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Shadowshifter
Unpredictable, sexy, intense, and terrifying! With symbolic parallels to the classic tale of Little Red Riding Hood, "SHADOWSHIFTER" gives us a whole new, modern-day Little Red to embrace... And her story is more complicated and horrifying than what the Brothers Grimm could have ever imagined! With an uncontrollable temper and a flair for the dramatics, sixteen-year-old, Julie Taylor, has landed herself in summer school after a very public and humiliating outburst. In class, she meets her striking but mysterious next door neighbor, Broderick Cooper and despite her determination to distance herself from him, she can't deny the tenacious draw she feels toward him. More and more, their paths continue to cross until they become completely entwined with one another. But as Julie swiftly becomes consumed with Broderick's love and supernatural gift, an unprecedented evil punches its way into their quiet little town bringing Hell on Earth. One close brush with danger and a terrifying chain of events begin to unfold that will forever change Julie's life as it opens her eyes to a sinister world that walks within her own... evil incarnate and legendary as fairy tales.
- GenresParanormalFantasy
580 pages, Paperback
First published December 15, 2010
2 people are currently reading
739 people want to read
About the author
Melissa D. Ellis
2 books21 followersAn avid fan of horror since before she was saying her alphabet, Melissa D. Ellis writes spine-tingling Young Adult and New Adult Paranormal novels in hopes that you’ll always look under your bed before sleeping at night.
She studied Music Therapy, Theater, and English at Tennessee Technological University and even received a degree in Christian Counseling from Heritage International Bible College and Seminary.
When she’s not writing, she’s making a living as a voice instructor and musician, enjoying the outdoors, conjuring up scary ideas to write about, quoting movies, changing diapers, running carpool, being a mom, drinking a lot of coffee, or eating.
Melissa makes her home in Crossville, Tennessee with her husband and three boys.
She studied Music Therapy, Theater, and English at Tennessee Technological University and even received a degree in Christian Counseling from Heritage International Bible College and Seminary.
When she’s not writing, she’s making a living as a voice instructor and musician, enjoying the outdoors, conjuring up scary ideas to write about, quoting movies, changing diapers, running carpool, being a mom, drinking a lot of coffee, or eating.
Melissa makes her home in Crossville, Tennessee with her husband and three boys.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
September 8, 2011
WOW! When I first recieved this book in the mail for review, I was a litle apprehensive cause it's so big. But Melissa's creative writing style, her mind-blowing characters, it all just had me hook, line and sinker. Full review to come.
September 7, 2011
Unpredicably terrifying !!!
Be scared be very scared !! the big bad wolf is not the only thing in the woods to be scared of !! Evil lurks !!
review to come soon
I loved it
Be scared be very scared !! the big bad wolf is not the only thing in the woods to be scared of !! Evil lurks !!
review to come soon
I loved it
September 21, 2011
Wow!!!
Where do I start!!! I loved it !!! ** inserts wolf howl here **
Melissa D Ellis has woven a remarkable story filled with suspense, love, danger, murder, mystery and certainly mayhem. Shadowshifter is definably like no other supernatural read, a paranormal that will have you running round the house, knife in hand, double checking your locks to make sure all is safe. At 560 pages long, one may expect a lag, but let me inform you Shadowshifter, will keep your interest piqued from start to finish and have you gasping in dismay at the turn of events - about after page 400....... the plot thickens !! havoic and mayhem start !!
Be warned !! Be terrified – very terrified!! lol..
I wasn’t sure I could read on, I was literally shit scared, my heart was frantic and I found myself sniffling. Lucky for me my hubby was asleep whilst I took several breathes, sniffed and ventured on. When you have read it, this part will make sense ..
It was intense and I was scared for the character. Melissa defined the emotions that well in certain parts; it was like I was in the book – the story. I think it’s why I felt so terrified! Yes I’m an emotional reader I get very involved in the read, and due to Melissa’s in-depth descriptions this made the read even more heartwarming and friggin scary !!!
I continued on, wanting to know where it was headed, gob smacked at the twists and turns, in the story, and unbelievably entranced friskily reading a record reading pace till the very end.
** Good advice - don’t read, at 1am in the morning. I lied in bed thinking of this story an hr past reading it, totally dumbfounded at the UNPREDITABLE climax, new revelations and also amazed at how Melissa wove all this into 560 pages and kept my interest piqued till no end.
