The Six of Crows to Schwab pipeline
If your teen has already burned through Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse, this is the inevitable next step. While it was technically published as adult fiction, the "New Adult" label fits better here. It occupies that sweet spot for readers who are bored with the chosen-one tropes of middle-grade fiction but aren't quite looking for the dense, multi-POV slog of high-fantasy doorstoppers.
The hook is the four Londons—Grey (boring, no magic), Red (vibrant, healthy magic), White (starving, cruel magic), and Black (consumed by magic). It’s a brilliant setup because it allows the story to shift genres. One chapter feels like a Dickensian street heist in Grey London, and the next feels like a high-stakes political thriller in the blood-soaked courts of White London.
Where the "Adult" label actually matters
The debate over whether this is YA or adult usually misses the point. It’s not about the complexity of the prose; it’s about the brutality of the world. White London is genuinely unsettling. The rulers there, the Dane twins, operate on a level of sadistic violence that you won't find in Harry Potter. There are scenes involving blood magic and psychological torture that lean into horror territory.
If you are navigating books about magic and trying to gauge if your reader is ready for the "darker" side of the genre, look at how they handled the later Hunger Games books. If the death and grit in those didn't rattle them, they’ll be fine here. The violence in Schwab's world is sharp and impactful, but it isn't nihilistic. There is always a sense of wonder and adventure acting as a counterweight to the grim parts.
Lila Bard is the main event
While Kell is the "face" of the book—the magician with the coat of many sides—Delilah "Lila" Bard is why most people finish the trilogy. She is a cross-dressing thief from Grey London who has no business being in a magical war, and she basically bullies her way into the plot.
She’s a refreshing change of pace from the typical "reluctant hero" because she is aggressively, almost recklessly, seeking adventure. She isn't interested in being a princess or a love interest; she wants to be a pirate. This makes for a great "how to use it" moment: talk about her agency. Lila doesn't wait for permission to join the story. She steals a magical stone and forces the world to deal with her.
A gateway to high fantasy
The Shades of Magic series is a perfect "bridge" book. The magic system is tactile and easy to visualize—Antari magicians use blood and specific commands to travel between worlds—which keeps the plot moving fast. It avoids the "info-dumping" that kills the momentum in a lot of fantasy.
If your kid finds this too slow at the start, tell them to hang on until Lila and Kell finally collide. Once the two protagonists are in the same room, the chemistry and the stakes skyrocket. It turns from a moody world-building exercise into a high-speed chase across dimensions. If they finish this and want more, you know they’re ready for the heavier, more complex world-building of the broader fantasy genre.
