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Shadow Prince: A Zion Chronicle
Shade is many things…a coward is not one of them. Although being raised by a loving family behind the safety of castle walls allowed for Shade to grow up healthy and sheltered, it also deceived him into believing all was right in Zion. After escaping the troubled mainland with the newfound knowledge of Zion’s growing darkness, Shade experiences far more challenge than ease. Running for his life feels cowardly; and that is not how he was raised. However, the more he learns about his father, the more he begins to question about his upbringing. Who was King Bronze really? Was he for the kingdom, or against it?
While Shade faces the unknowns, his friends continue seeking allies—some unlikely—on the mainland. They face battles of their own in their efforts to help the prince in his quest for truth. With each new step, the past is called into question; and the idea of a positive future seems to grow impossibly distant. As lies unravel and truths come into the light, Shade has a decision to make. Does he ignore discoveries of the true nature of his late father? Or does he risk everything, even his own life…even the lives of others, to right the wrongs in Zion?
While Shade faces the unknowns, his friends continue seeking allies—some unlikely—on the mainland. They face battles of their own in their efforts to help the prince in his quest for truth. With each new step, the past is called into question; and the idea of a positive future seems to grow impossibly distant. As lies unravel and truths come into the light, Shade has a decision to make. Does he ignore discoveries of the true nature of his late father? Or does he risk everything, even his own life…even the lives of others, to right the wrongs in Zion?
521 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 16, 2024
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6 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 3, 2024
After reading Shadow Prince through my Kindle Unlimited subscription, I do not know where to begin other than to say that I am glad that I did not shell out money directly for this book. The deficiencies of the first book have not been corrected, and this volume again reads as an unedited stream-of-consciousness first draft. I kept reading, hoping that somehow things would pull together into a story rather than a dumpster fire at the end, but it only got worse.
The use of incorrect words continues: beckon is still used incorrectly more often than it is correctly; the confusion of words such as hear/here, they're/their, vice/vise, den/din, wear/where and so on--a clear indicator of the use of spellcheck as the sole editing mechanism which might have been applied. At one point a character name changes spelling (a clear typo) mere lines apart (Aliaph and Alipah). There is a mix of characters thinking in terms of meters when everything else has been in yards/feet/miles, or square/cube objects being described as having a diameter or rounded objects given dimensions appropriate to square objects. Words are missing in some places; in others, redundancies ("ponder thoughtfully" "near the entrance to the door"). Anachronisms continue--an arena filled with land mines (proto-appearance in the US Civil War but not truly developed until the 20th century), dialogue that makes anachronistic references, and the use of "quaint" to describe locations. These are all mechanical faults which should have been rooted out during the editing phase.
While this might be a matter of taste, the abundant use of lengthy flashbacks (most, but not all, written in italics) is very much a negative. The story might well be 20% shorter if the flashbacks were removed; and there are no flashbacks which actually add to the story except for perhaps the flashback about a prior pirate attack which might have better served as an opening scene rather than a lengthy digression in the middle of another pirate attack. I include here in the recommendation for removal Storg's villain origin story .
World-building is very vague, and things seem to move around to suit the plot. I already, in my review of Prince Shade detailed issues with the naming conventions (or more properly speaking, the lack thereof), so I will not go further into that here. Map inconsistencies, however, loom large in this volume. The "Silent Sisters" we had been informed in book one were on "either side" of the Gargantuan Mountains have now migrated to be on the same side but with a northern and southern "Sister" (and why they would be considered sisters considering the significant distance between them is another question). The length of time it takes to get to/from Colossae from starting points in eastern Zion and western Zion (Glimmer) does not seem consistent with the scale of the nation implied in the reading of the map in chapter two of the first book. There are rice paddies in an area which, as described, would not geographically support such. The inconsistencies in addressing people of royal or noble ranks is also an artifact of the weak world-building. If this had been gotten right, it could have added substantial gravitas to the moment .