Julie was a damaged- torn character, burnt badly by an Ex-boyfriend, no self confidence, and little self preservation. She found herself, thin, unattractive and just wanted to fit in with the in crowd. I’m sure at one stage in our lives we can relate to this.
Her Ex boyfriend made her feel like she was in = the in crowd, till his humiliations sent Julie into herself not trusting the opposite sex, or at least the good looking ones and believing they were all deceitful. ** Of course this could be realistic in life ** Scars on the inside, learning to trust, that not every person can be judged by their status- aka popularity. I found after what Julie had been through it made her a tougher person, I found she grew and accepted who she was, and was determined to fight for the love she believed in and fight to survive. With death knocking at her door – it was fight – die fighting or give in to the evil. Her faith was remarkable at the worst of times, not giving in, her character was strong.
Julie was hot headed, sarcastic, caring, and funny and had her faults but this gave her all the qualities that made her, who she was.
Brody was what every girl wanted - smart, hot, one of a kind, he was not afraid to be who he was, like whom he chose, and didn’t bother to be someone he was not, just to be in the in crowd. His love for Julie was heartwarming * romantic * swoon!! ** Throb throb **
I so loved the affection – both verbally and physically with these pair. It was not necessarily sex related, yet lustful, and romantic in a different light. I did honestly wait in sheer anticipation but understood Julie hesitation for it to be the right time and place to. Brody showed his gentleman side on more than one occasion and overall I felt the connection between the characters. An understanding and connection one could only want to ever find in their lifetime. It sent my heart a flutter He was to my **Hero **... I loved the way he constantly saved her one way or another!!!
Brody had a secret he could not share, a secret he found to bad to part with - this tearing apart a love they both knew they wanted but Brody couldn’t get past this to be with his one true love. As you read you will follow along with the ups and downs of Brody and Julies relationship. Not completely understanding whats happening but rest assured it all comes out of the wood works !! ** so to speak lol **
The climax will have you gasping, I was shocked, sniffling and I thought I was not going to be able to finish it, I found myself anxious and very aware of what the outcome could be. Melissa wove the emotions poetically throughout but I found the climax, the most intense. I just can’t explain it! ** I was shit scared – Terrified and every thought crossed my mind.
Melissa definitely defined this part in her book as the page turner, the be all!! My pages were wafting with steam, I was on full throttle ahead, and even in my sleep deprived state was unable to put this down.
Melissa’s descriptions where well detailed, her emotions well portrayed, if this was a sandwich I’d say you got a burger with the lot. Filled with all the goodies for a fantastic paranormal read, elements of surprise, and to top it off icing on the cake for an ending! Sweet !
All secondary characters all unique and defiantly added humor, spice and action and even mystery to the storyline. As the story flows the characters grow with it . Dialogue was crisp and sharp, all chapters running smoothly from one to the next and added bits of suspense and romance that was even out nicely throughout the read.
Great cast of characters!!! I’m sure you will enjoy and even giggle with.
The baddies will have you cringing and terrified!! Melissa portrayed all her characters with depth and character and defined them well. Even the evil ones!!
A unique and terrifying tale, Red Riding hood in a different light, the evil in the woods you could never have imagined and an UNPREDICTALBE ENDING by any means. Melissa Ellis has woven a tale that will give you second thoughts into Grimm’s Fairytale, yes more complicated – more horrifying with twists but defiantly more depth into love between the characters. A tale I’m sure you will enjoy.
I eagerly wait in anticipation for book 2 in the series!! Mind you saying that Melissa left Shadowshifter with an ending I’m sure the reader will be smiling at, but also inquisitive as to what will happen in the next book! I know Im curious about a certain male singer – and how Brody and Julie will handle the situation that has arisen.
A must read !!!
I rated this 5 !!
Where do I start!!! I loved it !!! ** inserts wolf howl here **
Melissa D Ellis has woven a remarkable story filled with suspense, love, danger, murder, mystery and certainly mayhem. Shadowshifter is definably like no other supernatural read, a paranormal that will have you running round the house, knife in hand, double checking your locks to make sure all is safe. At 560 pages long, one may expect a lag, but let me inform you Shadowshifter, will keep your interest piqued from start to finish and have you gasping in dismay at the turn of events - about after page 400....... the plot thickens !! havoic and mayhem start !!
Be warned !! Be terrified – very terrified!! lol..
I wasn’t sure I could read on, I was literally shit scared, my heart was frantic and I found myself sniffling. Lucky for me my hubby was asleep whilst I took several breathes, sniffed and ventured on. When you have read it, this part will make sense ..
