSOM favorites are very much in the quick of it all here again. Schwab knows how to not only drive a plot but also fully flesh out her characters. Schwab fans will not be disappointed in this one!

ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley! I almost cried when I got the email inviting me to read it, thank you!!!

I'm waiting for the perfect time to crack into this because it will undoubtedly kill me

***

It did kill me. I don't know how I come back from this.

It was so exciting to be able to immerse myself in this world again--I missed it and the characters and the magic SO much. It was such a delight to get to read about my old favs and see what's developed and how since the original trilogy. I loved swashbuckling Kell but he's SO corny. I love him so so much.

I really liked our newest introductions, Tes and Kosika, and watching how they unfolded chapter by chapter. I'm so intrigued to see where the story takes them throughout this new trilogy! Getting to spend time in White London was a treat, seeing how differently it operates from the Red London that we're so intimate with was interesting and I'm eager to see how the little queen grows into her character.

We all know Ms. Schwab is absolutely evil about her endings and this is no different--it's not even really a cliffhanger, but the story is preparing to branch in so many directions it still feels like. How could you do that to us. I need to keep going.

I loved this. I'm so honored that I got to read it early!

An enormous thank you to NetGalley, TOR publishing, and of course, VE Schwab for providing me with an eARC of this book. I am voluntarily leaving a review of this book, all opinions are my own.

Oh. My. Gosh. I had an absolute BLAST being back in this world and surrounded by these characters. This was done so well and I am still as in love with this book as I was with Darker Shades. It was like putting on a familiar coat (ha) and finding it fits as perfectly as it did before.

The new characters were such a wonderful addition to this world! I absolutely love Tes and cannot wait to see where her journey leads her. Her and Vares were so interesting, I mean, who doesn’t want a dead owl as a pet? Kosika was also intriguing and I loved her story coming into the throne. And REN. I adore her so much.

I loved seeing all our favorites slipping into their respective roles and positions all these years later. I adore the way their lives are playing out and cannot wait to see what’s in store further into this series.

This was a phenomenal spin-off and I am so excited to see what new adventures lie ahead. The ending of this one is definitely leading towards something and I am very much looking forward to seeing where it all leads. My hats off to Schwab, I absolutely adore your writing and your worlds and will forever read anything you write.

Wow. Just wow. Let me preface my review by saying that Shades of Magic is one of my all-time favorite trilogies.

It was such a delight to return to the Londons. I loved that we not only returned to beloved characters but were also introduced to new ones. The book started off slower than I was expecting, but I then read a post from V.E. Schwab saying that she wanted to write this series so that it could be either read second as a sequel to Shades of Magic or read first and then have Shades of Magic be a prequel series. After reading that, I better understood why I felt like I was being introduced to this world all over again as if for the first time. Once we got to about the 50% mark in the book, the story really took off. At that point, I didn't want to put it down.

I really enjoyed the differing POV along with the flashback scenes. To some this may feel sporadic, but I loved how it told the current day story whole also providing a lot of necessary background information.

Tes was easily my favorite of the new characters. Her power is so interesting, and I can't wait to see how she will play further into the series.

Overall, I loved this book so much, and I can't wait to see where the story takes us.

Read if you enjoy:
✔️ Shades of Magic (duh!)
✔️ Interesting magic systems
✔️ Multiple POV
✔️ Flashback sequences
✔️ Owls
✔️ Badass female MCs

A fantastic start to a new series set in the world of A Darker Shade of MAgic. Returning characters feel as great as when we left them and new characters all feel fresh and interesting. Very excited to see where the rest of the series takes us

Thank you Netgalley and Tor Books for allowing me to get my hands on the eARC of The Fragile Threads of Power by V.E. Schwab in exchange for my honest review.

I have had this book on my arc TBR list for a very long time, and that is because I realized that The Fragile Thread of Power is a continuation, not a spin off as I originally thought. So I went back and read the original trilogy before I sunk my teeth into this book. I guess you could read this without reading the first three, but I would not recommend it.

The Fragile Threads of Power, where do I begin? I guess maybe I am lucky in a way that this book is coming out right after I finished the Shades of Magic series and didn't have to wait 8 years to re-visit this world. I had assumed that this was a spin-off series, that our beloved Antari and friends would not be as involved in this series, but I am very glad to be wrong. I loved that we get to see them again, and fill in the gaps of what happened in the 7 years that have passed in their world.

I will admit that this did take me a while to get into, but once the plot picked up I could not put it down. I did find some of the reveals a bit predictable, but that is my only real gripe with the book. And I'll take it.