A major problem is that the plot depends on the characters choosing the least intelligent course of action at every turn , coincidence is essential, and anything that might qualify as character development promptly gets erased. We're made to believe, if we take the story on face value, that King Bronze had been secretly a really bad person because he ruled with an iron fist while presenting a softer persona to the public and that he had permitted , or people who inexplicably--even though on the opposite side of the fence--parrot pieces of the Storg villain origin story as though it were truth. Combat is utterly unbelievable with insta-kill sniping through bow and arrow (never hitting an incorrect target while firing into melee) and other superhuman feats.
The greatest fault, though, is the complete lack of character consistency. Then there is the absolute contrivance of the "Acts" which makes me long for the solution to the problem at the end of The Slipper and the Rose when the king says Cinderella can't marry the prince because the constitution forbids it; the fairy godmother then says, "if you wrote it, you can unwrite it" adding "absolute monarchs should act absolutely; it's very becoming." Spoiler alert for a movie nearly 50 years old, there is a happy ending there.
This, again, should be a "desk drawer" novel, not one that people are being asked to spend money to read.
The use of incorrect words continues: beckon is still used incorrectly more often than it is correctly; the confusion of words such as hear/here, they're/their, vice/vise, den/din, wear/where and so on--a clear indicator of the use of spellcheck as the sole editing mechanism which might have been applied. At one point a character name changes spelling (a clear typo) mere lines apart (Aliaph and Alipah). There is a mix of characters thinking in terms of meters when everything else has been in yards/feet/miles, or square/cube objects being described as having a diameter or rounded objects given dimensions appropriate to square objects. Words are missing in some places; in others, redundancies ("ponder thoughtfully" "near the entrance to the door"). Anachronisms continue--an arena filled with land mines (proto-appearance in the US Civil War but not truly developed until the 20th century), dialogue that makes anachronistic references, and the use of "quaint" to describe locations. These are all mechanical faults which should have been rooted out during the editing phase.
While this might be a matter of taste, the abundant use of lengthy flashbacks (most, but not all, written in italics) is very much a negative. The story might well be 20% shorter if the flashbacks were removed; and there are no flashbacks which actually add to the story except for perhaps the flashback about a prior pirate attack which might have better served as an opening scene rather than a lengthy digression in the middle of another pirate attack. I include here in the recommendation for removal Storg's villain origin story .
World-building is very vague, and things seem to move around to suit the plot. I already, in my review of Prince Shade detailed issues with the naming conventions (or more properly speaking, the lack thereof), so I will not go further into that here. Map inconsistencies, however, loom large in this volume. The "Silent Sisters" we had been informed in book one were on "either side" of the Gargantuan Mountains have now migrated to be on the same side but with a northern and southern "Sister" (and why they would be considered sisters considering the significant distance between them is another question). The length of time it takes to get to/from Colossae from starting points in eastern Zion and western Zion (Glimmer) does not seem consistent with the scale of the nation implied in the reading of the map in chapter two of the first book. There are rice paddies in an area which, as described, would not geographically support such. The inconsistencies in addressing people of royal or noble ranks is also an artifact of the weak world-building. If this had been gotten right, it could have added substantial gravitas to the moment .
A major problem is that the plot depends on the characters choosing the least intelligent course of action at every turn , coincidence is essential, and anything that might qualify as character development promptly gets erased. We're made to believe, if we take the story on face value, that King Bronze had been secretly a really bad person because he ruled with an iron fist while presenting a softer persona to the public and that he had permitted , or people who inexplicably--even though on the opposite side of the fence--parrot pieces of the Storg villain origin story as though it were truth. Combat is utterly unbelievable with insta-kill sniping through bow and arrow (never hitting an incorrect target while firing into melee) and other superhuman feats.
The greatest fault, though, is the complete lack of character consistency. Then there is the absolute contrivance of the "Acts" which makes me long for the solution to the problem at the end of The Slipper and the Rose when the king says Cinderella can't marry the prince because the constitution forbids it; the fairy godmother then says, "if you wrote it, you can unwrite it" adding "absolute monarchs should act absolutely; it's very becoming." Spoiler alert for a movie nearly 50 years old, there is a happy ending there.