It was intense and I was scared for the character. Melissa defined the emotions that well in certain parts; it was like I was in the book – the story. I think it’s why I felt so terrified! Yes I’m an emotional reader I get very involved in the read, and due to Melissa’s in-depth descriptions this made the read even more heartwarming and friggin scary !!!
I continued on, wanting to know where it was headed, gob smacked at the twists and turns, in the story, and unbelievably entranced friskily reading a record reading pace till the very end.
** Good advice - don’t read, at 1am in the morning. I lied in bed thinking of this story an hr past reading it, totally dumbfounded at the UNPREDITABLE climax, new revelations and also amazed at how Melissa wove all this into 560 pages and kept my interest piqued till no end.
Julie was a damaged- torn character, burnt badly by an Ex-boyfriend, no self confidence, and little self preservation. She found herself, thin, unattractive and just wanted to fit in with the in crowd. I’m sure at one stage in our lives we can relate to this.
Her Ex boyfriend made her feel like she was in = the in crowd, till his humiliations sent Julie into herself not trusting the opposite sex, or at least the good looking ones and believing they were all deceitful. ** Of course this could be realistic in life ** Scars on the inside, learning to trust, that not every person can be judged by their status- aka popularity. I found after what Julie had been through it made her a tougher person, I found she grew and accepted who she was, and was determined to fight for the love she believed in and fight to survive. With death knocking at her door – it was fight – die fighting or give in to the evil. Her faith was remarkable at the worst of times, not giving in, her character was strong.
Julie was hot headed, sarcastic, caring, and funny and had her faults but this gave her all the qualities that made her, who she was.
Brody was what every girl wanted - smart, hot, one of a kind, he was not afraid to be who he was, like whom he chose, and didn’t bother to be someone he was not, just to be in the in crowd. His love for Julie was heartwarming * romantic * swoon!! ** Throb throb **
I so loved the affection – both verbally and physically with these pair. It was not necessarily sex related, yet lustful, and romantic in a different light. I did honestly wait in sheer anticipation but understood Julie hesitation for it to be the right time and place to. Brody showed his gentleman side on more than one occasion and overall I felt the connection between the characters. An understanding and connection one could only want to ever find in their lifetime. It sent my heart a flutter He was to my **Hero **... I loved the way he constantly saved her one way or another!!!
Brody had a secret he could not share, a secret he found to bad to part with - this tearing apart a love they both knew they wanted but Brody couldn’t get past this to be with his one true love. As you read you will follow along with the ups and downs of Brody and Julies relationship. Not completely understanding whats happening but rest assured it all comes out of the wood works !! ** so to speak lol **
The climax will have you gasping, I was shocked, sniffling and I thought I was not going to be able to finish it, I found myself anxious and very aware of what the outcome could be. Melissa wove the emotions poetically throughout but I found the climax, the most intense. I just can’t explain it! ** I was shit scared – Terrified and every thought crossed my mind.
Melissa definitely defined this part in her book as the page turner, the be all!! My pages were wafting with steam, I was on full throttle ahead, and even in my sleep deprived state was unable to put this down.
Melissa’s descriptions where well detailed, her emotions well portrayed, if this was a sandwich I’d say you got a burger with the lot. Filled with all the goodies for a fantastic paranormal read, elements of surprise, and to top it off icing on the cake for an ending! Sweet !
All secondary characters all unique and defiantly added humor, spice and action and even mystery to the storyline. As the story flows the characters grow with it . Dialogue was crisp and sharp, all chapters running smoothly from one to the next and added bits of suspense and romance that was even out nicely throughout the read.
Great cast of characters!!! I’m sure you will enjoy and even giggle with.
The baddies will have you cringing and terrified!! Melissa portrayed all her characters with depth and character and defined them well. Even the evil ones!!
A unique and terrifying tale, Red Riding hood in a different light, the evil in the woods you could never have imagined and an UNPREDICTALBE ENDING by any means. Melissa Ellis has woven a tale that will give you second thoughts into Grimm’s Fairytale, yes more complicated – more horrifying with twists but defiantly more depth into love between the characters. A tale I’m sure you will enjoy.
I eagerly wait in anticipation for book 2 in the series!! Mind you saying that Melissa left Shadowshifter with an ending I’m sure the reader will be smiling at, but also inquisitive as to what will happen in the next book! I know Im curious about a certain male singer – and how Brody and Julie will handle the situation that has arisen.
A must read !!!
