wetdryvac's review
5.0
It's interesting watching three series come together - I read 'em a bit jumbled, but it still worked. This book was good fun.
rileyxchaos's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
theobviousmystery's review against another edition
3.0
Another thrilling tale of the adventures of Nightblade. Unlike it's prequels, this books is filled with action right from the start. The lack of mourning of Jordel's death in the previous book was rectified as the whole team mourned his absence. The sacrifice of Mag and Albern brought forth an emotional beginning for the book as they traversed into woods, out the desert, to the coast and to the island. The battle of the seat was perfectly emphasised and showed how cunning the shadeborn can be. But every good has it's bad. The meeting with the elves and the discovery of Loren's new power played very little role in the story. Loren's character growth was not fulfilling as in the last book. And over exaggeration was seen when the High King, ruler of the 9 lands of Underrealm looked to Loren, a simple forrester for advice and later following her counsel. Realism was not a part of the element. And also the locations of the various cities made no sense as well. In a nutshell, Shadeborn is not a book I would recommend for people who take their reading seriously.
draconicrose's review
4.0
Garrett really hit his stride with this one. It was much better paced than the previous ones in the series and has a much thicker plot with less journey and more action. The ending though. Gave me chills.
nyappytiramisu's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse and Physical abuse
jjwilbourne's review
4.0
Garrett Robinson is back with the 4th installment in the Nightblade series: Shadeborn. And the author has entered dangerous waters. So many book series, albums, and movie franchises begin their slow decline at this point. So how does this novel fair against media’s track record?
After the climactic events of Darkfire, Loren’s party set off to complete the quest they began at the end of Mystic. But their journey to the High Seat is far from enviable. Now that the Shades have been revealed and Loren’s meddling exposed, they pursue her relentlessly, laying waste to village after village. Loren must make the most morally gray decisions of her life as she desperately tries to keep the lives of her friends, the fate of innocent civilians, and her all-important mission to reach the High King in balance.
Robinson defies expectations. His prose has not at all diminished in quality, and his stories get stronger with each installment. Shadeborn represents a leap in the author’s storytelling craft, finally giving the reader a story that feels both episodic and self-contained—my preference for series books.
What makes this story work so well for me boils down to this: before this story, Loren has had mentors she could lean on. When things went wrong, they were either there to save her, or they were the sounding board she needed to devise a plan to escape her present dilemma. Now that she’s the leader of her party, she suddenly realizes that everyone is following her lead, and that she must finally, truly be Nightblade.
Because of this, one “flaw” begins to become harder to overlook: Gem and Annis. Both characters were involved with Loren’s journey since the very first book. They create additional tension when they’re put in harm’s way and levity via banter, but their talents are under-used. The narrative often relies on Loren or another character when the stakes are high. Annis was well-used once, but not at all at the end. Gem is often a minor distraction help to buy time (and there was a perfect opportunity for him to shine during the story’s climax, but that moment was given to Loren). There are times I forget they’re in the party if the author didn’t remind me. While this isn’t enough to make the story unreadable, I hope this changes in book five.
The Nightblade series continues to be a fun adventure, worth diving into if you’re looking for a story with a Salvatore, Weis & Hickman, or Goodkind tone. And you can read book one for free by going here: https://underrealm.net/).
*Full Disclosure — I work for the publisher. I wasn't paid to review this book. It was on my TBR list from before I worked for the publisher.*
After the climactic events of Darkfire, Loren’s party set off to complete the quest they began at the end of Mystic. But their journey to the High Seat is far from enviable. Now that the Shades have been revealed and Loren’s meddling exposed, they pursue her relentlessly, laying waste to village after village. Loren must make the most morally gray decisions of her life as she desperately tries to keep the lives of her friends, the fate of innocent civilians, and her all-important mission to reach the High King in balance.
Robinson defies expectations. His prose has not at all diminished in quality, and his stories get stronger with each installment. Shadeborn represents a leap in the author’s storytelling craft, finally giving the reader a story that feels both episodic and self-contained—my preference for series books.
What makes this story work so well for me boils down to this: before this story, Loren has had mentors she could lean on. When things went wrong, they were either there to save her, or they were the sounding board she needed to devise a plan to escape her present dilemma. Now that she’s the leader of her party, she suddenly realizes that everyone is following her lead, and that she must finally, truly be Nightblade.
Because of this, one “flaw” begins to become harder to overlook: Gem and Annis. Both characters were involved with Loren’s journey since the very first book. They create additional tension when they’re put in harm’s way and levity via banter, but their talents are under-used. The narrative often relies on Loren or another character when the stakes are high. Annis was well-used once, but not at all at the end. Gem is often a minor distraction help to buy time (and there was a perfect opportunity for him to shine during the story’s climax, but that moment was given to Loren). There are times I forget they’re in the party if the author didn’t remind me. While this isn’t enough to make the story unreadable, I hope this changes in book five.
The Nightblade series continues to be a fun adventure, worth diving into if you’re looking for a story with a Salvatore, Weis & Hickman, or Goodkind tone. And you can read book one for free by going here: https://underrealm.net/).
*Full Disclosure — I work for the publisher. I wasn't paid to review this book. It was on my TBR list from before I worked for the publisher.*
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