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Reaching Shadows: Young-Adult Fantasy Series
Inspired by the coming-of-age adventures of Percy Jackson, the epic worldbuilding of The Elder Scrolls, and the dramatic edge of Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Reaching Shadows offers character-focused depth and development in a vast world full of magic and monsters, human or otherwise…
Dawnhaven Manor is beautiful.
That much is obvious when Luke wakes there, dazzled by the sunlight streaming in from wide windows, surrounded by warm beds, polished wood floors, and all the food he could need. Clean. Safe.
Empty.
Luke’s sister is missing, and his captors seem to have no intention of letting him leave, promising help even as they stand in the way. As the days slip by in the abandoned academy and Luke grows more desperate to find her, an old curse stirs in the corners of his mind, threatening to expose him for what he really is.
Before he can do anything about that, though, he has to deal with the angel.
Maia doesn’t see Luke as dangerous. He’s outright hostile, and he’s ungrateful, even after she saved his life. Most of all, he’s secretive, shutting down even the most basic questions. But dangerous? Even when Luke is glaring her down, threatening her with the first sharp thing he can find, all she sees is his hands shaking.
When Luke asks for Maia’s help in finding his lost sister, she is quick to promise it. But the closer Maia gets to the truth Luke is fighting to keep hidden, the more she worries that her uncle might be Luke is something far more dangerous than the helpless human he appears to be.
The first novel in a young adult, urban high fantasy series, Reaching Shadows explores the tenuous bonds between its characters as deceptions and darker motivations come to light. Drama, mystery, and adventure elements.
Finalist in the international 2023 Page Turner Awards!
Dawnhaven Manor is beautiful.
That much is obvious when Luke wakes there, dazzled by the sunlight streaming in from wide windows, surrounded by warm beds, polished wood floors, and all the food he could need. Clean. Safe.
Empty.
Luke’s sister is missing, and his captors seem to have no intention of letting him leave, promising help even as they stand in the way. As the days slip by in the abandoned academy and Luke grows more desperate to find her, an old curse stirs in the corners of his mind, threatening to expose him for what he really is.
Before he can do anything about that, though, he has to deal with the angel.
Maia doesn’t see Luke as dangerous. He’s outright hostile, and he’s ungrateful, even after she saved his life. Most of all, he’s secretive, shutting down even the most basic questions. But dangerous? Even when Luke is glaring her down, threatening her with the first sharp thing he can find, all she sees is his hands shaking.
When Luke asks for Maia’s help in finding his lost sister, she is quick to promise it. But the closer Maia gets to the truth Luke is fighting to keep hidden, the more she worries that her uncle might be Luke is something far more dangerous than the helpless human he appears to be.
The first novel in a young adult, urban high fantasy series, Reaching Shadows explores the tenuous bonds between its characters as deceptions and darker motivations come to light. Drama, mystery, and adventure elements.
Finalist in the international 2023 Page Turner Awards!
339 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 21, 2026
About the author
J. J. Folie
1 bookJ. J. Folie is a writer and sometimes editor based in Virginia. She’s been crafting stories since she was too young to remember and hasn’t stopped, so now her books get to exist. She hopes you like them as much as she enjoyed writing them, because she’s going to keep writing either way, so it would definitely be better if you did. Outside of writing, she also enjoys spending too much time complaining about flaws in media she loves, making mods for old videogames, and bothering her cat.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 5, 2026
When your constant enemy is you, and you're pushed and taught to HIDE at all costs, yet you are faced with a backlash you never even thought was possible.
This book talks about the danger of hiding oneself, of deliberately running away from everything, even your own mind. We see Luke slowly unfolding from an anxious, wounded individual. We finally see him - the real him -yet not at all.
A determination to flee, to find Sophie, to be something other than a monster pushes him to move. We see a fraction of a wounded past, a past so dark with a shadow so deep that even his own memory is lost to the dark.
Maia, an angel on earth. Her character is so elder daughter coded. She is competitive, caring, trying to prove she is enough, that she is not weak, and most importantly that she is a good friend, niece, and support.
DJ is a wounded soul, or so it appears. She is sort of like her eyes; unpredictable and closed off. You don't know where she stands, and more often than not her actions are dismissed in your mind not from the kindness of your heart but from the reason to believe there's always more than what appears.
Abraham, however, is like a puzzle no one wants to see the full picture of. A picture of authority and so much more, yet a coldness in heart has frozen all the keys to access him. And maybe that is the whole point.
Cole and Sean are our witnesses. They are the ones who get to see the story and silently be the tiny changes that throw the house of cards into a spiral. Enclosed creatures trying to be the best they can. But according to whom?
The pace was evenly laid. We get to see a fragment of what it means to be constantly fighting your thoughts, your emotions, even your brain. This book has laid a perfect foundation for these characters' lives, if I say so myself. There's enough to actually know all the characters, enough world-building, yet neither are too much. You can see where it is going from the start.
I really enjoyed it. It was a read well worth it. I would recommend it for fantasy readers who are driven by the fantasy first and romance later, as this book focuses more on the importance of all the connections and relationships one might ever form.
Thank you to the author and BookSirens for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Happy reading ◉‿◉
This book talks about the danger of hiding oneself, of deliberately running away from everything, even your own mind. We see Luke slowly unfolding from an anxious, wounded individual. We finally see him - the real him -yet not at all.
A determination to flee, to find Sophie, to be something other than a monster pushes him to move. We see a fraction of a wounded past, a past so dark with a shadow so deep that even his own memory is lost to the dark.
Maia, an angel on earth. Her character is so elder daughter coded. She is competitive, caring, trying to prove she is enough, that she is not weak, and most importantly that she is a good friend, niece, and support.
DJ is a wounded soul, or so it appears. She is sort of like her eyes; unpredictable and closed off. You don't know where she stands, and more often than not her actions are dismissed in your mind not from the kindness of your heart but from the reason to believe there's always more than what appears.
Abraham, however, is like a puzzle no one wants to see the full picture of. A picture of authority and so much more, yet a coldness in heart has frozen all the keys to access him. And maybe that is the whole point.
Cole and Sean are our witnesses. They are the ones who get to see the story and silently be the tiny changes that throw the house of cards into a spiral. Enclosed creatures trying to be the best they can. But according to whom?
The pace was evenly laid. We get to see a fragment of what it means to be constantly fighting your thoughts, your emotions, even your brain. This book has laid a perfect foundation for these characters' lives, if I say so myself. There's enough to actually know all the characters, enough world-building, yet neither are too much. You can see where it is going from the start.
I really enjoyed it. It was a read well worth it. I would recommend it for fantasy readers who are driven by the fantasy first and romance later, as this book focuses more on the importance of all the connections and relationships one might ever form.
Thank you to the author and BookSirens for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Happy reading ◉‿◉
April 10, 2026
I received an advance review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was kind of a casual read for me. I wasn't searching for anything groundbreaking nor was I obsessively picking out any faults. I was merely wanting an easy entertaining read and this book delivered with that. The plot and characters were great, however the worldbuilding was lacking and in a book with fantasy elements, worldbuilding becomes essential to the story. I will be seeking out the book's sequel in the future though.
Thank you to BookSirens for the ARC!
This was kind of a casual read for me. I wasn't searching for anything groundbreaking nor was I obsessively picking out any faults. I was merely wanting an easy entertaining read and this book delivered with that. The plot and characters were great, however the worldbuilding was lacking and in a book with fantasy elements, worldbuilding becomes essential to the story. I will be seeking out the book's sequel in the future though.
Thank you to BookSirens for the ARC!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews