Shadow

Warpmancer #1

by Nicholas Woode-Smith

A master thief turned soldier...
The fate of a planet…

Zona Nox is a war-torn planet at the edge of the known galaxy. On it is Galis City, a sea of shanties ruled by gangs and violence.

James is the Shadow of Galis, a master thief and skilled killer. Through cunning and near inhuman agility, James has become a living legend among the criminals that rule Galis.

But not even the blood-thirsty gangs of Galis can stop the invasions of the alien Xank Empire. James realises he cannot stop the horde alone and embraces the defenders of humanity – the Trooper Order.

But despite all his skill, can a master criminal be a good soldier?

Genres: Science Fiction

266 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 17, 2016

About the author

Nicholas Woode-Smith is a fantasy and science fiction author from Cape Town, South Africa. He has been writing since the age of twelve, writing short stories, novels, and RPG campaigns. In 2013, he published his first book, Fall of Zona Nox. Five years later, he published it again after greatly improving his skills.

Since then, he’s written dozens of books in the urban fantasy and sci-fi genre. Notably, the best-selling urban fantasy series, Kat Drummond.

Nicholas has a degree majoring in economic history and philosophy, and minors in political science, international relations, and English literature from the University of Cape Town. He has been involved in politics, civic activism, and political analysis since 2014.

Reviews

[Meenaz Lodhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

“If I was to pay one compliment to humanity, that would be its persistence.“
This rewrite is overly superb! A long historical struggle in humanity’s history, combined with fearsome aliens and strange creatures, the story is compelling and thought provoking. The characters and their lives-be it good guys or villains-are so realistic I couldn’t avoid been pulled in with them, especially the main character. A truly great universe building! I still sincerely recommend this series.
I was offered this ARC, and this review is entirely voluntary.

[The Mysterious Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok, I do love both Star Wars and Firefly, and totally agree with the publisher’s blurb promise that if you love those then you’ll love Nicholas Woode-Smith’s Shadow: Warpmancer Book One. I actually came to this book out of order having read a later book in the series which I enjoyed so much I decided that I simply had to go to book 1. I’m glad I did. James Terrin is an excellent character and the universe created by the author for this series is wonderfully imaginative and fantastic to inhabit. I totally loved this story. But for the fact that I’m literally dictating this review to my husband from my hospital bed I could go on and on with praises - the book definitely deserves it. Since I can’t do that I will simply note that the book is most definitely one to read, it is easy to highly recommend.

[Mr Geoffrey Bowlt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent storyline,believable characters,want more of the same!

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a story. James is a ruthless killer and thief . Unbelievable how it grips you and doesn’t let go until you’re finished.

[Nick Manning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interplanetary intrigue and war on a massive scale
The main character is James, also known as The Shadow of Galis'. At the beginning of the story he is a young gang member and thief in Galis City. As the story develops, so do James’s abilities and skills - in the face of almost unbearable adversity.
This is an epic war story, told with firm control over the action, the characters and the strategies. The action is brutal but honest - and handled with great panache. The characters are believable, and you are pulled into their back-stories in such a way that you end up rooting for all of them.

[Mpiyakhe · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gritty and compelling look at humanity's future.

I loved the previous edition but this re-write is much better. The characters are more compelling and I found myself liking people who I found boring before.

If you loved the original Fall of Zona Nox, you will adore this. If you didn't like Fall of Zona Nox, you will still probably love this because it is a vast improvement.

(I received an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

[Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read another great story by the author with great characters. The plot has action and twists to keep your attention.

[Stephen Saxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book of a series of seven books. The storyline is good, there are parts that probably should have been fleshed out more. A time line as everything slides by, shifting to different locations and characters would be nice. I'm hoping when I get to book two that some of these items are just early stages of the series.

I enjoyed reading about James and Danny's trials and tribulations.

Stephen from Kingsley
(Thanks Nicholas for the plug in Chapter 6 8-) )

[Christinaraven · Rating 5 out of 5]

A crazy world full of thieves, aliens, interplanetary military and a master thief named James who tried to survive on a planet in the middle of war. James was a wild character that was at times very funny and made me shake my head at. The world building was good considering all the moving parts and species. The writing was good and allowed me to imagine I was right there easily. Look forward to see what happens next. Liked the story too.

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

A book for illiterates by an illiterate

This book is terrible. It is almost unreadable.

Missing words are everywhere. The author states he wrote this in high school and then rewrote it before publishing it.

I believe the first part but not the second.

For an example of how this author writes, read the 4 star arc review.

