Customer Reviews

Forsaken By Shadow (Mirus (1.1))

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed this novella very much. It was exactly the kind of quick PNR read I was in the mood for after a long day. The characters are intelligent and sexy and I found the paranormal aspects to be fresh and interesting. Definitely going to read more by Kait Nolan.

Kait Nolan has jumped straight onto my "read more" list with her debut novella. The story pulled me in and kept me reading from the first page. I found her characters intriguing and believable, both in themselves and in their relationships to one another. Settings, events, and the details of the paranormal world were all realistically described without any info-dumping.

My criticisms are minor and didn't prevent me from enjoying the story, and I say this as someone who is, for better and worse, a really critical reader. For those who, like me, get really distracted by things like grammar and punctuation, I'm happy to report I didn't notice anything but a few comma errors. There was one line of dialog that was a little awkward in its detail-explaining function. The shift from the first scene to the second took me a moment to catch up to, but I had no problem figuring out what was going on. As I said, minor issues, and they were easily outweighed by the strength of Ms. Nolan's storytelling.

In short, this is a well-written, very engaging novella, with a world and characters I'd like to visit again. Kudos to Kait, and I can't wait to read her next installment.

It took me a little bit to get into this novella, but it smoothed out nicely, and raced quickly through all sorts of exciting events that leave one sort of breathless at the end (personally, I like that). I found it kind of predictable in spots, but not in a bad way, and I enjoyed the relationship between the two main characters very much. The opening was quite original and unique...a fascinating way to start the story. The Mirus world is one chock-full of interesting and quirky "beings" that I'd really like to read more of soon. Bravo, Kait!

Synopsis
A man wakes up alone and with bandaged hands in a cheap motel room. His only memory is the need to protect a girl, but he can't remember what her name is. After a trip to the hospital, his finger prints reveal that his name is Cade and that he went missing 15 years ago. He makes a successful new life for himself as a UFC fighter, but everything spirals out of control when a mysterious redhead catches his eye in the front row of a fight. Can she help him fill in the missing years of his life?

Review
I enjoyed this debut novella. While many of the familiar paranormals are on the scene, there are some new ones that I haven't seen before, like the Shadow Walkers. The pace of the novella was good, and the sex scenes were not overdone, which is always nice for anything with a tag of "romance." I would be very interested in reading more about the characters in a future novel.

My Recommendation
A fun read for a mature audience. The story feels like a quick introduction into a new series, and will leave you wanting more. I give it a 4/5.

***FTC Disclosure: This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review, no other compensation was given, all opinions are my own***

This book kept me interested from the beginning, it was well written and fast paced. i enjoyed it more than some paranormal books I have read from well known authors. I will keep an eye out for her next book and recommend this one!!

This novel is interesting and action-packed. Embry is now in control of her own flame-making abilities and works for the Council of Races. However, she decides to leave the job when they refuse to help her find her "kidnapped" father. She hunts down Cade Shepherd, a man who doesn't remember his past, but is just as lethal. The only problem? Cade must remember his past as a Shadow Walker. The romance doesn't take forever to take hold, the reader isn't left bored at all. Cade and Embry tend to skirt each other and their feelings for each other in the novel, though. The novel contains action, drama, mystery, and romance. The action is continuous with very few lags. This book is a novella, it will not take long to enjoy. This novel is recommended for adults/young adults who enjoy romance mixed with action and mystery.

Forsaken By Shadow by Kait Nolan was an exciting, interesting read. I do not remember ever reading a book about shadow-walkers before, which immediately makes this one standout. It's an urban fantasy/paranormal romance that does not center around werewolves, shape-shifters or vampires. To me, that is a feat all it's own.

Yes, it is a novella, but I still wanted it to be longer. It's not that the story was confusing, because it wasn't. Nolan provides a glossary of terms at the beginning of the book that proves to be extremely helpful and makes it possible for her to skip drawn out explanations during the story. It's simple that I wanted more story. I am a greedy reader and I honestly enjoyed the characters and unfortunately, I didn't get my fill of them. It looks as though the following books in the series don't deal directly with Gage and Embry; they are take place in their world. A 165 pages were not enough for me.

Embry (or as Gage calls her, Ember) is determined, strong-willed and tough. She will do anything to get her father back, even open painful doors to her past. Embry is a fire elemental; a sort of witch who can produce, control and manipulate fire.

Gage is equally as awesome; he is a shadow-walker, which means he can travel from shadow to shadow. I am a bit iffy on the details, but from what I was able to gather, he just needs to envision the shadow he wants to appear in and he can bounce amongst them. Does that make sense? He can teleport between shadows - that is probably a better description. When we first meet Gage, he is living under the name Cade; he has lost his memory and has now made a career for himself as an ultimate fighter. he is a funny mix of characteristics; he is extremely tough and can be brutal, but he is also rather loyal and a bit of a southern gentleman.

Nolan's writing style lends itself to the fast paced story, she isn't overly concerned with descriptions. I do not mean to say that she doesn't adequately cover things - she does, but her writing is more centered around the movement of the story, as opposed to the setting.

My major complaint with the book is that the way that Gage and Embry go about rescuing her father is extremely far-fetched. Even for a fantasy novel. I just cannot believe the way they got in to rescue him - it's just so incredibly unlikely. I get that this was a novella, and the plot cannot be too complicated, but that was one big coincidence.

Overall, Forsaken By Shadow was a quick, enjoyable read. There were some predictable plot elements and sometimes things were a bit far-fetched, but the majority of the story was creative, unique and exciting.

I really enjoyed this book, the only bad thing that I can think of is that it was too short. This is a great new take on the paranormal world.

I enjoy the Glossary of Terms in the beginning. They usually serve as a helpful organizational chart of the "who's who" in a story (with regards to species, etc).

The action and romantic suspense are sure to be a hit with regular readers of the PNR genre! The fight scenes are great too. There's a little sex thrown in, but not erotica, so it's okay if you are not into that genre.

Forsaken by Shadow was difficult to put down! In a world of magic and intrigue we meet Ultimate Fighter Cade Shepherd, who is about to find out the last ten years of his life, and his only memories, are a lie. Embry Hollister's father is taken by humans and none of her people will help her bring him back. On her own, she turns to the only person who can help her, giving him back his memories ... but, if they survive, will she be able to walk away?

The characters are compelling, well constructed, and they have some real chemistry! Nothing was flat, the pulse-pounding action scenes were well written, and the dialogue was very natural. From the first sentence your imagination will pull you deep in to the story and, if you are like me, you will not be able to come up fir air until the last page. The romantic elements to this story are VERY well done. Very, very well done!

I hope there will be more books in this series because this book left me wanting more!