diaryofthebookdragon's review against another edition
3.0
Lily is Shadow kin, wraith, soulless, abomination... Enslaved by vampires, despised by fae, feared by most, her fan club has no members. Until she meets Simon. He is a sunmage, healer, personification of everything good and pure. And he likes her and wants to help her. That's when the trouble starts...
This book did not feel very original to me. Lily is a kick-ass heroine dressed in leathers and black (you for sure can name at least one more that fits that description...)
Everything is written in first person point of view and it alternates between Simon and Lily. It was very confusing and Simon's voice felt somehow girly to me...
I'm gonna give it another chance and read the next book because I hate not finishing series...
This book did not feel very original to me. Lily is a kick-ass heroine dressed in leathers and black (you for sure can name at least one more that fits that description...)
Everything is written in first person point of view and it alternates between Simon and Lily. It was very confusing and Simon's voice felt somehow girly to me...
I'm gonna give it another chance and read the next book because I hate not finishing series...
nakedsushi's review against another edition
3.0
A fun little romp into a vampire, werewolf, fairy world. I had misgivings because of the whole fairy thing, but the author tied all the paranormal elements in with the humans neatly. The lead character was kick-ass without being annoying and the love interest wasn't all caveman alpha-male except in some situations, which was okay. Toward the end, I wanted to bash Simon's head in because he was being so righteous but clueless, but he redeemed himself. There was enough sexy-time without it being too embarrassing. Will probably read the next book in the series.
snarkymotherreader's review against another edition
4.0
The assassin known simply as shadow among the Blood and the Night World is sent to kill the one being that can trap her in the light – a sunmage, able to summon light to illuminate her darkness. And he is not just any sunmage, either, but the brother of a Templar warrior who doesn’t take kindly to being attacked in his own home. Instead of killing the would-be assassin, the sunmage offers sanctuary and an escape from her psychotic vampiric master.
Shadow Kin by M. J. Scott takes a dash of fantasy, a splash of romance, and a pinch of badass monsters and mixes it up into a highly-enjoyable historical urban fantasy. There isn’t anything particularly new about the mythos involved in the story, and the politics of vampires, shapeshifters and fae are pretty cut and dry, but I still found myself unable to put the book down. Shadow’s place in the Night World and her struggle to free herself from the chains that bind her tugged at my heart strings. Granted, there are a few “what do you think you’re doing?!” moments, but that’s to be expected in a character’s journey from flunky to free woman.
Simon, on the other hand, lives up to too many hero clichés. He has the perfect name for a Templar relative – I couldn’t quit thinking about Val Kilmer in The Saint – and exhibits all the classic traits of a Good Hero, but there are times he treats shadow poorly. Yes, she’s an assassin, she was sent to kill him, and she has a Deep, Dark Secret. I get that. But you don’t treat someone you claim to care about the way he does. This is a common occurrence in fantasy/paranormal novels with a love angle, so it didn’t diminish my enjoyment of the story.
I hope future books in the Half-Light City focus on some of the side characters I met along the way, especially Atherton and Guy. Out of all the creatures, killers, and warriors in this crazy/intriguing world, they caught my attention the most. Trust me, once you read Shadow Kin, you’ll understand why.
Shadow Kin by M. J. Scott takes a dash of fantasy, a splash of romance, and a pinch of badass monsters and mixes it up into a highly-enjoyable historical urban fantasy. There isn’t anything particularly new about the mythos involved in the story, and the politics of vampires, shapeshifters and fae are pretty cut and dry, but I still found myself unable to put the book down. Shadow’s place in the Night World and her struggle to free herself from the chains that bind her tugged at my heart strings. Granted, there are a few “what do you think you’re doing?!” moments, but that’s to be expected in a character’s journey from flunky to free woman.
Simon, on the other hand, lives up to too many hero clichés. He has the perfect name for a Templar relative – I couldn’t quit thinking about Val Kilmer in The Saint – and exhibits all the classic traits of a Good Hero, but there are times he treats shadow poorly. Yes, she’s an assassin, she was sent to kill him, and she has a Deep, Dark Secret. I get that. But you don’t treat someone you claim to care about the way he does. This is a common occurrence in fantasy/paranormal novels with a love angle, so it didn’t diminish my enjoyment of the story.