The author also has no clue that quotation marks exist. He uses apostrophes exclusively. He also likes to place commas randomly.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good story. Well worth a read!

Brilliant story. Well worth a read. I loved the intense sense of hatred that there was from all of the humans from the planets, towards the aliens. It was really tangible throughout the book. There was a real sense of menace coming from the aliens too, really blood pumping stuff! The story was exciting and emotional by turns. Lots of fighting. If you like that sort of thing, you will enjoy this. I certainly did!

[Dieter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non stop action moving from one disaster to the next. Interesting characters, story line and full of surprises right to the end. Ends with a cliffhanger leading on to the next book.
Note: violence, gore, coarse language.
Received this book as an ARC and decided to review it.

[Frank Geimer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who would have thought that a space opera of this caliber would have been written in high school. The characters are great, the plot is full of twists and turns, and you can feel the emotional upheavals in the story. What more can you ask for in a novel? Pick up this one, you won't regret it.

[Roger · Rating 4 out of 5]

My third read from author Nicholas Woode-Smith, as good as my first reads were this one was even better! An edge 0f your seat science-fiction gangland story that really caught my interest.

[Aviar Savijon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicholas Woode-Smith has done it with this extraordinary sci fi greatness in writing. I loved it!! and adventure you have to read to know the extent of it. A must read!!!

[John Hensley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

Good read, the world isn't too hard to imagine and the descriptions of alien races and new verbage isn't bogged down

[Hw Huyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

good story, excellent writing

the story takes us from gangland youth and mobs through a young man working his way up, a few steps, in the military troopers

[Donna Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow the author has done a great job drawing the reader into his world. I couldn’t put the book down. I can’t wait to see what happens next in book 2.

[PJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book reminded me of the "Firefly" series with aliens thrown in. I enjoyed it.

[Wesley Britton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow: (Warpmancer Book 1)


In closing notes to Shadow, author Nicholas Woode-Smith admits this novel is a major retelling of the first third of his earlier version of the same tale, The Fall of Zona Nox. So there are several groups of potential readers for Shadow--those already familiar with his epic and readers like me completely new to his world-building--and world-destroying- adventures.

The story centers on James Terrin, a rough-edged thief and street-fighter turned soldier who is a bit, just a bit, reminiscent of Harry Harrison's "Stainless Steel Rat." Unlike Harrison's Jim DiGriz, who's an intergalactic rascal and con-man portrayed in light, satirical stories, Terrin lives in a grim, violent, and dark world in the 36th century where everyone has to be constantly aware of the many ways death can burst through the door in brutal cities like Galis where humans and aliens must survive meager existences.

What DiGriz and Terrin have most in common is their being almost constantly on the run, escaping or nearly escaping would-be killers and captors. Terrin is often running down alleyways and over rooftops while miraculously not getting hit by assassins, soldiers, or gangsters.

One aspect that really impressed me is Woode-Smith's ability to introduce new species and layers of his world's "cultures" with economy and precise descriptions. He's able to paint his gritty, gruff, dangerous environments in vivid detail while never letting the action slow. The book doesn't really have a plot beyond Terrin's becoming more and more involved in the various competing deadly interests on Zona Nox, especially as he goes beyond fighting for his own survival and then becomes part of his planet's defense against invading aliens and their deadly talons.

It's very obvious that Shadow is the starting point for the author's reinvigorated Warpmancer series which means the yarn isn't a stand-alone adventure with any story-lines tied up on the final pages. If you get interested in Shadow, plan to carry on with the epic in the subsequent volumes, both book length and short stories already available. The sequels begin with Trooper: Warpmancer Book Two listed here:

https://www.amazon.com/Trooper-Warpma...

This review first appeared at BookPleasures.com on May 30, 2019:
https://waa.ai/XH6W

[Anna Ostberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark and dangerous life on the fringes of the galaxy.
Reviewed in Australia on 1 November 2019
Verified Purchase
I love military Sci-Fi and this is a great book full of death and disaster, fast paced, action packed with plenty of bloody battles. The blurb sets the scene.

James Terrin is a remarkable character: a thief, a strategist, a leader. James has a seemingly superhuman ability to survive. His ability as a sharp shooter comes to the fore when he joins the troopers to fight the alien invaders who slaughtered his gang. The world building is great and atmospheric. The slums are so depressing. The writing at times left me confused as to who was speaking or who was what. Some typos, but I assume these were caught when Shadow was bundled in to The Fall of Zona Nox. That said, Shadow is the first in the Warpmancer series and ends in a cliff hanger - I hate cliff hangers

[Silver Surfer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not normally the sort of book I would read being sci-fi. More a fantasy person myself. Having said that, it managed to keep me interested right thro to the end. Admitting that I would like to read the next one to see where this goes. Recommended read.