I rated this 5 !!
September 26, 2012
Wow!!!
Where do I start!!! I loved it !!! ** inserts wolf howl here **
Melissa D Ellis has woven a remarkable story filled with suspense, love, danger, murder, mystery and certainly mayhem. Shadowshifter is definably like no other supernatural read, a paranormal that will have you running round the house, knife in hand, double checking your locks to make sure all is safe.
At 560 pages long, one may expect a lag, but let me inform you Shadowshifter, will keep your interest piqued from start to finish and have you gasping in dismay at the turn of events - about after page 400....... the plot thickens !! havoic and mayhem start !!
Be warned !! Be terrified – very terrified!! lol..
I wasn’t sure I could read on, I was literally shit scared, my heart was frantic and I found myself sniffling. Lucky for me my hubby was asleep whilst I took several breathes, sniffed and ventured on. When you have read it, this part will make sense ..
It was intense and I was scared for the character. Melissa defined the emotions that well in certain parts; it was like I was in the book – the story. I think it’s why I felt so terrified! Yes I’m an emotional reader I get very involved in the read, and due to Melissa’s in-depth descriptions this made the read even more heartwarming and friggin scary !!!
I continued on, wanting to know where it was headed, gob smacked at the twists and turns, in the story, and unbelievably entranced friskily reading a record reading pace till the very end.
** Good advice - don’t read, at 1am in the morning. I lied in bed thinking of this story an hr past reading it, totally dumbfounded at the UNPREDITABLE climax, new revelations and also amazed at how Melissa wove all this into 560 pages and kept my interest piqued till no end.
Julie was a damaged- torn character, burnt badly by an Ex-boyfriend, no self confidence, and little self preservation. She found herself, thin, unattractive and just wanted to fit in with the in crowd. I’m sure at one stage in our lives we can relate to this.
Her Ex boyfriend made her feel like she was in = the in crowd, till his humiliations sent Julie into herself not trusting the opposite sex, or at least the good looking ones and believing they were all deceitful. ** Of course this could be realistic in life ** Scars on the inside, learning to trust, that not every person can be judged by their status- aka popularity. I found after what Julie had been through it made her a tougher person, I found she grew and accepted who she was, and was determined to fight for the love she believed in and fight to survive. With death knocking at her door – it was fight – die fighting or give in to the evil. Her faith was remarkable at the worst of times, not giving in, her character was strong.
Julie was hot headed, sarcastic, caring, and funny and had her faults but this gave her all the qualities that made her, who she was.
Brody was what every girl wanted - smart, hot, one of a kind, he was not afraid to be who he was, like whom he chose, and didn’t bother to be someone he was not, just to be in the in crowd. His love for Julie was heartwarming * romantic * swoon!! ** Throb throb **
I so loved the affection – both verbally and physically with these pair. It was not necessarily sex related, yet lustful, and romantic in a different light. I did honestly wait in sheer anticipation but understood Julie hesitation for it to be the right time and place to. Brody showed his gentleman side on more than one occasion and overall I felt the connection between the characters. An understanding and connection one could only want to ever find in their lifetime. It sent my heart a flutter He was to my **Hero **... I loved the way he constantly saved her one way or another!!!
Brody had a secret he could not share, a secret he found to bad to part with - this tearing apart a love they both knew they wanted but Brody couldn’t get past this to be with his one true love. As you read you will follow along with the ups and downs of Brody and Julies relationship. Not completely understanding whats happening but rest assured it all comes out of the wood works !! ** so to speak lol **
The climax will have you gasping, I was shocked, sniffling and I thought I was not going to be able to finish it, I found myself anxious and very aware of what the outcome could be. Melissa wove the emotions poetically throughout but I found the climax, the most intense. I just can’t explain it! ** I was shit scared – Terrified and every thought crossed my mind.
Melissa definitely defined this part in her book as the page turner, the be all!! My pages were wafting with steam, I was on full throttle ahead, and even in my sleep deprived state was unable to put this down.
Melissa’s descriptions where well detailed, her emotions well portrayed, if this was a sandwich I’d say you got a burger with the lot. Filled with all the goodies for a fantastic paranormal read, elements of surprise, and to top it off icing on the cake for an ending! Sweet !
All secondary characters all unique and defiantly added humor, spice and action and even mystery to the storyline. As the story flows the characters grow with it . Dialogue was crisp and sharp, all chapters running smoothly from one to the next and added bits of suspense and romance that was even out nicely throughout the read.
