Shadowman by Erin Kellison

Series: Yes, Shadow Series #3
Genre(s): Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Zebra Books
Release Date: September 6, 2011
Available Formats: Paperback, ebook
Description: Part dark fairytale, part urban fantasy, part romantic suspense, “Shadowman” has all the marks of a breakout bestseller with huge appeal for today’s reader. There is a place between life and death known as Twilight. It’s there that the Shadowman waits and when a human life flickers out, it is the Shadowman who ferries us from one world to the next. Forbidden entrance to our world and the other, all he can do is watch and wait. Until the night love beckons him and recklessly, unlawfully, he crosses over and claims his love. The result of his forbidden act is a weakening between our world and Twilight, and through it come a host of monsters. A terrible price must be paid, one that all humanity will suffer as well as the two lovers, before this wrong can be righted.

This review is based on a copy received from the author.

TDF Pamela’s Review:

I enjoyed the first two books in Erin Kellison’s Shadow series, and I was very excited to receive a copy of Shadowman. I am pleased to report that it does not disappoint and is another great addition to this creative paranormal romance series.

Shadowman, the fae creature better known as Death, featured heavily into the first two books of the series. His daughter by a mortal woman is the lead character in Shadow Bound, and he has been a constant presence at the edge of the narrative. In Shadowman, he finally steps to the forefront of the story. For the last twenty-eight years, he has been searching for Kathleen O’Brien, his mortal lover who died young. He has even given up his duties as the Grim Reaper so he can search heaven and hell to find her, and unfortunately, this dereliction of duty has caused serious problems in the mortal realm and in his home, Shadow.

It’s a little difficult to summarize Shadowman because so much of the story relies on a surprise reveal early on in the book. I definitely don’t want to ruin that surprise, so I’m going to attempt to review the book in the vaguest terms possible.

In short, it’s a great book. It takes a little while for things to start rolling, and there are a few plot threads in the beginning that left me wondering exactly what was going on, but with that surprise reveal, everything becomes clear and the story barrels forward to an exciting conclusion.

Shadowman, who gives himself the name Khan (don’t worry, it makes a few of the characters snicker, too), is a pretty good romantic hero. His fae nature and singleminded determination to find and be with Kathleen do make him a bit abrasive, but watching him learn to navigate the mortal world and its inhabitants was very interesting. That singleminded determination–and his appearance–make him pretty swoon-worthy, if that’s your thing in romantic heroes. He is needs to find Kathleen, and he is willing to rip open the doorway to Hell to find her. At the same time, the other characters in the book work with and against him in such a way that it tempers him, forcing him to realize that his is not the only will that matters. I like that Khan is arrogant but is also able to be humbled and therefore change for the better, even though the fae are by nature resistant to change.

This story’s romance is great. I prefer to read romances in which relationships develop organically, in a believable way rather than in a fated, soulmates trope. Khan and Kathleen are fated, in a way, but at the same time, it wasn’t like love struck like a bolt from the blue. The relationship in Shadowman definitely has bumps along the way (some of the bumps are actually brick walls right in the middle of the road), and I fully bought into it.

One thing I really appreciate about the Shadow series is how previously introduced characters aren’t just tossed aside. Talia and Adam, the couple from the first book, figure heavily into this story, as does Custo, the romantic hero in the second book. His wife, Annabella, actually doesn’t appear in this story, but that makes sense. Everyone that’s featured has a specific role to play in Shadowman, and despite having a pretty large cast of characters, no one feels extraneous.

I wish I could talk more about the story itself, but that would inevitably be spoilery, and I don’t want to spoil it for any of you. You’ll have to trust me when I say it’s a good one, with enough twists and turns to keep it realistic even when it dips into otherworldly territory. The villains are creepy and dangerous, as are some of the “good” guys, and the romance is satisfying and sexy. Kellison’s writing is rich and skillful, and this book sucked me right in.

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