Customer Reviews

Shadows

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Regular readers of John Saul usually know what to expect when they pick up one of his novels; A small town setting, teenage protagonists with attitude issues and a malevolent technological experiment that is the work of some out of control corporation that threatens the peacefullness of the small town. Believe you me, Shadows does not stray very far from the formula.

Josh MacCallum is a ten year old with an attitude problem. He's constantly getting into fights at school, talks back at teachers and hates the fact he is living in a boring little desert town. His problem is that he is too smart. The curriculum at school is a joke to him and he is excluded and teased by his fellow students because of his superior intellect. His mother and principle decide to send him to a private school called The Barrington Academy for young students with gifted minds like his own. For the first time in his life, Josh feels like he belongs. But then a mysterious series of student suicides leads Josh to believe that the academy may not be all it is cracked up to be. Are all these suicides coincidental or is there something more sinister behind them?

Shadows is quite entertaining athough it doesn't offer Saul readers anything new. The book takes a while to get going but once we learn the forces at work behind the child suicides it becomes quite interesting. Fans of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game and the Harry Potter novels ought to enjoy this one as much as I did.

Shadows is an incredible well written story that will keep the reader interested long after the first page. Twists and turns await the reader at every corner. John Saul knows how to turn a simple delightful event into a horrifying nightmare.

This book is wonderful, I have loved it since the day I first read it (took me about 2 days) I could not put it down! and still can't, over the years I have read this book at least ten times and everytime it is still as good as the first time. And never takes me more than a few days to read. If you like crime/mystery novels you will most likely love this book. Everyone i have ever given this book to has loved it as well!

This is the first Kindle eBook that I have purchased.. The book is great(love John Saul's style of writing) but there are TOO MANY TYPO'S and WRONG USE OF WORDS in the novel. For those who have purchased the book, look at these pages: 5901-22, 6186-6203, 6203-20, 6238-59, 6199-6215..These are just a few samples..

First book I read by John Saul. It was hard to put down, well written, and has great characters. It has quite a few twists that were unexpected.

What more can I say? Very little to criticize in it. I would recommend it if you're a fan of Dean Koontz, Stephen King, and the like.

I really enjoyed this book & is one of my favs. by John Saul. I thought the plot was quite interesting - genius kids meet mad scientist working on artificial intelligence & "what if" A.I. was possible. Also, the ending doesn't leave you w/ 101 unanswered ?'s like some of Saul's books.

Anyways, book is an easy enjoyable read & should appeal to ScFi fans too.

I just read this book and for being published in 1993, the book is pretty well thought out. Computers have advanced so much in the past 10 years, the computer parts of the book should be obsolete. Therefore, I think the author was thinking slightly ahead of his time.

The Academy is where super genius kids are sent to go to school. They can get away from other kids that pick on them at the regular schools.

However, there are experiments being done on the teenagers. One teen decides to go ahead and allow the head of The Academy use his brain to attach it to a computer. Another child's brain is taken against her will. The 2 children then become part of the computer system.

I enjoyed this book along with most of Saul's novels.

Shadows was the first John Saul book I read, and I hungrily tried to read all of his other books in the library. However, none were as clever or as satisfying as Shadows. Yes, the character development is lacking, but the plot is very exciting and very well written, giving the reader inside knowledge that Josh, the protagonist, only discovers at the end of the story.

Mysterious details and character motives are all clarified by the end, without leaving any subplot unfinished. (For an example of such problems, read Orson Scott Card's "Lost Boys.")

Saul's other books are all formulaic, with unbelievable events striking innocent teenagers in small towns, who then "turn bad." This one is a bit different. The "evil" encountered at the Academy that Josh attends is actually plausible and even believable, unlike the science-fiction / ghost story elements of most of his stories. It is also fascinating to read this book set (And written?) during the beginning of the computer craze. What would people turn to in order to create a powerful computer? This book explores the possibilities. It is MUCH better than a typical John Saul book.

Excellent reading, in this book you will see how a super intelligent kid have many more problems that a normal kid, everybody thinks that if a kid is very intelligent he or she has everything to be happy, but that is true?

I have to tell you that this book has some parts that could been written better, but those things doesn't take any of the five stars that I gave.

The book will keep you changing page after page, and at the end you will be able to answer my question: You think that the power can change you?

This was a great book! It didn't Lack anything. Ive read this book 3 times it was so good. I like the idea of AI in it. Which is really scary if it really happened. That was the first john saul book i read and because of it ive read all of john saul books. Read this book!