Hi everyone
An Instruction in Shadow is the second book in the Inheritance of Magic series, Benedict Jacka’s follow-up to his completed Alex Verus series.
I bought this book from Bol.com
"Stephen Oakwood has emerged victorious against the schemes of his aristocratic family. Now he finally has the opportunity to do what he’s been wanting to do for a long time: track down his father.
But doing so won’t be easy. Stephen’s not so isolated any more, but the contacts he’s making in the magical world—everyone from the corporation he works for to the mother he’s just beginning to reconnect with—all have agendas of their own. And now a new group is emerging from the shadows, calling themselves the Winged.
Their leader, the mysterious Byron, promises that he can show Stephen how to find his father...but he wants something in return.
Following that trail will throw Stephen into greater danger than he’s ever faced before. To survive, he’ll need to use all of his tricks and sigls, and pick up some new ones. Only then will he be able to prevail against his enemies...and find out who’s really pulling the strings."
So far, I don’t love this series.
There are a few things that really got on my nerves. First, the constant foreshadowing; phrases like "but that was about to change" pop up every few pages. It feels like a cheap and lazy way to create tension. Second, we already know Stephen is low on money; it doesn’t need repeating in every conversation or introspective moment. Being reminded of it every few pages got old quickly. I’d rather the book focus more on his learning and growth instead of his financial struggles and his work. And third, there were too many infodumps disguised as conversations with his friend, grandfather, or the priest. It felt unnatural and slowed the story way down.
That said, I did enjoy reading about the magic and Stephen’s progress. The world is interesting, and I love that it’s set in London. Colin is a fun addition to the cast, and I like Stephen as a main character; his interactions, his drive to learn, his humor, and the fact that he isn’t just the best fighter or drucrafter. He has to work for his skills, and that makes him relatable. And, of course, Hobbs is obviously the best character in the whole series.
The pacing is good, there's lots of action and time for conversations, planning and learning. But the infodumps really dragged the story down. I do like learning about Stephen’s family history and the magic, just not in such a clunky way.
The series has potential, but it needs some refining to make it amazing. I’ll read the third book and decide after that whether to continue.
Have you read An Instruction in Shadow or any of Benedict Jacka’s other books? What did you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Happy reading!
Helena
