Official Review: The Black shadow by Teddy Sabutey

MrsCatInTheHat · Post by **MrsCatInTheHat** » 01 Jul 2017, 14:48

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Black shadow" by Teddy Sabutey.]

3 out of 4 stars

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The battle between good and evil, a Savior versus an Antichrist, is told in the form of a scandalous spy thriller in Teddy Sabutey’s The Black Shadow. A story of the power behind the movers and the shakers of the world takes on a completely new dimension when the Antichrist infiltrates the government of the United States. One can almost imagine how people would be shaking in their boots if something like this came to fruition in real life.

The basic premise is that on every millennial anniversary of the death of Jesus Christ, a special child is born that will take on the Antichrist. For the special child born in the 20th century, the task is centered on discovering who the modern Antichrist is and stopping him. The man known as the Saint and the man known as the Black Shadow battle over far more than just power, politics, and espionage like you have never seen before. A special woman is loved by one of them and wanted by the other. As heir to the Blackwell Empire, Helena is entwined in the battle of good versus evil, as she discovers that she prefers one but was brought up to believe in the other. Her battle is both internal and external, with herself and outside forces.

At first glance, it appears that The Black Shadow is a work of Christian fiction, with Biblical connotations in the acknowledgements and early pages of the story. Quickly, one realizes that although the battle is between the special child, born a Savior, and an evil man, an Antichrist, the story is not Christian fiction. The sexual scenes are exceptionally descriptive, using words that most people would find to be extreme lewdness, especially concerning female body parts. The violence is graphic but not to the intensity of the sexual vulgarity.

Sabutey does a good job in keeping the reader in suspense. It is not always obvious as to who is on the side of good and who is on the side of evil. For example, the people that one first assumes are the moles in the security services are the ones who most want to protect the United States. The most horrible mole was rather unexpected and scary, for if someone in that type of position were ever a mole in real life, we would all be in deep trouble.

The one major weakness is with the errors in the usage of incorrect words. There are issues with both names and word choices. Instead of Blackwell, there are several occasions where the name Black is used. Word errors include angle for angel, take instead of talk, head for heard and other similar errors. The errors were distracting and should have been picked up on during the editing process.

The Black Shadow is an intriguing and captivating story, with the story of good versus evil told in a fresh, new way. Considering the above weaknesses, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. With proper editing, this story has the potential of being a major blockbuster. This story will appeal to anyone who enjoys crime and spy thrillers but can also handle the sexual lewdness.

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The Black shadow
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raikyuu · Post by **raikyuu** » 15 Jul 2017, 23:09

It's a shame that the book isn't professionally edited. Seems like an interesting book. Good review.

DeeDee22 · Post by **DeeDee22** » 15 Jul 2017, 23:23

The Black Shadow by Teddy Sabutey

I enjoyed the official review. It clearly explained the plot and made me want to read this book.

Post by **kandscreeley** » 16 Jul 2017, 06:55

I really don't like when authors get the characters names wrong. That's so annoying. Sounds like an interesting concept though. Thanks for the review.

MrsCatInTheHat · Post by **MrsCatInTheHat** » 16 Jul 2017, 07:36

kandscreeley wrote:I really don't like when authors get the characters names wrong. That's so annoying. Sounds like an interesting concept though. Thanks for the review.

It is frustrating when that happens. The concept was new, I didn't feel like I was reading the same old thing. Lot's of potential for this author.

SpiderDreamer1 · Post by **SpiderDreamer1** » 18 Jul 2017, 09:11

I've read a few anti-Christ stories in my time (my favorite being the comedic take on things in Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens), but this sounds intriguing. Why does it not qualify as "Christian" fiction, however, for explicit content?

MrsCatInTheHat · Post by **MrsCatInTheHat** » 18 Jul 2017, 09:19

SpiderDreamer1 wrote:I've read a few anti-Christ stories in my time (my favorite being the comedic take on things in Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens), but this sounds intriguing. Why does it not qualify as "Christian" fiction, however, for explicit content?

Good question. Typically, Christian fiction is "clean". In my opinion, most people who are specifically looking for Christian fiction are seeking something that is inspiring in a spiritual way, doesn't have cussing, doesn't have explicit sex and has some kind of focus on relying on the Christian God.

SpiderDreamer1 · Post by **SpiderDreamer1** » 18 Jul 2017, 15:23

CatInTheHat wrote:
SpiderDreamer1 wrote:I've read a few anti-Christ stories in my time (my favorite being the comedic take on things in Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens), but this sounds intriguing. Why does it not qualify as "Christian" fiction, however, for explicit content?
Good question. Typically, Christian fiction is "clean". In my opinion, most people who are specifically looking for Christian fiction are seeking something that is inspiring in a spiritual way, doesn't have cussing, doesn't have explicit sex and has some kind of focus on relying on the Christian God.

I suppose that's fair enough. I just think that one *can* deal with Christian themes well even with those elements if done so properly.

MrsCatInTheHat · Post by **MrsCatInTheHat** » 18 Jul 2017, 15:27

SpiderDreamer1 wrote:
I suppose that's fair enough. I just think that one *can* deal with Christian themes well even with those elements if done so properly.

Yes, but I wouldn't classify stories with a religious theme as necessarily being Christian fiction. I wouldn't expect to find this book in a Christian bookstore or in the Christian fiction section of any bookstore.

Post by **bookowlie** » 18 Jul 2017, 21:12

Great, thorough review! Although the book doesn't seem like my cup of tea, I can see many readers enjoying this type of plot. The errors in word usage sound annoying.

MrsCatInTheHat · Post by **MrsCatInTheHat** » 19 Jul 2017, 14:43

raikyuu wrote:It's a shame that the book isn't professionally edited. Seems like an interesting book. Good review.

I wouldn't go so far as to say it wasn't professionally edited. The word/name choice errors that did occur were repeated, but overall editing as far structure and grammar were fine. It needs some fine tuning but then it will be a hit!