I hope future books in the Half-Light City focus on some of the side characters I met along the way, especially Atherton and Guy. Out of all the creatures, killers, and warriors in this crazy/intriguing world, they caught my attention the most. Trust me, once you read Shadow Kin, you’ll understand why.
chllybrd's review against another edition
4.0
reviewed by http://urbanfantasyinvestigations.blogspot.com/
Another fabulous cover that reeled me in. Lily is a wraith. She is hated by every Fae because she is a wraith and feared because she is the assassin slave to Lucius. The day Lucius sends Lily out to kill a human named Simon everything in Lily's life changed.
The world that Lily grows up in has made her think very little of herself so she keeps to herself, doesn't show any feelings and kills who and when she is told to. She is sent out to kill Simon and when it doesn't go as planned he is the first person to treat her like she is someone worth knowing. The story switches back and forth between Simon and Lily's POV. It was easy to keep up with things and it only added to the story to read what either person was feeling about things at the time. I was happy with the way the story progressed at most points but i found the middle to be a tad bit slow. There was times where I wanted to yell at one or the other for not understanding the other better but that is all part of a great story. The emotions came across well. Simon and Lily had great chemistry. There is a great mixture of paranormal creatures. The world that the story takes place is well described. SHADOW KIN lived up to its cover and I will be picking up book 2 BLOOD KIN in June so I can continue the story.
Another fabulous cover that reeled me in. Lily is a wraith. She is hated by every Fae because she is a wraith and feared because she is the assassin slave to Lucius. The day Lucius sends Lily out to kill a human named Simon everything in Lily's life changed.
The world that Lily grows up in has made her think very little of herself so she keeps to herself, doesn't show any feelings and kills who and when she is told to. She is sent out to kill Simon and when it doesn't go as planned he is the first person to treat her like she is someone worth knowing. The story switches back and forth between Simon and Lily's POV. It was easy to keep up with things and it only added to the story to read what either person was feeling about things at the time. I was happy with the way the story progressed at most points but i found the middle to be a tad bit slow. There was times where I wanted to yell at one or the other for not understanding the other better but that is all part of a great story. The emotions came across well. Simon and Lily had great chemistry. There is a great mixture of paranormal creatures. The world that the story takes place is well described. SHADOW KIN lived up to its cover and I will be picking up book 2 BLOOD KIN in June so I can continue the story.
ria_mhrj's review against another edition
2.0
Shadow Kin boasts an interesting world with a unique take on familiar fantasy creatures. The heroine's struggle to find a place to belong had a huge amount of potential and when the politics of the society were explored, my interest was held.
But alas, the majority of the characters didn't work for me. Starting with the villain, Lucius is meant to be a creature of terror with sinister plans for both our heroes and the city as a whole. He is just plain bad without any real depth or clear motivations beyond a lust for power and this bothered me - given the relationship with Lily and his role in society, I felt much more could have been done with this character.
Worryingly, I preferred Lucius to Simon, the ostensible hero. Gah! He made me so mad. Self-righteous, smug and frustratingly blinkered to all views but his own, Simon got off to a good start but did not experience any growth or development as the novel progressed - the traits I listed before are not always unforgivable, provided there is some hint of change, but there was no such hope for Simon.
Finally, there's Lily. Again, there was huge potential with this character given her circumstances, but ultimately she was the sum of her history and her abilities and little else, and I never felt I got under her skin at any point. And she lost my respect for offering an unnecessary apology to a certain character. There should have been more to her.
The world building deserves praise but when it comes to the books I read, I need to care and sympathise with SOMEONE and sadly this was missing for me in Shadow Kin.
But alas, the majority of the characters didn't work for me. Starting with the villain, Lucius is meant to be a creature of terror with sinister plans for both our heroes and the city as a whole. He is just plain bad without any real depth or clear motivations beyond a lust for power and this bothered me - given the relationship with Lily and his role in society, I felt much more could have been done with this character.
Worryingly, I preferred Lucius to Simon, the ostensible hero. Gah! He made me so mad. Self-righteous, smug and frustratingly blinkered to all views but his own, Simon got off to a good start but did not experience any growth or development as the novel progressed - the traits I listed before are not always unforgivable, provided there is some hint of change, but there was no such hope for Simon.
Finally, there's Lily. Again, there was huge potential with this character given her circumstances, but ultimately she was the sum of her history and her abilities and little else, and I never felt I got under her skin at any point. And she lost my respect for offering an unnecessary apology to a certain character. There should have been more to her.
