Official Review: Shadow Walker by M. Garnet

Kristy Khem · Post by **Kristy Khem** » 29 May 2018, 11:33

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Shadow Walker" by M. Garnet.]

3 out of 4 stars

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Shadow Walker is a fantasy novel written by M. Garnet. Set in medieval times, the book follows Justus, a spirited lad who is disowned by his family and sent to the Black Queen’s court as a tribute. Here, he is trained in the art of combat and soon he discovers that he also possesses magical talents. His skills do not go unnoticed and he becomes a special servant to the Black Queen. She tasks him with missions involving trade, spying, and the recovery of tithes for the kingdom. He eventually becomes her most trusted advisor and he diligently protects her from disloyal subjects in her realm. During one of the Black Queen’s missions, Justus meets Aila, a feisty, foreign Princess who is hell-bent on running away from home to escape an arranged marriage. She becomes an important aspect of his life, but when the Black Queen sends the pair on a mission to reclaim Justus’ family lands, tragedy strikes.

The character development in this book was excellent. Each character had a distinct personality and had a backstory which was applicable to the medieval era. For instance, Justus was portrayed as the outcast who became a mighty warrior. The Black Queen was a widow and a mother, who struggled to keep her throne from disloyal subjects. Since she was only a Queen by marriage, she was also under pressure to re-marry so that a man could rule. Aila’s character was synonymous with Merida, the Scottish Princess from the Disney movie, Brave. She was also a redhead and was rebelling against her parents’ choice of husband. In this book, Aila also spoke differently and her accent was successfully captured in the story. I really appreciated the uniqueness of each character.

Despite being a fantasy novel, the book also included a few twists. These unexpected bits made the story more interesting, such as the identity of the spy who tried to kill the Queen and the tragic death of one of the main characters at the end.

Unfortunately, the style of writing was confusing at times. Many of the sentences were long and lacked commas to separate different clauses. Some descriptions could have been written more concisely. Phrases such as, “Uda rapped with a plate on the table,” could have been written as, “Uda rapped the table with a plate.” Furthermore, the author disrupts the dialogues by formatting part of them as a new paragraph. This interrupted the flow of reading since quotes were neither used to conclude the last sentence in the previous paragraph, nor to open the first sentence in the new paragraph.

Due to the concerns I had with the style of writing, I deducted a star and rated Shadow Walker 3 out of 4 stars. There were several errors in the book which were mostly typos and missing commas. This book will appeal to readers who enjoy themes of fantasy, magic, and romance. The story contains sex scenes, so I would only recommend it to adult readers.

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Shadow Walker
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arcie72 · Post by **arcie72** » 30 May 2018, 00:40

You had me at Merida. This story as written in your review is engaging and draws you in. I am glad to know that the character development was excellent. You painted a good image of the characters. I also understand how lengthy sentences or broken sentences can stop the flow of your reading. I am looking forward to adding this to my bookshelf and reading this story. Thank you for your review.

liftedbooks · Post by **liftedbooks** » 30 May 2018, 02:55

Thank you for an honest and thorough review. This sounds like an interesting story with great characters. The plot sounds intriguing too. I am a bit concerned about the errors you pointed out, as this probably means that the author didn't have the book edited.

Gaza · Post by **Gaza** » 30 May 2018, 03:46

Nice write up....I like Kristykhem's review

Kendra M Parker · Post by **Kendra M Parker** » 30 May 2018, 07:52

It sounds like this book has some interesting promise as a fantasy novel. I always enjoyed the character of Merida, and so this seems like it might be a fun one to read.

Ginnamassa19 · Post by **Ginnamassa19** » 30 May 2018, 08:22

This sounds like a good book--I'm a sucker for anything set in medieval times, and the characters in this book seem really well-developed! I'm a bit wary about the writing because of what you've mentioned, but I might just give this book a go

Thank you for your detailed review!

maggiechap · Post by **maggiechap** » 30 May 2018, 14:52

Thanks for your honesty, I was interested by the character and plot, but I don't think i could take the writing. Sounds like it has potential though.

Kristy Khem · Post by **Kristy Khem** » 31 May 2018, 21:21

arcie72 wrote: ↑30 May 2018, 00:40 You had me at Merida. This story as written in your review is engaging and draws you in. I am glad to know that the character development was excellent. You painted a good image of the characters. I also understand how lengthy sentences or broken sentences can stop the flow of your reading. I am looking forward to adding this to my bookshelf and reading this story. Thank you for your review.

Thanks for commenting! I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did

Kristy Khem · Post by **Kristy Khem** » 31 May 2018, 21:22

maggiechap wrote: ↑30 May 2018, 14:52 Thanks for your honesty, I was interested by the character and plot, but I don't think i could take the writing. Sounds like it has potential though.

With another round of editing, this book will be gold!

Kristy Khem · Post by **Kristy Khem** » 31 May 2018, 22:27

Ginnamassa19 wrote: ↑30 May 2018, 08:22 This sounds like a good book--I'm a sucker for anything set in medieval times, and the characters in this book seem really well-developed! I'm a bit wary about the writing because of what you've mentioned, but I might just give this book a go Thank you for your detailed review!

Same here! I love the medieval era and any book with romance, magic, and the supernatural definitely piques my interest. With some more edits, this book will be really enjoyable. Thanks for your comments!