[Brent Spurrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warpmancer Shadow is a classic gritty, violent representation of what I believe a frontier mining planet with a developed number of cities, towns and military forts strategically placed on the planets surface. Zona Nox is a brutal and harsh planet where everyday survival is definitely not a guarantee! I very much enjoyed this tale of an exhausting constant struggle for life and actually rate it as a 4.5. The author has a wonderful artistic mind as you will discover as he has created a Dune (Frank Herbert) like planet complete with deadly indigenous predators whose mere mention conjures abject terror along with a brutal environment and various hemispheres that have their own challenges all must understand just to survive. From desert to mountains to vast plains...from blistering heat to snow covered frigid regions. I would be remiss if I did not mention the constant threat...pretty much daily of a very psychopathic murderous alien bird like race called the Xank who attack the northern settlements and towns without mercy or quarter! I will mention there are a number of alien races involved...some are friendly, others are hostile.

The story line details the life of a young man called James Terrin who is most definitely a survivor...he is a master thief, gangster, killer, exceptional shot, very cool under stress and dislikes the military Interplanetary Troopers because he blames them for causing his father's death and by proxy also his mother's, many years ago when he was 6 or so years of age. The rest of the main characters each have their own story of survival and the prevailing Darwinian theory of survival of the fittest. The United States Special Forces Navy Seals have a saying that describes life on this frontier planet perfectly..."The only easy day was yesterday". Gangsters control the slum and wall shielded city of Galis and the Troopers concede control of the city to them as they are preoccupied with repelling almost daily alien attacks and only then reign in the gangs if they get overly aggressive. In the major city in the cooler southern hemisphere name Titan City it is controlled by the Corporations and they do not allow either gangsters or Troopers admittance as one has to have citizenship even to enter the city proper. This will suffice to wet your appitite, just know it is violent!

I am very much looking forward for the next in series and endorse this project wholeheartedly.

[Genelle Themann · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the 36th century, a planetary crisis has hit Zona Nox, a world of violence, gangs, corporations, roaming bandits and Troopers. The world has been attacked by the Xank Empire which launched an assault designed to decimate the population and capture the world for its own. James, a young thief and gang member, is conscripted into the Troopers to help them move forces and civilians out of the destroyed city of Galis. As the siege continues, James becomes a pivotal member of the Troopers as a sniper. The Troopers and the surviving citizens of Galis have to flee the onslaught of the Xank forces. As fight after fight take a toll on the Trooper numbers, James moves up through the ranks due to his uncanny expertise with the sniper rifle and ability to get his fellow troops out of tight situations. The enemy is relentless but James is as well.


I received a free copy of this book, but it is a great story and I want to share my review.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story, horrendous enemies, surviving heros, epic? Well no, but a really good story line. The story builds, with the growth of James, thief cum gangster cum Trooper. His abilities are being hinted, as he develops. The world he lives in is believable and the story rolls along without any side tracks to slow it down. Altogether a good read. If I could have one criticsm, it is that the story finishes with a huge hook into the next book. I do like a book that allows you to go into the series in your own way, instead of dragging you kicking and screaming, but then again, that shows how good the story is.

[Josh The Elfo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Badly written science fiction. The world isn't fully crafted as it should be and the characters lack character. Hopefully the authors skill improved as he developed his storytelling. By the start of this book, it's obvious the sequels are not worth the time to pick up. The author's definition of ready-to-publish is well beneath that of an average author. I can see this book being a 100% free title online, though it's for profit outside of Kindle unlimited.

[Christian Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first in a whole series currently being rewritten and expanded, and boy it doesn't disappoint!
It follows the tribulations and evolution of an orphan, thief by necessity and brave by nature.
The finale is well-brought in, and hints at many things to come.

Can't wait for the next adventures!

[Jesse Deleon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great start for the series!

I enjoyed this excellent book by Nicholas wooden smith about the 36th Century and how bad it sucked to be you! In other words I am hooked for more. A winter must read for me. A fan!

[John Welch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, just didn't work for me. Poorly written, it was like a new writer's effort before they honed their skill enough to publish. Definitely won't be reading the sequels.

[Andrew Norley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great start

A great start to C a seruu in Ed, although no n mention of werpmancy yet -
A definite lead into the second book C as it leaves it on a cliff-hanger