Science Fiction
The Shadow Within
Back of the Book:
Abramm Kalladorne has returned to Kiriath to claim the crown he thought he would never wear and to prepare his people for the inevitable attack of the Armies of the Black Moon. Though fiercely opposed by his own kin and reluctant to thrust his country into civil war at the worst possible time, he nevertheless believes this course of action is Kiriath’s only hope of salvation.
In the midst of this turmoil, a headstrong princess from a neighboring realm endeavors to uncover Abramm’s secrets—including his heroic exploits as the White Pretender and the fact that he wears a golden shield upon his chest—and her interference threatens to destroy any chance he has of maintaining his rightful place as king.
Against a backdrop of somber council meetings and back-alley sword fights, of magnificent ballrooms and windswept mountain fortresses, plots and counterplots unfold as old alliances dissolve and new ones form. If he is to succeed, Abramm must come to terms with his own limitation—and the sufficiency of the one who controls his destiny.
My Review:
The Shadow Within was a thrilling tale that inspired me to read, read, read, and read some more. I could not put it down very easily. The adventure was grand and suspenseful. I was guessing how everything would play out until the very end. It is full of twists and turns that all appear to by controlled by Eidon, himself.
Even though the setting of this book takes place in a fictitious land with a fictitious god, the parallels to our God are great. We all have a Shadow within us that we are constantly fighting. It’s called pride, and the devil feeds on that pride to blind us from the truth, just as Abramm was often blinded by his own Shadow.
The staffid of this book had a chillingly close parallel to our modern day sinful desires. The staffid were spidery creatures that would disguise themselves as everyday items such as fruit or jewelry and then compel users to pick them up or put them on. Once on, the staffed would inject the wearer with spore that would cause sickness. We often pick up items out in the world and adopt them as our own. Those items often cause us to stray from God’s true path, into sin. We sometimes cause our own injuries by acquiring seemingly benign things only to realize later that they are causing us to sin.
Karen’s other parallels were very accurate, and made me think about how I deal with some issues of my own life. Things like trust in God and why bad things happen are just two of the powerful messages portrayed by this book, and you did not feel lectured at at all while reading. The explanations fit with the story and enhance the experience.
Like all of Karen’s books, I highly recommend reading this one. Just make sure you read The Light of Eidon first. You will have a better understanding of what is going on in this one if you do.