Shades of Magic Volume 1 The Steel Prince (Shades of Magic, #1) by V.E. Schwab

​    To my legitimate surprise, I actually read all three Shades of Magic books. I prefer standalones, I don’t care for fantasy and I don’t like overly long books and yet somehow I managed to read a fantasy trilogy comprising three large volumes. It wasn’t even the right kind of magic, not the kind I’m interested in.
   So what gives? Well, for one thing they are actually quite well written, imaginative and immersive. And for another, I’m a completist, so after book one I was compelled to continue. The latter is also a reason for this graphic novel election.
   Because the world of the books is so elaborate and layered, it lends itself well to spin offs and graphic adaptations are as good of a way to spin as any. And so there’s this story, a prequel of sorts, a tale of a brash young prince sent away by his father to a far away and dangerous corner of the empire as a way of teaching him a lesson. 
    In the books he is known as Maxim Maresh, the King of London and the adoptive father of Kell. But most kings began as princes and this is a pretty exciting origin story as far as origin stories go. It features more of the characters from the books, including a kickass lesbian warrior. There’s even a pirate queen.
    So it’s fun. Or mostly fun. It’s still too fantasy for me. And the art didn’t exactly wow. It’s good, but has that video game slickness that isn’t really my favorite. But overall it was entertaining enough and the completist in me already plans to read the other books.
   For fans of the Shades of Magic universe, though, this is an absolute must. Or maybe these graphic novels will introduce that trilogy to more readers. Either way, magic awaits.