This, again, should be a "desk drawer" novel, not one that people are being asked to spend money to read.
June 26, 2024
Transcendent aspects:
1. The main villain—Storg. He has a real Thanos vibe. Was kept mysterious for a long time and his reveal and development do not disappoint. In a story like this one he could easily be cartoonish but he’s the opposite. He’s terrifying.
2. Capholm. This is so creative and imaginative and yet so flaming intense I think I stopped breathing for long stretches. This part (as well as the general scenes of war and a few others, like the escape from the forest) is very rated-R. But that made it come alive to me. This epic story isn’t playing around. It’s not juvenile. And the very end of chapter 14 with the first of the Capholm “games” is the best of any kind of scene like that I’ve ever read. Takes me back to the raptor scenes in Jurassic Park and Stranger Things 2:8 with Bob. Except it does something at the very end with two strangers to the group of heroes that makes it more heart-stopping and even face-melting than before. Just amazing!!! I can’t believe fiction can be so good. I’m excited to reread for this chapter as much as any. And it’s not nice or pleasant or light. It’s the exact opposite.
3. The ending. Woah, Nelly! Ryan established in Prince Shade that by making this a series she wasn’t going to tie things together in a neat bow at the conclusion of each volume. Well she doesn’t just reject the neat bow this time; she blows it to smithereens. The shocks and twists are relentless, gut-punching and perfect. They will leave you dying for the next book to release. Yet they are built on a world of such deep character and personality and intrigue that they aren’t cheap or manipulative. They are very realistic. I could not be more entertained or thrilled with the ending, especially the epilogue. Just sublime.
Overall Ryan, after establishing a captivating story with rich details as far as the people, the geography, the setting (even the way they dress), and especially the plots, grows it all by leaps and bounds in Part 2. She is in a groove that I assume isn’t easy or common. There is almost too much happening for my simple brain at times! No, that aspect is wonderful because it means I will keep seeing new things as I reread because I will want to reread. I’ll probably read both books again straightaway.
I could not endorse both books, but especially this one, more enthusiastically.
1. The main villain—Storg. He has a real Thanos vibe. Was kept mysterious for a long time and his reveal and development do not disappoint. In a story like this one he could easily be cartoonish but he’s the opposite. He’s terrifying.
2. Capholm. This is so creative and imaginative and yet so flaming intense I think I stopped breathing for long stretches. This part (as well as the general scenes of war and a few others, like the escape from the forest) is very rated-R. But that made it come alive to me. This epic story isn’t playing around. It’s not juvenile. And the very end of chapter 14 with the first of the Capholm “games” is the best of any kind of scene like that I’ve ever read. Takes me back to the raptor scenes in Jurassic Park and Stranger Things 2:8 with Bob. Except it does something at the very end with two strangers to the group of heroes that makes it more heart-stopping and even face-melting than before. Just amazing!!! I can’t believe fiction can be so good. I’m excited to reread for this chapter as much as any. And it’s not nice or pleasant or light. It’s the exact opposite.
3. The ending. Woah, Nelly! Ryan established in Prince Shade that by making this a series she wasn’t going to tie things together in a neat bow at the conclusion of each volume. Well she doesn’t just reject the neat bow this time; she blows it to smithereens. The shocks and twists are relentless, gut-punching and perfect. They will leave you dying for the next book to release. Yet they are built on a world of such deep character and personality and intrigue that they aren’t cheap or manipulative. They are very realistic. I could not be more entertained or thrilled with the ending, especially the epilogue. Just sublime.
Overall Ryan, after establishing a captivating story with rich details as far as the people, the geography, the setting (even the way they dress), and especially the plots, grows it all by leaps and bounds in Part 2. She is in a groove that I assume isn’t easy or common. There is almost too much happening for my simple brain at times! No, that aspect is wonderful because it means I will keep seeing new things as I reread because I will want to reread. I’ll probably read both books again straightaway.
I could not endorse both books, but especially this one, more enthusiastically.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews