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A review by iffer
Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara
3.0
2.5 stars
I picked up this book for book candy, since I needed something that wasn't depressing, mysteriously sinister, or non-fiction to read to de-stress, and Cast in Shadow was surprisingly not bad. I thought that it was fairly well-written for the genre except for some awkward dialog and typos that somehow escaped editors. The story was entertaining and well-paced, and the world-building was interesting. Even though I found the main character annoying, mainly because she was the typical action series main character, meaning bland, powerful, and not the sharpest tool in the shed, the story had enough emotional oomph and likeable side characters to float the novel. I couldn't help but get the feeling that the main character, Kaylin, had such a lack of knowledge as a device to keep secrets from the reader so that Sagara could have a big Perry Mason reveal at the end of the book, while also having the benefit of having a character that was silly enough that readers would have no doubts that they would perform as well if they like to imagine themselves as the heroines of fantasy adventure novels. Despite the fact that the book was published under Luna, it didn't have an excruciating amount of romance in it; rather, two potential love interests were introduced, but there wasn't any overt romance. I'm guessing that romance may play a more prominent role in sequels.
I picked up this book for book candy, since I needed something that wasn't depressing, mysteriously sinister, or non-fiction to read to de-stress, and Cast in Shadow was surprisingly not bad. I thought that it was fairly well-written for the genre except for some awkward dialog and typos that somehow escaped editors. The story was entertaining and well-paced, and the world-building was interesting. Even though I found the main character annoying, mainly because she was the typical action series main character, meaning bland, powerful, and not the sharpest tool in the shed, the story had enough emotional oomph and likeable side characters to float the novel. I couldn't help but get the feeling that the main character, Kaylin, had such a lack of knowledge as a device to keep secrets from the reader so that Sagara could have a big Perry Mason reveal at the end of the book, while also having the benefit of having a character that was silly enough that readers would have no doubts that they would perform as well if they like to imagine themselves as the heroines of fantasy adventure novels. Despite the fact that the book was published under Luna, it didn't have an excruciating amount of romance in it; rather, two potential love interests were introduced, but there wasn't any overt romance. I'm guessing that romance may play a more prominent role in sequels.