This book is the exact opposite of YA novels these days. How exactly would you say?

Strong female lead who can think for herself.
Strong female lead who is smart without everyone else having to be an idiot.
Female lead still has weaknesses she tries to overcome, done in a realistic and organic way.
Romance that builds and takes time to develop.
Cliches are...where exactly? Not in this novel.
A defined world.
The romance, while prominent, doesn't overshadow everything else in the book to the point where the other elements suffer.
Pure originality.

Nothing in this book made me think of another book. It's almost crazy how often that happens now.

Oh, and this book is just a good read all around. After reading the Winner's Curse series, I decided to search out other novels by this author. It's a shame she doesn't have more out there.

I highly recommend.

It's a shame I still only want to give it 4 stars. Sadly it's missing that extra "oomph" that makes it impossible for me to resist giving a book 5 stars.

This is a hard book for me to rate, simply because of the drastic changes of the tone a quarter way through the book.

We start off with Darcy and her friends, and the new guy, Conn, who seems mysterious, and strangely interested in Darcy. The two become art partners and form a connection. At this point, I was just a little involved with the book. Both Darcy and Conn were a bit bland to me, but then things really picked up. At first, I was a bit weirded out by the onslaught of information and the changes the characters went through. Then, I become actively involved in the story, and I loved it.

While there is much to be desired, the plot, characters, and setting remain fairly solid. I started to fall in love with Conn and Darcy, and their interactions. The side characters had small parts, but they were pretty memorable, something that is nearly unheard of in today's YA books.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and, given some more time to reflect upon it, might even consider buying it. I admit, I was slightly disappointed when I came on Goodreads to see that there wasn't a sequel in the making. Oh, well. It's a great stand-alone novel, nonetheless.

EDIT: I also just found out that I've had experience with this author before in form of "The Winner's Curse." I thought the author's name was familiar. Hm. I might have to watch this one. Two books that I loved each time? I gotta have more.

no words describe my feelings for this...........

to read later

Started out annoying but ended as a masterpiece. After this endless cycle of vampires, werewolves and lately fae I craved for something different and here it is. Shades is a very interesting concept.

What a good read. Definitely saw a countless number of similarities between this story and the one that I have been writing for years. I feel a little like this author gets me. lol

I was a little confused for the first few chapters, because it seemed like it jumped around a lot. But the farther in I got, the better it was. I thought that the whole idea of this story was pretty neat, and I liked the "Alternate Universe" thing as well. And I also liked the way that Conn described Darcy's friends at one point. He said that they would do whatever they could to protect Darcy. Raphael would use his fists, Jims would use his words, and Lily was probably the most dangerous because whatever she said, the others would follow. I think that that description was completely accurate, and I liked how they all fit so well together.

This deserves 4 1/2 stars. It was a great story. The characters were developed fairly well. There were even some surprises - at least for me
Young adult fiction done very well!

Darcy Jones doesn't remember anything before the day she was abandoned at a Chicago firehouse. She was five years old.

Since then, Darcy has been bounced from foster home to foster home--never quite fitting in, never quite putting down roots.

Things finally seem to be different on Darcy's first day back at Lakebrook High. Her second year at the same school, Darcy finally has friends and even a foster mother who seems keen to keep Darcy around; all simple reasons for Darcy to be happy.

Then a new boy arrives at the school and eyes Darcy as if she were an enemy, maybe even a threat. Conn McCrea is both fascinating and frightening as he insinuates himself into Darcy's life. As she gets to know Conn she also begins to discover strange truths about herself and a world that shouldn't exist--a world where the Great Chicago Fire never happened and creatures called Shades have created an organization called the Shadow Society intent on eliminating humans.

Darcy always wanted to be part of something, to belong somewhere. But she may have more than she bargained for with Conn and infiltrating the Shades in The Shadow Society (2012) by Marie Rutkoski.

The Shadow Society is Rutkoski's first young adult novel. She is also the author of the popular Kronos Chronicles series for younger readers.

Part fantasy, part alternate history The Shadow Society is an evocative novel that is as haunting as it is enchanting. Rutkoski masterfully brings not one but two versions of Chicago to life on the page with characters that are charmingly real and entertaining. While the story is grounded in Darcy's journey to find the truth about herself, the novel also is refreshingly grounded with strong friendships. (Conn and Darcy's complicated relationship doesn't hurt either.)

A well-realized world and completely delightful characters come together with a gripping, surprising plot to create a winning combination in The Shadow Society.

Possible Pairings: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken, Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley, Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough, For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund, The Piper’s Son by Melina Marchetta, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock by T. S. Eliot

I just loved it.

I think there was something new to this book...something I haven't already seen and that was a big fat plus for the plot.

I also liked characters and the writing style of Marie Rutkoski.

Recommended!