Shadow by Will Elliott

Pendulum, Book 2

Synopsis: Eric Albright was a luckless journalist living in London. He had a so-so life…until the day he opened a battered red door that appeared on the graffiti-covered wall of a local bridge, and entered Levaal, a magical world between worlds. A place populated by power damaged mages, stone giants, pit devils—and dragons, Levaal’s possible creators, who are imprisoned in a sky prison. It is also where the mad Lord Vous rules with an iron fist and is busy working on a scheme to turn himself into a god. Vous has been defeated so far because Levaal has been contained by the great Wall at World’s End.

But the Wall at World’s End has been brought down, war is coming to the land, and Eric and his newfound friends are caught in the thick of it. They are forced to flee from the Tormentors, dreadful creatures that have poured through the breach, and there are rumors that one of the great dragons has escaped its sky prison.

Worse yet, Vous’s journey to godhood is almost complete, and a mysterious being called Shadow (who is not but looks remarkably like Eric) is wandering Levaal with great power but no purpose it yet understands.

The end might be coming faster than anyone thinks.

Review: I had a good time with the first book, and I was curious to discover this one. I also think that it’s my favorite as it’s dedicated to the future of Levaal and the adventures of the characters.

Early in the novel, we follow several people alternately. I was interested in each of their history, without knowing how they would all be linked in the end. Still advancing in the chapters, their destiny meets and the protagonists will cross the path to the others to continue their adventures together. We thus find that Eric has evolved considerably since the first book to finally find a place in this world so different from his. But it’s not just him, we also follow the daughter of Vous, a character I loved to discover and to understand better elsewhere. She has always been locked in a gilded cage and can finally see the world without knowing what to actually do. Of course we also meet with her father and we witness his descent increasingly into madness, something that is quite difficult it must be said. Other players are also highlighted here, but I’ll let you discover them. I’ll only speak of Shadow, which comes fairly recurrent. A shadow strangely looking like Eric, a man who wants to find a goal with his life, without really understanding what is happening.

So yes you can see, there are a lot of things here. I often struggle with multiple points of view, but that’s not really the case here as everyone moves together in the end. We have some glimpses about the dragons in the story, including the Levaal’s history and the impact they had here. I found it all very interesting and it’s true that I was easily swept away by the history. I’m curious to see what volume 3 will reserve us for the future now.

4

mellianefini

38 thoughts on “Shadow by Will Elliott

  1. Oooo what a creepily beautiful dragon that is on the cover Melliane! Love it:) And usually multiple POVs are a problem for me as well, but there are definitely times when it’s done well and enhances the overall story for me. Glad that was the case here!

  2. Dragons? Multiple points of view that converge into a coherent and understandable way in the end? This one seems like a winner 🙂 I confess I did not read the first book, but now I’m intrigued enough to look for it. Another clever review, Melliane.

  3. Reading review, this reminded me of Jay Kristoff’s Lotus War series. It has mutiple view points, lots of history and all that. I think I would like this even it if does require patience.

  4. You had me with “A place populated by power damaged mages, stone giants, pit devils—and dragons.” I love the sound of this. Who can resist dragons?
    I’m glad this series is working out well for you.
    Great review, Melliane 🙂

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