Scan barcode
A review by ghostlydreamer
In Shade and Shadow by Barb Hendee, J.C. Hendee
4.0
So...remember when I said I'd never give a Noble Dead book less than five stars? I must have forgotten about In Shade and Shadow, then. Because now I clearly remember giving this one four stars and finding it my least favorite of the series up to this point. I guess that's what I get for writing all these reviews five years later, right? Forgetfulness.
Anyway, this one was an abrupt departure from what we know about this series. For one, it comes from Wynn's perspective, which I didn't hate...but I also didn't love. Here's the thing: although the plot is immense (it has to be, to span a total of 14 books), this is very much a character driven story. Naturally, I was drawn to Leesil and Magiere first because they were our main protagonists of the first six novels. And while their story is by no means over, we don't get to see them again until book 10. That bothered me a bit, because I would have preferred alternating chapters, where half the book came from Wynn and Chane's perspective, while the other half came from Leesil and Magiere's. It's not that I dislike Wynn, but I wasn't drawn to her in the same way I am Leesil and Magiere. Alternating chapters also would have worked for two reasons: their paths may separate for the time being, but their stories still intertwine and eventually weave back into each by book 10, so it would have made sense to just continue on with both perspectives for the sake of continuity. The second reason is directly related to the first, in that once we DO meet up with Leesil and Magiere, we spend a lot of time playing catch up, because we just spent three points singularly focused on Wynn and Chane...while Leesil and Magiere went off and did their own thing and we didn't get a word of it. This may be starting to sound like a review for book 10, but I say this because if book 7 were set up different, it would have made for a smoother transition later, when we return to Leesil and Magiere's perspective and leave Wynn's behind in the dust (even though she's still with them). And to be frank, while I recognize Wynn's side of the story is important, it wasn't nearly as interesting as Leesil and Magiere's side.
Speaking of departures, this reads more like a murder mystery set in a fantasy world than it did the big traveling adventure we'd gone on with Leesil and Magiere in the previous books. We're mostly stuck in the same place, and in a city no less. While I have no qualms with this, the overall plot was very different and resulted in me getting slightly bored at times. Some of the characters were downright unpleasant or plain annoying. But despite my complaints, I actually found this to be a unique plot. Sure, it was different from the previous books, but I also knew that going into it. And it sets itself apart from other fantasy books, which rarely follow this almost...procedural set up.
But I'll tell you the worst part about this book (and arc in general), is Chane. First off, I could never properly figure out how to say his name, and that bugged. Nothing ever sounded right. Second, he irked the shit out of me. And the way he enraptured Wynn made me broil with irritation. I don't understand WHAT that woman saw in him and never will. I definitely wasn't pleased to have to read MORE about him, when I would've happily left HIM in the dust if I could.
But despite my complaints, I am still easy to satisfy, especially with the Noble Dead Saga, so the four stars are still justified. If this were any other book, belonging to any other series, it might have gotten two stars, but my obsessive ass was too damn in love with this series to really care that it didn't stack up compared with the others, because at least I had something to read from the noble dead saga even if it wasn't completely what I wanted.
And I read it in a day. That must account for something.
Anyway, this one was an abrupt departure from what we know about this series. For one, it comes from Wynn's perspective, which I didn't hate...but I also didn't love. Here's the thing: although the plot is immense (it has to be, to span a total of 14 books), this is very much a character driven story. Naturally, I was drawn to Leesil and Magiere first because they were our main protagonists of the first six novels. And while their story is by no means over, we don't get to see them again until book 10. That bothered me a bit, because I would have preferred alternating chapters, where half the book came from Wynn and Chane's perspective, while the other half came from Leesil and Magiere's. It's not that I dislike Wynn, but I wasn't drawn to her in the same way I am Leesil and Magiere. Alternating chapters also would have worked for two reasons: their paths may separate for the time being, but their stories still intertwine and eventually weave back into each by book 10, so it would have made sense to just continue on with both perspectives for the sake of continuity. The second reason is directly related to the first, in that once we DO meet up with Leesil and Magiere, we spend a lot of time playing catch up, because we just spent three points singularly focused on Wynn and Chane...while Leesil and Magiere went off and did their own thing and we didn't get a word of it. This may be starting to sound like a review for book 10, but I say this because if book 7 were set up different, it would have made for a smoother transition later, when we return to Leesil and Magiere's perspective and leave Wynn's behind in the dust (even though she's still with them). And to be frank, while I recognize Wynn's side of the story is important, it wasn't nearly as interesting as Leesil and Magiere's side.
Speaking of departures, this reads more like a murder mystery set in a fantasy world than it did the big traveling adventure we'd gone on with Leesil and Magiere in the previous books. We're mostly stuck in the same place, and in a city no less. While I have no qualms with this, the overall plot was very different and resulted in me getting slightly bored at times. Some of the characters were downright unpleasant or plain annoying. But despite my complaints, I actually found this to be a unique plot. Sure, it was different from the previous books, but I also knew that going into it. And it sets itself apart from other fantasy books, which rarely follow this almost...procedural set up.
But I'll tell you the worst part about this book (and arc in general), is Chane. First off, I could never properly figure out how to say his name, and that bugged. Nothing ever sounded right. Second, he irked the shit out of me. And the way he enraptured Wynn made me broil with irritation. I don't understand WHAT that woman saw in him and never will. I definitely wasn't pleased to have to read MORE about him, when I would've happily left HIM in the dust if I could.
But despite my complaints, I am still easy to satisfy, especially with the Noble Dead Saga, so the four stars are still justified. If this were any other book, belonging to any other series, it might have gotten two stars, but my obsessive ass was too damn in love with this series to really care that it didn't stack up compared with the others, because at least I had something to read from the noble dead saga even if it wasn't completely what I wanted.
And I read it in a day. That must account for something.