Great cast of characters!!! I’m sure you will enjoy and even giggle with.
The baddies will have you cringing and terrified!! Melissa portrayed all her characters with depth and character and defined them well. Even the evil ones!!
A unique and terrifying tale, Red Riding hood in a different light, the evil in the woods you could never have imagined and an UNPREDICTALBE ENDING by any means. Melissa Ellis has woven a tale that will give you second thoughts into Grimm’s Fairytale, yes more complicated – more horrifying with twists but defiantly more depth into love between the characters. A tale I’m sure you will enjoy.
I eagerly wait in anticipation for book 2 in the series!! Mind you saying that Melissa left Shadowshifter with an ending I’m sure the reader will be smiling at, but also inquisitive as to what will happen in the next book! I know Im curious about a certain male singer – and how Brody and Julie will handle the situation that has arisen.
A must read !!!
I rated this 5 !!
Where do I start!!! I loved it !!! ** inserts wolf howl here **
Melissa D Ellis has woven a remarkable story filled with suspense, love, danger, murder, mystery and certainly mayhem. Shadowshifter is definably like no other supernatural read, a paranormal that will have you running round the house, knife in hand, double checking your locks to make sure all is safe.
At 560 pages long, one may expect a lag, but let me inform you Shadowshifter, will keep your interest piqued from start to finish and have you gasping in dismay at the turn of events - about after page 400....... the plot thickens !! havoic and mayhem start !!
Be warned !! Be terrified – very terrified!! lol..
I wasn’t sure I could read on, I was literally shit scared, my heart was frantic and I found myself sniffling. Lucky for me my hubby was asleep whilst I took several breathes, sniffed and ventured on. When you have read it, this part will make sense ..
It was intense and I was scared for the character. Melissa defined the emotions that well in certain parts; it was like I was in the book – the story. I think it’s why I felt so terrified! Yes I’m an emotional reader I get very involved in the read, and due to Melissa’s in-depth descriptions this made the read even more heartwarming and friggin scary !!!
I continued on, wanting to know where it was headed, gob smacked at the twists and turns, in the story, and unbelievably entranced friskily reading a record reading pace till the very end.
** Good advice - don’t read, at 1am in the morning. I lied in bed thinking of this story an hr past reading it, totally dumbfounded at the UNPREDITABLE climax, new revelations and also amazed at how Melissa wove all this into 560 pages and kept my interest piqued till no end.
Julie was a damaged- torn character, burnt badly by an Ex-boyfriend, no self confidence, and little self preservation. She found herself, thin, unattractive and just wanted to fit in with the in crowd. I’m sure at one stage in our lives we can relate to this.
Her Ex boyfriend made her feel like she was in = the in crowd, till his humiliations sent Julie into herself not trusting the opposite sex, or at least the good looking ones and believing they were all deceitful. ** Of course this could be realistic in life ** Scars on the inside, learning to trust, that not every person can be judged by their status- aka popularity. I found after what Julie had been through it made her a tougher person, I found she grew and accepted who she was, and was determined to fight for the love she believed in and fight to survive. With death knocking at her door – it was fight – die fighting or give in to the evil. Her faith was remarkable at the worst of times, not giving in, her character was strong.
Julie was hot headed, sarcastic, caring, and funny and had her faults but this gave her all the qualities that made her, who she was.
Brody was what every girl wanted - smart, hot, one of a kind, he was not afraid to be who he was, like whom he chose, and didn’t bother to be someone he was not, just to be in the in crowd. His love for Julie was heartwarming * romantic * swoon!! ** Throb throb **
I so loved the affection – both verbally and physically with these pair. It was not necessarily sex related, yet lustful, and romantic in a different light. I did honestly wait in sheer anticipation but understood Julie hesitation for it to be the right time and place to. Brody showed his gentleman side on more than one occasion and overall I felt the connection between the characters. An understanding and connection one could only want to ever find in their lifetime. It sent my heart a flutter He was to my **Hero **... I loved the way he constantly saved her one way or another!!!
Brody had a secret he could not share, a secret he found to bad to part with - this tearing apart a love they both knew they wanted but Brody couldn’t get past this to be with his one true love. As you read you will follow along with the ups and downs of Brody and Julies relationship. Not completely understanding whats happening but rest assured it all comes out of the wood works !! ** so to speak lol **
The climax will have you gasping, I was shocked, sniffling and I thought I was not going to be able to finish it, I found myself anxious and very aware of what the outcome could be. Melissa wove the emotions poetically throughout but I found the climax, the most intense. I just can’t explain it! ** I was shit scared – Terrified and every thought crossed my mind.
