Shadowfell Paperback – July 9, 2013

A tale of courage and struggle and war. Neryn is a 15 yr old girl with uncanny skills who has lost all her family to a nefarious king's rule.She finds herself on a journey to find a rebel stronghold that may or may not exist. Her gift is a light in dark times. She faces many trails, but hopefully makes key friends and allies along the way.

I fell in love with Juliet Marillier’s books as a college student, and recently found them again. Ten years since I read the last one, and it still sucked me right in. I can’t wait to read the next book!

Juliet Marillier has many fans, who are spread across all five continents and the seven seas as well. Her work has been translated into many other languages including Mandarin, and one of her strongest fan clubs is based in Portugal. Her work is largely set in the British Isles (Wildwood Dancing and Cybele’s Secret, being set in Europe, are exceptions) so just what explains Marillier’s worldwide popularity?I would suggest that it is her likeable characters. Her ‘leading ladies’ are all young, strong, efficient and hard-working, and the men who love them are noble, kind and honest. There is, too, the popularity of Celtic mythology and culture, which constitute the main influences on Marillier’s work. Her flagship series, Sevenwaters, is set in Ireland, as are several other of her tales, but for this new series she has moved to an imaginary country named Alba, which we quickly realise is a re-imagining of Scotland.It’s Scotland, Jock, but not as we know it. Alba is a country beset by wicked magic, wielded by King Keldec and his Enforcers. All other magic is forbidden, and magically gifted citizens are mind-cleansed to sway them to Keldec’s will. In the process, some of them have their minds almost wiped out. Neryn’s grandmother was one of those so ruined, and now Neryn, who has been able to see and talk with the Good Folk for as long as she can remember, must flee northward in search of sanctuary at a place only spoken of in whispers, if at all, Shadowfell.It is a hard journey, and a long one. Neryn has many tribulations en route. She does have help, not only from the Good Folk, but also from a stranger named Flint. But which side is Flint on?As usual, Marillier’s characters are clearly defined and individual. One does recognise similar ‘types’ from other books of hers, but each hero, each heroine, differs from all earlier ones through their well-defined personalities and backgrounds. What they have in common is a gift for magic and the desire to do good. The settings, too, are so lucidly described that there is no way we could confuse the mountains and forests of Alba with those of Marillier’s Ireland. Likewise, the magical characters are different: here we have, for instance, the highly original ‘stanie men’ – beings of rock who can only be set free to perform a task by someone with powerful magical gifts. Someone like Neryn.Shadowfell is an easy read at under 350 pages, and can thus be expected to appeal to girls as young as twelve or thirteen. However, it will also provide a good read for their mothers and grandmothers, to say nothing of their brothers, for many Marillier fans are of the male persuasion, despite the fact that there is always a strong streak of romance in a Marillier book. But the romance is only part of the story. There are also journeys, battles and magic, and strong male characters that will appeal to both genders.If you have not yet tried Juliet Marillier, you will find Shadowfell a very good jumping-off point.

This book . . . was underwhelming.For the first 100 pages, I was bored out of my eyeballs. It took me THREE DAYS to read this book. B/c BORED. Three days to finish a 400 page YA fantasy. On the bright side, I was very productive blog-wise . . . b/c I couldn't make myself read . . .I know I'm beating a dead horse here, but I typically LOVE Juliet Marillier. One of my favorite books of all time is a book by Marillier ( Wildwood Dancing ), and I've very much enjoyed several of her adult fantasy series as well. So I was expecting this to be a sure thing.It wasn't.It picked up a bit after those first 100 pages, and I did enjoy the depictions of the Fae as a fractious band of Labyrinth -type creatures, but ultimately . . . it all felt very . . . average.A tyrannical king has practically snuffed magic out of the world, except for his own private use. A girl with a powerful gift has lost her entire family b/c Tyrannical King. A man-boy in a cloak rescues Girl, but is he trustworthy? Girl ditches Man-Boy to travel to Rebel Base that Girl isn't sure really exists, b/c it's only spoken about in whispers. But Man-Boy manages to find Girl over and over again.Blah, blah, a thousand times BLAH.And Neryn (Girl) is a very young heroine, both in age and temperament. The blurb says she's sixteen, but unless she had an unremarked upon birthday somewhere in the book, she's only fifteen, so there's a lot of character growth going on. But it's the timid second-guessing, early adolescent type of character growth. The, "Can I trust him? I can't trust him. Maybe I can trust him. I'm starting to trust him. HE BETRAYED ME! Did he betray me? He definitely betrayed me. Maybe he didn't betray me. I LOVE him," type of character growth. *bangs head against wall*Then at the very end (of course), it's Epiphany Time!Suddenly Neryn works her way to all the conclusions you've been screaming at her throughout the book. And yeah, better late than never, but b/c of the earlier back and forth, you don't really trust that it will survive the next teen-aged bout of jumping to conclusions, misunderstandings, leaping before you look, etc.So all of that was frustrating.BUT . . . it wasn't all bad. I adored Flint (Man-Boy). He was an incredibly complex character, and beyond that, he was a character that I could admire. He has chosen to live his life for the the greater good, he lives with the consequences of that choice, and they are dire. I might have a fanatical mild case of hero worship . . . I can't say for certain, but . . . it's a possibility . . .Aaaannnddd . . . we all know how bloodthirsty I am---I OWN IT---but . . . I don't want to throttle Neryn for being reluctant to KILL THEM ALL."Why not?" you askWell . . . b/c this is the place where Marillier's brilliance finally shines through. Neryn is hesitant to kill others, not b/c she's preoccupied with the state of her soul. Not b/c she's having a pity party knowing that once she begins, her life will inevitably be filled with darkness and death. No . . . Neryn is hesitant to kill, b/c through Flint she sees that the king's men are just men. Men fighting on the wrong side, but just men, nevertheless. And she is desperate to find a way to help the rebels that doesn't involve the mass slaughter of men.I have no doubt that if it comes down to it, she'll make the hard choice. But Marillier so ingeniously lays the groundwork for Neryn's internal struggle, that even I---violent urges and all---do not cry out for these men's blood.*tips hat*So not my favorite book, but not a total loss either, and I have it on good authority that book 2 is infinitely better, so I'm not ready to give up just yet. Onto Raven Flight I go. *lowers voice ominously* But beware my fury if I am disappointed . . .

One of my favorite authors, for her absolute brilliance in storytelling, does not disappoint with this novel. From beginning to end I was captivated by the characters she brought to life sweeping me up in their journey. I can’t wait to start the next book!

In line with all other works from Juliet Marillier, the start of the Shadowfell series has once again completely transported and entranced me.Neryn in a very special type of person with abilities that could get her in serious danger or killed - they have already cost others their lives.She has a rough start, but I love how gentle and empathetic she remains. Her journeys are tough and her lessons hard. The reader is kept swept up in the story and on the edge of their seat for the continuation of the book. I couldn't put it down.Romance, adventure and fantasy combined in perfect amounts for a book that will leave you ordering the next two in the series before you are even finished.

I am a great fan of Juliet Marillier and this novel did not disappoint. I got caught up immediately in the story and read far too late in the night! Juliet Marillier masters fantasy in all her works. I am eagerly awaiting the next book in this series.

Excellent story and all of the main characters are fascinating and well rounded. I look forward to reading Shadowfell Book 2.

As always Juliet Marillier writes with a pen that has the ability to transport the reader to another world; while spinning a story of depth and entertainment.I read for the joy of the written word and have a wide genre of books that I enjoy but have Juliet as one of my favorite authors.

Great read