The Shadow's Charm

by Petra Van Der Ploeg, Emma_design (Illustrations)

He tilted his head as he looked at me. "What is going on inside that pretty little head of yours?" he wondered and then he raised his eyebrows. "Ah, a duality of light and dark. Yes. How sweet is that?"


I raised my chin, looking him straight in the eyes. "You will not bewitch me like last time. I am not the same weakling as I was then."


He licked his lips as his fingers traced my jawline. "That you are certainly not. You've grown stronger. But the duality in you is still there and it's not in balance yet. I can help you with that."


"How?"


"If you give into me, I can show you."


I shook my head. "You'll kill me."


His eyes glistened with delight. "Perhaps," he whispered as he leaned in, intensifying the magnetic force he had on me. "Perhaps not."





Sophia's life is about to take a turn for the worse. Everyone's leaving her and she's forced to deal with her inner demons by herself. But there's one person who's taken an interest in helping her. Her biological father is a wanted criminal and he has used his powers on her before. But this time seems different and it makes Sophia wonder: can a Shadow Walker really be trusted?

314 pages, Paperback

Published June 12, 2019

About the author

Published author of the Somnia Series. Avid reader. Passionate about supporting and promoting Indie Authors.
Oh, and proud catmom of 3.

Reviews

[Whitney McGruder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked that this book was a mix of reliable and new YA fiction novel ingredients. There is a lot of parts of her world building that made sense to me as a newcomer but I really enjoyed the elements that I haven’t seen before. Her idea of jumping realms and having an “Ideal Realm” was interesting to me. It made me want to read book 2 where she apparently figures out this concept and masters it.

Also, van der Ploeg has a way with describing that “mean voice” we sometimes entertain. Sophia runs into a lot of guilt and shame that triggers some mental health issues and I felt like van der Ploeg really represented that mean voice all too well. Like, Petra are you a mind reader?

Honestly, the parts of the book that weren’t my favorite were due to the fact that this is book three of the Somnia series and I haven’t taken the chance to read the other two. That’s my bad! But it meant that sometimes I was behind on who could do what. I imagine certain scenes would feel more impactful if I watched Sophia grow and learn with the other characters in the book.

All of this to say, you’ll get through this book and enjoy the story but you’ll be confused by some bits if this is your first brush with this series.

Again, definitely read books one and two to better enjoy this book but it still holds up and tells a great tale on its own. This book is perfect for teen readers who are interested in magic and time/space travel. The book ended in a way where I suspect another book is coming soon, so I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

!Warning: My review is not completely objective as I am familiar with the author!

My favourite book so far, the pacing picks up, the drama heightens and the feelings get real in this one. Once you finish it you'll immediately want to pick up the fourth book. The one downside is that sometimes the pacing slowed down drastically and it became long-winded.

[Chrishel Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book for an honest review. I am thankful to have been given a chance to read this third installment for the Somnia Series before its release date. This series as a whole has been most enjoyable for me. The third book was different from the first two in my opinion. More emotional for Sophia and her friends and family. Sophia had somewhat of a handle on her light powers from the previous books, but not much experience with her darkness. It was interesting to see her finding the best way to deal with her dark powers as well as her light. This book was heartbreaking and moving. I think we all can relate to going through a dark time and trying to find the best way to deal with the emotions that we want to ignore. I wanted so much to be there for Sophia during her difficult time, because I’ve grown very fond of her over the last few books. There has been so much growth to her character and even now she’s still trying to figure out who she is. I can’t wait to follow Sophia on more adventures in the future, knowing there is still so much to come for her. This was an excellent book; I would recommend it to anyone who had read the first two and wants to feel more emotions from Sophia and her friends.

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was provided with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Petra van der Ploeg has a way of making magic feel effortless. Her characters and world building, as with the previous book, are charming. I was enthralled with this story from the beginning. It's been a while since I read book two, so I appreciate Petra's way of writing to remind the reader what happened last time without having to spell it out or offer the prose version of weekly television's "Previously On" recap. I love Sophia's continued growth in the exploration of different worlds.

Though I think this book is wonderful and memorable, I have to be honest and it isn't one of those books I itched to get back to like some of the others on my favorites list. I still very much adore these characters and the wonder in the magic Petra created, and I'll scream about it while I'm reading and right after, but if I have to take a few days away from reading for work it just isn't on my mind - not that that's a bad thing when I have things to do!