Melissa definitely defined this part in her book as the page turner, the be all!! My pages were wafting with steam, I was on full throttle ahead, and even in my sleep deprived state was unable to put this down.
Melissa’s descriptions where well detailed, her emotions well portrayed, if this was a sandwich I’d say you got a burger with the lot. Filled with all the goodies for a fantastic paranormal read, elements of surprise, and to top it off icing on the cake for an ending! Sweet !
All secondary characters all unique and defiantly added humor, spice and action and even mystery to the storyline. As the story flows the characters grow with it . Dialogue was crisp and sharp, all chapters running smoothly from one to the next and added bits of suspense and romance that was even out nicely throughout the read.
Great cast of characters!!! I’m sure you will enjoy and even giggle with.
The baddies will have you cringing and terrified!! Melissa portrayed all her characters with depth and character and defined them well. Even the evil ones!!
A unique and terrifying tale, Red Riding hood in a different light, the evil in the woods you could never have imagined and an UNPREDICTALBE ENDING by any means. Melissa Ellis has woven a tale that will give you second thoughts into Grimm’s Fairytale, yes more complicated – more horrifying with twists but defiantly more depth into love between the characters. A tale I’m sure you will enjoy.
I eagerly wait in anticipation for book 2 in the series!! Mind you saying that Melissa left Shadowshifter with an ending I’m sure the reader will be smiling at, but also inquisitive as to what will happen in the next book! I know Im curious about a certain male singer – and how Brody and Julie will handle the situation that has arisen.
A must read !!!
I rated this 5 !!
June 16, 2011
I loved this book! Melissa wrote an amazing story that I could not get enough of. I finished this book wanting more of Julie and Brody.
ShadowShifter is one of those books that I will continue to think about even though I am done. I absolutely adored the character's and the relationships of this novel. Being a self published novel I honestly couldn't tell that it was. Her writing style is absolutely amazing. I loved her character development and I honestly had a hard time remembering that this was self published.
I commend Melissa on such a great story. The supernatural being one of my favorite genre's, Melissa did not disappoint me and I find myself truly admiring her for such a great piece of work.
The story was great. The love between Brody and Julie had me swooning. I adored everything about this book. I find it hard to find anything to dislike about it. All of the character's were well written and the settings and plot were entrancing.
Melissa's writing has this enamoring quality about it that had me wanting more. She had a perfect balance of all the qualities that makes books great. Such a great story of a young girl in high school who wants nothing more than to be accepted but finds herself uncomfortable in her own skin and how the most unexpected boy leads her to find herself in the midst of all that is crazy and chaotic about her life.
Melissa D Ellis is definitely an author that you are going to want to check out if you love the supernatural and a great love story.
ShadowShifter is one of those books that I will continue to think about even though I am done. I absolutely adored the character's and the relationships of this novel. Being a self published novel I honestly couldn't tell that it was. Her writing style is absolutely amazing. I loved her character development and I honestly had a hard time remembering that this was self published.
I commend Melissa on such a great story. The supernatural being one of my favorite genre's, Melissa did not disappoint me and I find myself truly admiring her for such a great piece of work.
The story was great. The love between Brody and Julie had me swooning. I adored everything about this book. I find it hard to find anything to dislike about it. All of the character's were well written and the settings and plot were entrancing.
Melissa's writing has this enamoring quality about it that had me wanting more. She had a perfect balance of all the qualities that makes books great. Such a great story of a young girl in high school who wants nothing more than to be accepted but finds herself uncomfortable in her own skin and how the most unexpected boy leads her to find herself in the midst of all that is crazy and chaotic about her life.
Melissa D Ellis is definitely an author that you are going to want to check out if you love the supernatural and a great love story.
August 25, 2011
http://livetoread-krystal.blogspot.co...
Julie isn't the easiest character to get along with, she's a fighter. She can be stubborn to a fault, funny, sarcastic, pushy, and cunning. She has flaws, but those just make her a better character and add to the novel. Brody, her next door neighbor, is handsome, charismatic, interesting, and a bit of an enigma. They meet quite by accident, only due to Julie's inability to stay out of trouble.
There is an instant connection between the two, though they don't really act on it until later in the novel. The reader can believe that they actually do really like each other. They develop little, noticeable habits to each other that the reader can smile at. However, not all love is untainted. Brody has a secret, one he would rather Julie never found out. The reader will enjoy following the ups and downs of their relationship and the events surrounding it.
