This came in my Fairyloot subscription. I really enjoyed The Cruel Prince, so I was hopeful this book would be just as good.
This book was an entirely different genre and type for Black. It's more of an urban fantasy story. Where somewhere in the eighties-ish, someone discovered that shadows could actually have magic. What followed was a litany of seedy enterprises, all with the purpose of gaining power and sway by the use of shadows.
The main character, Charlie Hall, is a badass. She's trying to make better choices, go straight, do things the right way. Even if she spent most of her formative years as a thief and con artist. She has a relatively quiet life. She works at a bar, lives with her younger sister and boyfriend, and ends up sucked into bigger plots.
One of the most interesting things is the shadows.
It has become an enterprise where people personalize their shadows, steal others shadows, and use their shadows to do magic.
It turns out, Charlie's shadow is only beginning its quickening, much to her younger sister's chagrin.
While at work, Charlie is attacked because she's managed to get herself caught up in the search of a missing book. Somehow, her boyfriend shows up, murders the guy, and disposes of his body. Her shy, quiet boyfriend who she rarely sees any emotion from. She chalks it up to his shadow, but, really, there's so much more.
My only real complaint was the lack of romance. Whereas Cruel Prince was full of heat and longing, I really wished we could have seen that more with Charlie and Vince.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novel and can't wait to see how she wraps it up in book two!
Abbie