I am not stuck in that awful place of having read the book before its publish date and now have to impatiently wait for the second in the series to come out. But I know I will definitely be getting my hands on it as soon as I can.

My Thoughts
Ok I waited as long as I could, I read this book back in June and I have been waiting to share this with you all until it was closer to the release day which is coming soon Thankfully On September 26. Although this is book one of the Threads of Power
It is also a threading of the Shades of Magic series so come on home or start a new beginning. We have some old characters and some great new ones and the worlds are still spectacular. V.E. Schwab just knows how to bring you into these worlds while also having real connections with most of the Characters 😉 Stay in reality and find out what the Antari’s can do.
I can’t recommend this book enough. I want to share so much about this book with you but then I don’t want to ruin any surprises. When it comes out pick it up I believe you will, dare I say like this more than Shades of Magic? Only bad thing I can say is now I have to wait for book 2 🫣.Thank you so much @torbooks and @netgalley for letting me read this 💕

I feel so honored to have received an advanced copy of this book! VE Schwab is one of my favorite authors and Shades of Magic is one of my favorite series ever. I really took my time reading this because I just didn’t want this book to be over!! I love these characters and this world so much. SO HAPPY to see Kell and Lila again!!

Because the original cast of characters has such a special place in my heart, it took me awhile to warm up to the new characters - The new POVs kind of threw me off at first. But as the story developed and we learned more about Tes especially, I really came to appreciate and admire her addition to the story. Her ability to see and manipulate the threads of power is such an interesting magical talent and I loved seeing how her powers were incorporated in the story.

LILA. She really was comfortable in her role as the anti-hero, morally grey character in this book and I kept trying to justify her actions but sometimes it was hard!! However, I really appreciate seeing a woman as the morally grey character. Kell and Lila’s dynamic is so unique and I absolutely adored seeing more of their relationship after 7 seven years of being together.

The plot and world-building of this book was absolutely perfect and I cannot wait to see where this story goes!! VE Schwab, you are a mastermind.

Dive back into the magic of V.E. Schwab's Shades of Magic series with an intense ride. Trecherous, bloody, and gripping, if you loved the first three Shades book, this is like coming back home.

Utterly convinced V.E. Schwab can do no wrong. “The Fragile Threads of Power” is her latest, and it’s every bit as dazzling as the rest of her work. This is a page-turner, and an absolute must-read for fantasy fans.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

I would like to thank NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for allowing me to read the eARC for The Fragile Threads of Power.

I am a fangirl of V.E. Schwab and Shades of Magic is one of my favorite trilogies. This book was an absolute dream come true!! This book is set 7 years after Conjuring of Light, with a few flashbacks to the past.

Rhy & Alucard, Lila & Kell, Maris, and even Ned Tuttle are back for more trouble. Plus, special appearances are made by Holland. Plus, we get to meet a whole gang of new characters, including: a new queen, a new ruler of White London, a new Aven Essen, a new set of villains, a tinkerer with a pet dead owl. Theres broken magic, new magic, a glimpse at Black London, and some new magical objects that cause chaos.

I was not Lila's biggest fan before, but she redeemed herself a bit in this book. Kell struggles with his magic and his identity. Alucard finally faces his brother. Rhy finds his place as King, but at the cost of constant fear of regicide. Tes and Vares (my new favorites, by the way) go on a scary adventure.

Will The Hand succeed? Will Kell get his groove back and/or ever come back to London? How is Rhylucard's and the Antaris' relationships going? Who's in the Royal Family? If these are your burning questions, you'd better read this book.

I was binge-reading and wasn't paying attention to the table of contents, and when I got to the last chapter, I was DEAD when I realized that it was the end. I NEED more!! This book is a page-turner and gave me anxiety (in a good way). Seriously, go pre-order it right now! You wont regret it!

I will be attending the book tour stop in Katy, and cannot wait to get my book so i can read it again!

I loved the Shade of Magic Trilogy when I read it last year, and this book did not disappoint. There is a lot of world building, but I understand why it's necessary as I feel like the author meant for the trilogy to be picked up by anybody with no knowledge of the original world.

Overall, I loved the story, there are lots of moving parts to it, so it keeps you on your toes. The characters from the original story have grown and I enjoyed seeing that growth as well as being introduced to a whole new set of characters. There are lots of layers to this story which makes it entertaining.

The only bad part is the cliff hanger it ends in. I knew something was coming but now I need part two to come out ASAP!