The characters were nice to read about, interesting. The reader will also like getting to know the secondary characters and developing his/her own opinion about them. The plot was fairly fast-paced, some of the events were exciting to read about. The book is roughly 560 pages, but the reader will not take that long to finish it. This book would be enjoyed by young adults/teen readers.
Julie isn't the easiest character to get along with, she's a fighter. She can be stubborn to a fault, funny, sarcastic, pushy, and cunning. She has flaws, but those just make her a better character and add to the novel. Brody, her next door neighbor, is handsome, charismatic, interesting, and a bit of an enigma. They meet quite by accident, only due to Julie's inability to stay out of trouble.
There is an instant connection between the two, though they don't really act on it until later in the novel. The reader can believe that they actually do really like each other. They develop little, noticeable habits to each other that the reader can smile at. However, not all love is untainted. Brody has a secret, one he would rather Julie never found out. The reader will enjoy following the ups and downs of their relationship and the events surrounding it.
The characters were nice to read about, interesting. The reader will also like getting to know the secondary characters and developing his/her own opinion about them. The plot was fairly fast-paced, some of the events were exciting to read about. The book is roughly 560 pages, but the reader will not take that long to finish it. This book would be enjoyed by young adults/teen readers.
September 29, 2011
As a small town Tennessee girl myself I LOVE this book, not only have I read it once but several more times since and each time it only gets better.
What is there not to love about it?
It brings you back to that feeling of first falling in love after having your heart trampled on, that moment when you realize what you have in frount of you like Julie did and how hard it is to trust again. It has the impossiblity of his secret and yearning to want to do everything you can to help Brody just so they can be together and then comes the unbleievable (and yet very believable) part that will keep you up at night looking under the bed and checking the locks especially in the car(and leaves you unable to put it down).
What is more terrifying than love? It turns out alot, the ride that Melissa carrys you on you will find out while hanging to the edge of your seat.
This is not a book that you will be able to let go of, I look forward to reading her next book soon, can't wait to see what happens next.
What is there not to love about it?
It brings you back to that feeling of first falling in love after having your heart trampled on, that moment when you realize what you have in frount of you like Julie did and how hard it is to trust again. It has the impossiblity of his secret and yearning to want to do everything you can to help Brody just so they can be together and then comes the unbleievable (and yet very believable) part that will keep you up at night looking under the bed and checking the locks especially in the car(and leaves you unable to put it down).
What is more terrifying than love? It turns out alot, the ride that Melissa carrys you on you will find out while hanging to the edge of your seat.
This is not a book that you will be able to let go of, I look forward to reading her next book soon, can't wait to see what happens next.
April 13, 2011
This book grabbed hold of my attention and wouldn't let go until I finished it. I loved the story of Julie & Brody and can't wait to read the 2nd book! Highly recommend.
May 25, 2012
I LOVED this book and can't wait for the next one! I hope this Amber character has a bigger role in Book 2. She sounds very interesting. :)
July 17, 2018
Shadowshifter
I read this book a few years back and decided.to re-read it . I'm really glad I did . I really want to read the next book. I hope it comes available soon. And that the author writes more books.
I read this book a few years back and decided.to re-read it . I'm really glad I did . I really want to read the next book. I hope it comes available soon. And that the author writes more books.
December 24, 2012
I have been wanting to read this book for ages. Literally. I first glimpsed the old cover with the beautiful brassy haired little red riding hood in 2010, and ever since then, I've been yearning to read it.
ShadowShifter is a catchy title with a catchy synopsis - it was love at first sight for me. The fact that I couldn't read it because it was out of print at the time due to the new contract the author had signed only made my heart grow fonder. I grew so obsessed with the book that I checked for its release every other week even though it wasn't scheduled to release any time soon.
I found out it had been out for a month already when I finally downloaded it, and I was really excited about finally getting to read it. I wasn't happy with the new cover - it's mainstream and badly photoshopped. The first one was waaaay better in both atmosphere and beauty. It was mesmerizing *sigh*
That said, I had very high expectations for this book, which were only fuelled by the author's description - she said that ShadowShifter was a dark and gory book. In a way, it was. But Ellis was also right when she said that her kissing scenes are quite awful.
Apparently they have been edited in the new edition, but I still found them both awkward and borderline disgusting.
