By Mattie Lugar
My first dive into the gothic fantasy genre, the novel “One Dark Window” by Rachel Gillig is full of mystery, betrayal, and a magic system that will pull you in from page one. This is the first book in the Shepard King duology, and I believe that this series is totally worth the read. I was initially skeptical about this book because it blew up on BookTok and I tend to take recommendations from there with a heavy grain of salt, but I can absolutely say this was worth the hype.
The magic system in this book takes two forms: Providence cards and charms to keep the Mist at bay. Providence Cards are essentially magically-enhanced tarot cards, and each card bestows the user a unique ability, but remember that all magic comes with a price. These magical cards are not so easy to come by, and depending on their rarity, people would pay a hefty price to own one.
Charms are people’s only hope against the creeping Mist from the forest, and losing one is practically a guaranteed death sentence. Long before our story begins, the kingdom of Blunder was cursed by the Spirit of the Woods. People are warned not to stray too far from the path without their charm or they may be lost to the woods forever.
Our story follows Elspeth Spindle as she does everything in her power to protect her secret; she has a monster living in her head. When a fever tore through Elspeth’s village at a young age, she had to hide her symptoms away for the fear of being killed. If she were fortunate enough to survive the fever, she would find herself blessed with magic that manifested in mysterious ways. Elspeth’s magic doesn’t manifest an outward appearance, but a brief touch to her uncle’s Nightmare card when she was a child brought this terrible monster into her head.
Elspeth has dubbed the creature the Nightmare, and he protects her in more ways than one. Keeping her physically safe and guarding her secrets, he also has granted her the ability to see Providence cards by color alone. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she meets a mysterious highway man on the forest road. This highwayman is unlike any other as he is none other than Ravyn Yew, the King’s nephew and one of the most dangerous men in all of Blunder.
Elspeth is thrown into a dangerous world as she is recruited by Ravyn to attempt to cure Blunder of dark magic and rid the kingdom of the Mist. Their mission is simple: unite all twelve Providence cards and get rid of the Mist. But nothing is ever so simple. They are racing against both the King and the Nightmare, as the King is trying to build his own deck for selfish reasons, and the Nightmare is slowly taking over Elspeth’s mind.