The world building deserves praise but when it comes to the books I read, I need to care and sympathise with SOMEONE and sadly this was missing for me in Shadow Kin.
ufcasey's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. This book features fae, vampires, mages, animal shifters, and a wraith - it's a smorgasbord of paranormal creatures. While that did seem to be a little bit much overall, on the scale of the number of characters involved - this was relatively well executed. I perhaps would have given this book a higher rating, but the character of Simon just didn't stand out for me and the world building was a little weak. Meanwhile the villain, Lucius, did come across as very frightening but I wish we got to see more of his machinations beyond his torments of Lily - what was his plans? Where's the evil mastermind plot? I still liked this book though.
book_whispers's review
3.0
This was the perfect book to get me out of my stupid female lead syndrome. Shadow was everything I wanted her to be (I won't use her name just incase you haven't read the synopsis. That way it will be a treat/surprise). A wraith assassin! A half breed of the Fae sold to an evil vampire named Damon. She's lived in darkness her entire life.
So when her job to kill a Sunmage clearly turns into the setup of a romance I wasn't bummed. Because Simon was actually a cool character. Not to mention it felt like the setup for Kate and Curran from the Kate Daniel's verse. In fact this is the perfect blend of epic fantasy, some steampunk flavors, and urban fantasy genre meld. Not to mention that when Shadow meets Simon she tells him she doesn't need a “white knight”. Yes, she's her own hero.
The world and politics are awesome. I love the idea of the Blood (vampires), Fae, Beast (animal shifters) and humans residing in world that is fully aware. The politics and history that make them coincide together. There's intrigue, violence, sexy times, a fantastic world, and wonderful characters.
Sadly Scott did a lot to make her amazing female lead into a damsel. Don't get me wrong, Shadow is wonderfully realized. However, the reason for her change of heart will always be in question. Was she strong enough to do it? Or was it Simon taking the matter out of her hands? Not to mention that Shadow is supposed to me this great fighter.
But when she attacks Simon out of rage she loses, her second time losing to him. Then when she starts fighting Simon's brother, Guy a pretty awesome character, she can go toe to toe with him. Despite the fact that Guy is supposed to be the better fighter. Simon was always trying to beat Guy. I got the first time that Simon's Sunmage skills took her buy surprise and is basically the perfect weapon to defeating her powers. But this was sloppy. Not to mention she doesn't get to take out the villain. Because Shadow deserved to take out this particular villain. No matter what I would have been disappointed. The fact that Shadow was the bait and Simon was the hero. OK, what she did took guts. Maybe I'm being overly sensitive because I got done reading some stupid female leads prior.
All the questionable scenes were simply verified by Shadow saying at the end that she really did need a white knight to save her. Yuck. It didn't help that Simon demanded Shadow's trust but he threw her to the wolves. Oh, but he could still give a good #*%@*%&.
Overall I love the world. I want to know more about it, explore it. Not to mention that I really enjoy the cast of characters. Hopefully Simon and Shadow can reach a balance of equality in later books. You know, no more forced losing scenes or damsel scenes created to obviously have Simon be the hero. Either way I want to see Shadow create a life with Simon. And in general I just want to see how she lives her life with her new found freedom. This was a promising start and I truly love the dark gritty world Scott has created.
Sexual Content: Sexual humor, some dark themes, and sex scenes.
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.
Originally posted at Book Whispers.
So when her job to kill a Sunmage clearly turns into the setup of a romance I wasn't bummed. Because Simon was actually a cool character. Not to mention it felt like the setup for Kate and Curran from the Kate Daniel's verse. In fact this is the perfect blend of epic fantasy, some steampunk flavors, and urban fantasy genre meld. Not to mention that when Shadow meets Simon she tells him she doesn't need a “white knight”. Yes, she's her own hero.
The world and politics are awesome. I love the idea of the Blood (vampires), Fae, Beast (animal shifters) and humans residing in world that is fully aware. The politics and history that make them coincide together. There's intrigue, violence, sexy times, a fantastic world, and wonderful characters.
Sadly Scott did a lot to make her amazing female lead into a damsel. Don't get me wrong, Shadow is wonderfully realized. However, the reason for her change of heart will always be in question. Was she strong enough to do it? Or was it Simon taking the matter out of her hands? Not to mention that Shadow is supposed to me this great fighter.
