Book Review: Paths of the Shadow by Hannah Ross

Paths of the Shadow by Hannah Ross


(I received a free copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.)



BLURB

Meet Nicholas Swift, a determined bachelor and a skeptical historian. His work is made of dispelling myths and shedding light on the solid body of fact. When he is told by the residents of a small village about a strange phenomenon that can be observed in the area, he dismisses these rumors as old wives' tales. Sooner than he knows, however, he is drawn into an adventure he neither expected nor wished for as he discovers a magical link between our world and another quite unlike it.

Nicholas finds himself in a land full of loyalty and courage, but also blood thirst and danger. He meets a king who yearns for an heir, a man who hides a dark secret, and a woman who believes she has what it takes to keep her beloved land safe, but threatens countless lives in the process. In the midst of it all, Nicholas is left to figure out the purpose of his unique fate.



CHARACTERS

I think the characters were well drawn. Each character was well described and they developed as the story went on. Most of the twists in the story are brought about by the characteristics of each person in the story. Though the number of characters is a little high, it was easy to keep track of them all and see them as individuals for each has a unique personality that defines them so beautifully. Towards the end it is nice to see the characters come to terms with the happenings around them and how they don't expect everything to be all packed and wrapped up in a bow.

PLOT

The idea of another world existing which can be accessed by the people of our world is a common plot device but Hannah Ross has brought an uniqueness to it. I liked how the world she has created is so realistic and believable. The world isn't perfect and things don't always work as they should. It is a world we can connect and empathize with and that makes up the heart of the plot. The subplots add substance to the overall story and makes it more intriguing.

WRITING

This is the part that made me knock off two stars. There were places where the setting changed so quickly it was disorienting. A think even a couple of asterisks between the paragraphs would have been enough to help the reader understand.

A understand why some books have lengthy prose. I like lengthy prose. But I don't like them where they are not needed. This is only my opinion, but i had a feeling that there was quite a bit of extra information that readers can do without.

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE BOOK

-The three dimensional characters
-The unique take on a common plot device

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE ABOUT THE BOOK

-The quick switching of settings
-The lengthy prose at some places

CONCLUSION

The plot has a lot of potential and the story is well crafted and my only complaint is with the writing style. Hannah Ross knows how to make a number of subplots work without them overwhelming the story.

RATING

View all my reviews