The artwork is incredible and I love the quote on the back. It’s so big and can easily fit a thick hardback book in. Meanwhile, the black magic spreads between non-magical humans, controlling them and turning their eyes black.Handful of Stars Book Sleeve (artwork by quote design by I was so ecstatic with this and in awe of how stunning the design is! I have a lot of book sleeves and I think this is my new favourite one. Realizing that the magic stone is a relic of Black London, Lila and Kell resolve to return it to its rightful place to seal Black London off again. Kell arrives, and Holland engages him in combat the tavern owner dies in the ensuing fight. Holland finds Lila and holds her hostage, demanding that she summon Kell. He accidentally stabs himself with the sword, which infects him with dark magic. Alarmed, Lila throws it out the window, where another man happens upon it. When Lila examines the stone, it turns into a huge black sword. When she sees Kell, she sees an opportunity: Lila snatches the stone and attempts to escape, but Kell catches her and tells her about its magical properties.

Now, however, she has come to the tavern because a fire has destroyed her lodging and she has nowhere else to go. She dreams of becoming a pirate and holds a magical map that she believes can direct her anywhere she wants to go. He is aware of a fourth world, Black London, which was apparently destroyed by black magic some time ago.ĭelilah Bard, who goes by Lila, lives in Gray London. Since then, he has learned that he can access three Londons: Gray London, the ordinary human world Red London, the utopian magical world where he was born and raised and White London, a tumultuous world threatened by black magic. In childhood, he discovered he was one of an extremely rare race of magical humans called the Antari, who conjure portals that enable travel between parallel worlds. The novel begins with a flashback to Kell’s childhood. Their prerogatives change when an evil force threatens all the versions of London, and they join forces to save their home. Making a living as a smuggler of relics between worlds for wealthy non-magical people, Kell inadvertently runs into an intrepid and entrepreneurial thief named Delilah Bard. Set in 18th century London during the reign of King George III, it follows a magician named Kell who can travel between four parallel worlds called Red, Grey, White, and Black London. A Darker Shade of Magic is a 2015 fantasy novel by V.E.

Illumicrate a darker shade of magic