One Dark Window (The Shepherd King, 1) By Rachel Gillig

I read a lot of books, all genres, and have for a long time.

This book I could tell was different than its counterparts at the start. It’s still magic and fantasy with a dash (tiny) of romance. The spice level is half a pepper at best.

Magic has always been something I’ve lover I’m 39 now but I’ve always loved the idea of it. And Rachel rights it by using what we know of magic but making it her own. In this case the magic is stored in cards and even those who are infected with magic, all of it comes at a price. And you slowly get fed the story of what happened through the voice that lived in the main characters head.

The main character is female and a badass in her own right, but with words and not fighting. That alone was a nice change since every book I read for the last 20 years, if the lead is female,she’s also capable of everything. And tho I am a solo human and enjoy my own company more often than not and am also a runner, I am not at all going to win a fight. So Elspeth, the main character, was more relatable rather than a true fantasy. And neither is wrong, I enjoy both tropes, but it was every nice to have a change of pace.

Gillig does a good job of character development, it’s probably why I kept reading. The story was very slow at first. I almost put it down and I’m really glad I didn’t. I am tired of authors alluding to things but never giving you the full story. And that did get old quick. Fortunately as the story develops, Rachel stopped “hiding” things from the reader and the story started moving quicker, giving you more detail to help you stay invested. She is pretty detailed, but not overly so, which may be why the first part dragged until the action kicked in. Obviously you need to hide somethings, you have a plot to build. It was more of that foreshadowing or just not fully detailing it out or alluding to something more that would get in the way of my enjoyment. Rachel isn’t alone in this, it’s an overly used writing technique right now, which may be why I noticed it more.

All in all, the writing was beautiful, different from anything I’ve read lately, took me a minute to get used to and I thoroughly enjoyed a shift from my normal pace. I loved that the story was familiar but also so different. And I am left ready to dive into book 2 and cannot wait.

If that’s what you’re looking for, and are also a fan of magical fantasy, try out One Dark Window, I don’t think youll regret it.

If you are looking for that,

I picked this up because of a reel I saw on TikTok. It delivered a thrillingly fantasy world that consumed me in a single bite!!

✨🃏🖤🃏🖤🃏🖤🃏🖤🃏🖤✨

Elspeth Spindle was born in a strange world of unbalanced magic. She herself possesses strange magic after falling feverish as a little girl 🩸♠️ and since then she’s had a 500-year old Monster living rent free in her head! But remember…all magic comes with a price. Ohh and there’s also a mysterious Mist 🌬️ slowly swallowing the Town!

”Be wary. Be clever. Be good.”

A MUST READ FOR:
🌲 unique magic system based on the forest & trees
🌲 strong & smart fmc!
🌲 magical playing cards that inspire treachery & treason
🌲 fast paced! Nightmare’s constant stream of puzzles & mysteries
🌲 delicious royal boysssss

”Woven in secrets, hidden in half-truths.”

GOTHIC FANTASY with amazingly mysterious storyline that had me completely captivated ⚔️ It was almost a competition scheming and secrets! Some revelations so unpredictable it had me putting my book down for a second because IT WAS JUST TOO GOOD! The whole book journey cured my ACOTAR/TOG book hangover!!

✨favorite Providence Card ~ 🃏The Well Card🃏 ~ clear sight to recognize one’s enemies ✨

”Be wary the blue. Be wary the stone. Be wary of shadows the water hath shown. Your enemies wait. The wolves stalk the gate. Be wary of shadows the water hath shown.”

Elspeth herself was definitely my favorite part of the book. Not the traditional warrior type ⚔️ but often realizes on her wits & cries frequently….girl same! I really enjoyed her adventures from her secluded forest home to being courted by a royal man 👀 no spoilers!!

This is more of a fantasy with a sprinkle sprinkle 💖 of romance. Not high on the ROMANtasy scale but I honestly didn’t mind it! Elspeth had other things to worry about.

CAN’T WAIT TO READ THE NEXT ONE!!

First book and the story was luring, the characters easy to remember and the rhyming fun yet twisted. I love the different plot of this story. It’s beautiful in a slightly twisted kind of way.
I was worried when I first started the story. I thought that I would get lost in the whole Providence Cards concept, but no. It was easy to understand the story concepts and the powers at hand. It was even more easy due to the rhyming passages that explains powers. I swear, rhyming makes context and concepts stick so much better.😂
This book was like opening a storybook from my childhood, with all the rhyming. I smiled and teared up a bit throughout my reading. Enchanting. Thank you, Mrs. Rachel Gillig, for a wonderful read and for giving me a piece of my childhood back.

Venía bien empaquetado, pero con un doblez en la esquina en la parte de atrás del libro

“There once was a girl, clever and good, who tarried in shadow in the depths of the wood. There also was a King—a shepherd by his crook, who reigned over magic and wrote the old book. The two were together, so the two were the same: “The girl, the King… and the monster they became.”

Wow. Absolutely enthralling. The fact that this is Rachel’s debut is astounding to me. I don’t even know precisely where to start. The world-building was superb and seamless with little-to-no data dumping. The magic system was among the more unique I’ve encountered with magic being relegated to the use of cards (akin to tarot cards) and those infected by the mist. The pacing was absolutely perfect, not a sluggish section to be found. Add to that, Rachel’s beautiful, atmospheric writing and you get a really satisfying gothic fantasy sprinkled with romance and monsters.

The Characters:
Elspeth is a realistic FMC. She comes across as a normal girl who isn’t trying to become something she just isn’t for the sake of the story. She isn’t interested in learning to fight by physical means to save herself. Instead, despite the strangeness of her circumstances, she relies on her wit and her adherence to doing the right thing compels her efforts to make right the unfairness of her world. She doubts herself like any sane person would. There were several instances while reading where I could feel her fear and the urgency of her actions as if they were my own. I loved that I felt like I really got to know her without ever feeling like I was being “told”.

Obviously, Ravyn Yew is freaking fantastic. He ticks all my MMC boxes. He’s tall, dark haired, and handsome and willing to crush the bones of anyone who harms his girl. His characterization is a no brainer and is spot on for those who gravitate towards this type of male lead in a F/M story. I do feel that there’s a lot more to him than we got to see in book 1 and I’m curious to see if book 2 gives more with regards to the inner workings of his mind.

Not one of the side characters in this book fell short for me. They were all intriguing and I found myself wanting to get to know each of them because their inclusion in the story felt truly compelling and not at all like any of them were there as mere plot devices. However, I loathed Prince Hauth almost immediately. I am rooting with every fiber of my existence for him to meet a very grisly end in book 2.

The Romance:
The progression of things between Elspeth and Ravyn felt so natural and not at all sluggish or forced. I adored the fact that there is very little conflict between Elspeth and Ravyn. Too often, I find that although they can be great fun, some stories are bogged down by poorly executed adherence to certain tropes. That did not happen in One Dark Window. Here, it was clear pretty early on that Elspeth and Ravyn are drawn to one another and neither of them put up contrived barriers that prevent them from being honest about how they feel. It was so satisfying to read a story with so much depth that played out the romance in this manner. There was also a dash of smut, but it was so well written. See quote below as evidence:

“Can I kiss you?”
“A bit late to ask, isn’t it?”
“Not on your mouth, Elspeth.”