A review by literaryhomeland
Silver Vein by Shannon French

4.0

I was fortunate enough to recieve an ARC of Silver Vein in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 STARS ✨

They say to never judge a book by its cover, but Silver Vein truly is as smoky as the cover, which I believe is just absolutely stunning. I remember seeing the cover reveal and the blurb on Shannon's TikTok and thinking: yes! This is a bit of me, I'm signing up for an ARC!

This was such an exciting read! As someone who mainly reads high fantasy, the change of a low, urban fantasy was like a breath of fresh air, and Shannon executed it so well. I absolutely loved reading it and being familiar with the locations, especially the tube stations, as someone who has been to those places in London it made it even more enticing? In a way, I feel as if Silver Vein has actually given me an insight into a type of fantasy reading that I've been sleeping on.

I really have nothing but good things to say. The book dives straight into the action which draws you in from the very first page, Quinn is a strong and persistent main character who remains adamant to solve her case regardless of the countless shocks and revelations she has to endure. I really liked Quinn, she was a fantastic protagonist.

Another thing I loved about Silver Vein was that Shannon takes the time to delve into the plot and the 'brewing uprising' that's described in the blurb. I feel like a lot of fantasy reads recently go race straight into the chaos which leads to confusion, but Shannon did a great job and allowed it to feel as if you were on the journey of discovery with Quintessa. There's also just the right amount of spice.

Finally, be prepared to be shocked. There were a few times with the plot that had me thinking 'oh, no, please don't do the trope I think you're going to do, please don't do the trope I think you're going to' only to for there to be a completely different twist which left me leaving annotations like 'WHAT THE F*CKKK' and 'AHHHH' (yes, they're actual annotations, I just checked, I'm obviously an incredibly formal annotator.)

I really can't wait to see what happens next! From our main characters Quinn and Xavier to the side characters Mariella, Seamus, Gabriel and Samael. They'll all make their mark on you and leave you wanting more. This is a book you need to add to your 2022 reading list!