Shadow Master

by Justin D'Ath

Baby Ora is the only person to survive Quickwater Lake. Now at fifteen, she may hold the key to healing old wounds and restoring life to the drought-ridden land.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

268 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

One of twelve children, Justin grew up on a farm in Otaki, New Zealand. He wrote his first book, a ten page cartoon about his pet turtle, Bubble, when he was nine years old. His next cartoon was about Moriarty, his guinea pig, and filled a complete exercise book. When he was eleven, Justin began writing his first novel, but conked out after 35 pages.


Justin D’Ath is the author of over 30 books for children and young adults, including the hugely popular Extreme Adventures series. Other books include Astrid Spark, Fixologist, The Skyflower, Robbie and the Dolphins, Infamous, and Why did the Chykkan cross the Galaxy?


Justin says: ‘My main message is, Enjoy reading

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has remained one of my absolute favourite books. I read it first when I was 13, and 6yrs later Im finding it's a hard book to better. The magical world it transports you to, is so wonderful and the the characters are so...real.

[Josie · Rating 4 out of 5]

okay so i almost cried at the end of this book. it’s a very cute book and has a little bit of suspense. it’s written for young people but i liked it a lot, and the way it was written was really good too. sort of had the vibe of colonisers and colonised people. it wasn’t exactly fantasy but had elements of it.
all in all, a cute short book that i liked hahaha

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

13 year old me loved this book so much that I only read it twice in order to preserve its awesomeness. Having recently re-read it, I can now see its flaws, and while I can also see how those flaws might put off some readers, god help me, I still love it!
There's a lot to pick at in this book: Ora, the protagonist, is pretty bland and doesn't develop in any noticeable way so much as she just endures whatever hardship comes her way with the same determination to do what is right from beginning to end; despite the fantastical setting, the characters are still all white; similarly, the society is still patriarchal and sexist; the story takes too long to get going; cliff hangers every time something interesting happens, followed by a jump in time that inevitably spoils the tension etc. The biggest downer of all was that I wanted more depth from the book than what was given. There are so many issues and plot developments throughout the book that could have been very interesting to explore but are simply mentioned once or twice and then forgotten about or frustratingly skimmed over (the effects of the drought, the political intrigue, Ora's isolation from her peers etc).

On the other hand, there was just so much that I like about the book as well. I liked the lake setting, and I liked the Dalfin, the Guests, and their mythology. I liked the twists in the mystery! (Some primary school kid in another internet review said that the twists were predictable. Well, (possibly dim) 13 year old me begs to differ, and current me still finds the way in which everything pieces together very satisfying.) I liked the understated romance between Ora and Tasman, a Guest boy. I love the ending. When I think of "Shadow Master", I think of the Cloudtouchers, and of that ending. Bittersweet, and brilliant.

Not many people seemed to have heard of this book, which is a shame, because it's a compelling story and an easy read for YA readers. Maybe if Justin D'Ath turned it into a trilogy it would pick up more interest, as seems to be the trend these days ;) Still, I love it for what it is.

[Kara Jayde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book three times almost back to back when I was 12, 16 years on I still remember this book vividly and would love to get a copy to read to my children, although I can’t find it anywhere!
This book truly ignited my love of reading.

[Tori · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the best book that I've read wherein the protagonist turns into a dolphin. That is all I can say.

[Genevieve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it hard to understand with the way they spoke, and the start was really confusing. but at the end I was understanding them more.
I didn't like the end.
I did enjoy reading it though.

[Johanness · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is quite different to a lot of other fantasy type books, the plot is really good, and the setting was well done.
The characters and physical appearances of them was so topsy-turvy it was a bit hard to get used to, but it was a really good touch considering most of the time it would have been the complete opposite. I loved this book, although I vaguely remember the finer details to it, since it has been a while, I'm planning to re-read it once I finish the other books I have on hand.

If you want something totally different, I recommend this. Highly.

[Kandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just want to say how amazing I think this book is! I actually met Justin when I was in Primary school, and he became a good friend there after (I had him over my house for dinner once). I was lucky enough to be one of a few selected individuals who received a manuscript of this book before it was even published!! My head spun when I read this for the first time, and now, after reading it over 10 times since then, I still recall this as one of my absolute FAVORITE books in the world! I would recommend this book to any person looking for a decent read.

[Lynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compelling fantasy for teens and young adults. Ora is a princess in the drought ravaged land of Folavia. Their Quickwater Lake has turned to a toxic, fatal trap - and only Ora has survived drowning in it. Their food supply has dwindled for 17 years and they obtain their food from the Outland, exhausting the treasury of the kingdom to do so. As the story evolves, the mystery emerges as to why the lake has been poisoned, and the terrible price it will take to restore it.

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

As so many of the reviews say, I read this book as a teenager and it has just stuck with me.
I don't know why this doesn't have more ratings and reviews. If you haven't already read this book, get on it.