But when she attacks Simon out of rage she loses, her second time losing to him. Then when she starts fighting Simon's brother, Guy a pretty awesome character, she can go toe to toe with him. Despite the fact that Guy is supposed to be the better fighter. Simon was always trying to beat Guy. I got the first time that Simon's Sunmage skills took her buy surprise and is basically the perfect weapon to defeating her powers. But this was sloppy. Not to mention she doesn't get to take out the villain. Because Shadow deserved to take out this particular villain. No matter what I would have been disappointed. The fact that Shadow was the bait and Simon was the hero. OK, what she did took guts. Maybe I'm being overly sensitive because I got done reading some stupid female leads prior.
All the questionable scenes were simply verified by Shadow saying at the end that she really did need a white knight to save her. Yuck. It didn't help that Simon demanded Shadow's trust but he threw her to the wolves. Oh, but he could still give a good #*%@*%&.
Overall I love the world. I want to know more about it, explore it. Not to mention that I really enjoy the cast of characters. Hopefully Simon and Shadow can reach a balance of equality in later books. You know, no more forced losing scenes or damsel scenes created to obviously have Simon be the hero. Either way I want to see Shadow create a life with Simon. And in general I just want to see how she lives her life with her new found freedom. This was a promising start and I truly love the dark gritty world Scott has created.
Sexual Content: Sexual humor, some dark themes, and sex scenes.
3/5- Adored it, just a few minor details held it back.
Originally posted at Book Whispers.
rachelini's review against another edition
3.0
Here is my problem with this book: it started with the two main characters meeting. Which means that the reader never gets a sense of who they actually are, only how they interact with each other. For me, this meant that I had a hard time believing that she was a ruthless assassin, because of her reaction to him.
However, I liked the world and enjoyed the story once it got going. I'll read the next.
However, I liked the world and enjoyed the story once it got going. I'll read the next.
book_hoarding_dragon's review against another edition
4.0
I am kind of ashamed to admit that the cover originally drew me to this book. I try to be all 'don't judge a book by its cover' (for instance there is Moira J. Moor's early books which I loved but the covers were atrocious. They were more suited to humorous books which her series is not). But it was the models hair, it was all very The Fifth Element (the one with Bruce Willis).
Anyway, this story has a bit of everything fantasy (knights, Beast Kin-shapeshifters, Fae, Vampires, Oh my), steam punk, medieval times, etc.
I kind of liked Shadow or Lily cause of her tough attitude, with her abandonment issues, and how she wasn't all powerful. In fact, she was in a kind of abusive relationship which you get to see her grow from.
I liked Simon, the hero, at times. Though he does come off deuchey at times. But in general I did like his character. He kind of had a bit of a tarnished white knight syndrome going on, but it wasn't overdone into making him a cliche.
One thing that nagged me is the editing. I know sometimes editors don't get all of the mistakes, but there were five of them. I know they don't seem like a lot but outside of self-publishing that's the most I have ever seen in a book in years. I don't know if in recent years Australian authors have cut back to make the books marketable to readers outside of Australia or if the publishing have augmented them (like with harry potter). But I found some of the grammar and word usage a little bit different. What I mean by this is my first Aussie author was Old Magic by Marianne Curley and that book was chock full of Aussie slang. I imagined these teenage australians wandering around wearing overalls carrying actual torches (ones lite by fire).
Anyway, this story has a bit of everything fantasy (knights, Beast Kin-shapeshifters, Fae, Vampires, Oh my), steam punk, medieval times, etc.
I kind of liked Shadow or Lily cause of her tough attitude, with her abandonment issues, and how she wasn't all powerful. In fact, she was in a kind of abusive relationship which you get to see her grow from.
I liked Simon, the hero, at times. Though he does come off deuchey at times. But in general I did like his character. He kind of had a bit of a tarnished white knight syndrome going on, but it wasn't overdone into making him a cliche.
One thing that nagged me is the editing. I know sometimes editors don't get all of the mistakes, but there were five of them. I know they don't seem like a lot but outside of self-publishing that's the most I have ever seen in a book in years. I don't know if in recent years Australian authors have cut back to make the books marketable to readers outside of Australia or if the publishing have augmented them (like with harry potter). But I found some of the grammar and word usage a little bit different. What I mean by this is my first Aussie author was Old Magic by Marianne Curley and that book was chock full of Aussie slang. I imagined these teenage australians wandering around wearing overalls carrying actual torches (ones lite by fire).
buuboobaby's review against another edition
4.0
Despite wanting to reach into the pages and throttle Simon near the end, this was a tense, exciting read. Looking forward to more from MJ Scott.