Dear Readers,
I like the young adult genre and I am working on a YA novel,
so when I was encouraged to read this well-received series, I felt I should
start with the Shadows novella, a prequel of sorts. The author obviously penned
it to introduce Dawson and Bethany, two characters that affect the plot in the
books that follow this one. Her intent is clear, she wants Shadows to replace tedious
back story in Obsidian, the first book in her Lux series, and urban fantasy.
I get it, unfortunately I didn't like it. It went on and on
about how beautiful Dawson and Bethany found each other. The insecurity
each was feeling over how the other could find them so attractive, and how concerned they were that their personal secrets could
affect their budding relationship in a negative way. Not that there were any
gargoyles hidden in Bethany’s closet waiting to be revealed.
Bethany is pretty,
but not gorgeous, and she is a good artist. But other than Dawson telling his siblings
that she's a really good painter, there is nothing to make us find this talent
of hers remarkable. Dawson, has green eyes, he has dark hair, he has great abs,
he's not as good a fighter as his brother, and other than the fact he's a
glowing alien… Yawn!
I think the basic problem, is there’s no real plot. There
were no shared obstacles to overcome, other than the whole relationship
building process. There wasn't a story arc to speak of, characters are
introduced, and then there's the repetitive narrative of Bethany and Dawson
getting to know each other. This bonding goes on and on for the biggest part of
the book. The action picks up when the author throws Bethany off a cliff, and
then she has the horror struck Dawson breathe new life into Bethany. From the
cliff to the end of the story barely covers a heartbeat, just a few page
fillers. And in a rushed together, lightly narrated confrontation with the
stories antagonists, she leaves us to believe Bethany and Dawson have both
died.
Ah, but I don't believe it, and worse I don't really care if
they died. I can cry over someone losing their pet goldfish, and yet I felt
nothing. Ms Armentrout never managed to get me involved with these two vanilla
characters. The writing wasn't horrible, but it wasn't good either, and it
needed another edit. There were just a few awkward sentences throughout, but
they hung me up.
So I guess that spells doom, at least as far as me buying the next
book in the series...right? Wrong! Included with my e-book version, was a
preview chapter of Obsidian. I wasn't going to read it; I felt those few
minutes of my life could be better spent walking my dog Nigel. And then I
thought, what the hey, after all I paid for it, and besides it was too hot outside
for a walk. So I read it. OMG! I Loved it! I went to Amazon to see if the
preview was longer and it was. Two chapters were in the preview, I loved them!
I was cranky when I couldn't read the next page. I wanted it now, and I wanted
to keep reading. I tried the library, it was checked out. I checked the half
priced book store, they didn't have it. So I will buy the e-book version. I
will let you know if the rest of the book is as engaging as the first two
chapters were.
In conclusion, I can't believe the same author wrote both
Shadows and Obsidian. If my experience gives a clue, I would say Shadows is not
going to encourage people to read the series, just the opposite. Readers who
have already read and loved the series will like it, no matter what, as true
fans tend to be more forgiving...at least for awhile.
I ordered a couple of new books from Amazon, I am anxiously awaiting their arrival later in the week. One is The Woman Who Loved Horses, by Don Walters, and the other is This Town, by Mark Liebovich. I will post a review when I complete them.
Take care,
Shelley Riley
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