Reviews with content warning for Murder - The Shadows

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

The Shadows by Alex North

58 reviews

tarynreadss's review against another edition

5.0

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I LOVED this book! I read the Whisper Man by the same author and it definitely has similar vibes to this. This book was dark, mysterious, heart-pounding, creepy, and kept me guessing. I thought I had it figured out a couple of times throughout the book but I was wrong every time. This book gives major fall/Halloween spooky vibes and it's amazing. It felt like a fever dream at some parts. I think you'd like this book if you're looking for something to keep you up at night and be scared to go to sleep! I absolutely loved this one.

Content Warnings

joliwhite's review against another edition

2.0

dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Super descriptive, not nearly as captivating as The Whisper Man. Didn’t grab my attention until chapter 24.

Content Warnings

thetruthatallhazards's review against another edition

mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Content Warnings

coryduude's review against another edition

3.5

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Content Warnings

sofhaz's review against another edition

3.75

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Content Warnings

onemorepagecrew's review against another edition

4.5

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I first read Alex North’s earlier book, The Whisper Man, about two years ago. It legitimately scared me, cost me some sleep, and became a benchmark in thriller for me. It’s probably the reason it took me so long to read another of his books – I didn’t think it could stand up to the first one I read. Finally, earlier this month, I borrowed The Shadows on audio book from Libby and ended up finishing it in one day.

The bottom line (for me) – in terms of mystery and twists, it is as good as The Whisper Man. In terms of tense moments and creepiness, it is less jumpy. In terms of dark and disturbing, it’s on par.

In The Shadows, the protagonist is Paul who switches between two timelines: his teenage years and his current adult years. The book opens with the murder of children and alludes to the crime being committed by other children, though it takes the duration of the book to fully understand it all. There’s a current day copycat mystery, a slow to reveal picture of the past murders, and an ambiguous sense of who you can trust throughout. There’s also a paranormal element that add to the creepiness factor.

Overall, the mystery held throughout. The ending was satisfying with a bit of a twist, maybe even two twists depending on how well the author distracts you from reality. If you enjoyed The Whisper Man and were holding off on this one – go ahead and give it a go.

Content warnings: Murder, Death, Violence, Child death, Animal death

Content Warnings