The sheer amount of cheese in the lines the hero threw at Julie every two seconds was nauseating. The way he threw himself at her like a romantic bitch in heat was so pathetic I could barely read on.
Le Story: The story is actually quite simple: Julie, poor girl who was left by a cheating boyfriend and who humiliated herself in front of the whole school after a very public outburst, has to go to summer school because she was suspended from school the day of finals.
But wait! After 200 pages of listening to her meaningless problems and her annoying stream-of-conciousness that she fills with pointless thoughts, ramblings and random bitching, there's actually a story worth reading!
Yes, folks, you heard right. There is actually a story, and a good one!
Or at least, I thought there was.
The Hero started the I'll-ignore-you-from-now-on-cuz-I'm-dangerous routine on her, but it was different than usual.
I was actually quite captivated by the horrifying changes his character overwent and I was creeped out (in a good way).
Only then the author didn't pull through with it.
I nearly threw my Kindle on the floor with frustration when I read the last 100 pages.
The book could have been awesome! it could have been evil, and dangerous and ORIGINAL.
My heart died a little when I finished the book. This was like Hush, Hush all over again. (Okay, Hush, Hush was WAY worse than this, but still. The disappointment, anger, and cover-obsession were the same)
But no. Ellis had to go the conventional route and ruin all my fun. All of it! I actually threw a fit about this and annoyed all my friends at college about it because I was so damn disappointed.
At last, the good stuff: Ellis DID manage the gory stuff.It wasn't nearly enough for a book categorized as horror, but it was there, and what was there was quite nice.
And even though Julie was beyond annoying, she did have a character. It made her unsympathetic and I hated her, but I didn't drop the book.
For all them fans of Paranormal YA: This book is for you. You'll like it. There's LUV in it and great danger. And the sarcasm in this comment is minimal. I swear.
ShadowShifter is a catchy title with a catchy synopsis - it was love at first sight for me. The fact that I couldn't read it because it was out of print at the time due to the new contract the author had signed only made my heart grow fonder. I grew so obsessed with the book that I checked for its release every other week even though it wasn't scheduled to release any time soon.
I found out it had been out for a month already when I finally downloaded it, and I was really excited about finally getting to read it. I wasn't happy with the new cover - it's mainstream and badly photoshopped. The first one was waaaay better in both atmosphere and beauty. It was mesmerizing *sigh*
That said, I had very high expectations for this book, which were only fuelled by the author's description - she said that ShadowShifter was a dark and gory book. In a way, it was. But Ellis was also right when she said that her kissing scenes are quite awful.
Apparently they have been edited in the new edition, but I still found them both awkward and borderline disgusting.
The sheer amount of cheese in the lines the hero threw at Julie every two seconds was nauseating. The way he threw himself at her like a romantic bitch in heat was so pathetic I could barely read on.
Le Story: The story is actually quite simple: Julie, poor girl who was left by a cheating boyfriend and who humiliated herself in front of the whole school after a very public outburst, has to go to summer school because she was suspended from school the day of finals.
But wait! After 200 pages of listening to her meaningless problems and her annoying stream-of-conciousness that she fills with pointless thoughts, ramblings and random bitching, there's actually a story worth reading!
Yes, folks, you heard right. There is actually a story, and a good one!
Or at least, I thought there was.
The Hero started the I'll-ignore-you-from-now-on-cuz-I'm-dangerous routine on her, but it was different than usual.
I was actually quite captivated by the horrifying changes his character overwent and I was creeped out (in a good way).
Only then the author didn't pull through with it.
I nearly threw my Kindle on the floor with frustration when I read the last 100 pages.
The book could have been awesome! it could have been evil, and dangerous and ORIGINAL.
My heart died a little when I finished the book. This was like Hush, Hush all over again. (Okay, Hush, Hush was WAY worse than this, but still. The disappointment, anger, and cover-obsession were the same)
But no. Ellis had to go the conventional route and ruin all my fun. All of it! I actually threw a fit about this and annoyed all my friends at college about it because I was so damn disappointed.
At last, the good stuff: Ellis DID manage the gory stuff.It wasn't nearly enough for a book categorized as horror, but it was there, and what was there was quite nice.
And even though Julie was beyond annoying, she did have a character. It made her unsympathetic and I hated her, but I didn't drop the book.
For all them fans of Paranormal YA: This book is for you. You'll like it. There's LUV in it and great danger. And the sarcasm in this comment is minimal. I swear.
September 26, 2012
This is my book. My baby. Of course I found it astounding!! :)
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