A Kingdom of Shadows by Emily Bain Murphy

Book Synopsis:

The shadows have been overtaking the light, ever since The Great Betrayal. Now, the sun shines increasingly dimmer, it takes more firewood to brighten a room, and the world is growing more desperate and dangerous by the day.

Twelve-year-old orphan Finn survives in this world by being a thief, along with his best friend Adrion and younger sister Lydia. When the three meet a mysterious stranger who claims to know of a lake of light, they set off on an adventure across the kingdom. They discover that Wildfel is a place of great danger and great beauty, where the mist can steal your most precious memories, starlight gathers in waterfalls, spiders spin shimmering webs of glass as deadly as they are dazzling. If they can find this mythical lake of light, it could change the course of their lives, and the kingdom itself.

There are also secrets hiding in the darkness that could change Finn’s very understanding of everything he knows to be true, even about himself—but only if he's brave enough to step into the light.

My Review:

Note: I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley

5/5 stars. I saw someone mention this book in a video, and the first thing that caught my attention was the author. I'd only read one other Emily Bain Murphy book before this, but I loved it and gave it five stars. The concept of this book sounded interesting enough, but I had very high hopes because of the author. My expectations were met. A Kingdom of Shadows was a heartfelt, cozy story with unique worldbuilding and great themes. The characters also had a cute dynamic. I'm looking forward to the rest of the series when it comes out.

I really enjoyed the fantasy world of this book. I much prefer soft magic, low fantasy, which is exactly what this was. There was magic, but it wasn't a huge system with tons of lore and history to keep track of. The world itself was also very interesting. Every place had a specialty that turned into a twisted version when the darkness overtook the world. Most of the fantasy elements in this book were unlike anything I've read in other fantasy novels.

The characters in this story were fun. I loved the found family aspect, with new people joining along the way and everyone learning to trust each other. I also loved the growth of the main character, Finn. Everyone in this book was someone you wanted to root for.

The plot kept me engaged the whole time. It wasn't too complicated, but it never felt boring. The characters had an end goal they were working toward, which gave the story momentum, and every obstacle they encountered along the way made things more interesting. It was a very cozy story. Even when something dangerous happened, there was still a cozy vibe to everything.

Finally, I loved the book's overarching theme of light vs dark. There were a lot of great lines and passages about how light and good can win out. The theme also played a big role in Finn's character development. As a Christian, I love when concepts of good conquering darkness show up in non-Christian media.

Content:

Language: None

Sexual Content: None

Violence/Gore: A physical fight, some mentions of wounds and blood, nothing described in detail

Drugs/Alcohol: None