One Dark Window (The Shepherd King, # 1)
By: Rachel Gillig
Publication: September 27, 2022 by Orbit
432 pages
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Magic, Gothic
Source: Borrowed from the e-library
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Goodreads description--Elspeth needs a monster. The monster might be her.Elspeth Spindle needs more than luck to stay safe in the eerie, mist-locked kingdom of Blunder—she needs a monster. She calls him the Nightmare, an ancient, mercurial spirit trapped in her head. He protects her. He keeps her secrets.
But nothing comes for free, especially magic.
When Elspeth meets a mysterious highwayman on the forest road, her life takes a drastic turn. Thrust into a world of shadow and deception, she joins a dangerous quest to cure Blunder from the dark magic infecting it. And the highwayman? He just so happens to be the King’s nephew, Captain of the most dangerous men in Blunder…and guilty of high treason.
Together they must gather twelve Providence Cards—the keys to the cure. But as the stakes heighten and their undeniable attraction intensifies, Elspeth is forced to face her darkest secret yet: the Nightmare is slowly taking over her mind. And she might not be able to stop him.
I listened to One Dark Window on audio, so that means spellings are a struggle. Also, I don't have any quotes to guide me, refer back to, or share with you in my review.
This world was unique but not explored in depth. There are Providence Cards that reminded me of tarot cards in their description. Except, instead of fortune telling, the Providence Cards provides the possessor/user of the card with supernatural powers of various kinds. Each card has a specific power. Elspeth has a unique ability that we don't learn about until later, but that ability has basically allowed her to absorb a Monster into her mind.
The king's nephew that the description stated was the highwayman who attacked Elspeth is trying to collect all 12 providence cards. He believes that collecting all of them will cure the mist that is trapping the kingdom. However, very few Nightmare cards exists. And Elspeth is having to keep a few secrets in the process.
If I remember correctly, Ravyn is the nephew in question. There were other family members, and another name that was similar (Hawk maybe???, or did it start with an R also?) that causes confusion in my memory, and I don't have the paper book to refer back to. Ravyn is supposed to be the love interest, but I feel like I heard something spoilerish that has kept me from connecting to him. I think I would have connected to him without the unsolicited knowledge I stumbled upon. But I will have to continue the series to see how things play out.
I was a little frustrated with how predictable the plot was. Things that felt like they should have been plot twists were glaringly obviously. Maybe this was designed for the next book to have a bigger impact, assuming the spoilers I heard were real. But at this point in the story, I find myself mildly caring about the characters where they are right now because I know a good bit must change in order to get where we end up if the spoilers I heard are true. Even still, I found myself enjoying the journey. It wasn't until I stopped to analyze it that I realized some world building was missing.
One Dark Window still gets 4 Stars. Have you read or listened to One Dark Window? What did you think? Let me know!
This review is part of my All Things Halloween event--a month of fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, mystery/thriller, etc reviews and books.
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