Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781770495494 |
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| Publisher: | Tundra |
| Publication date: | 09/10/2013 |
| Series: | Rephaim Series , #1 |
| Sold by: | Random House |
| Format: | NOOK Book |
| Pages: | 400 |
| Sales rank: | 735,513 |
| File size: | 2 MB |
| Age Range: | 14 - 17 Years |
About the Author
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Shadows: The Rephaim, Book 1
4.1 out of 5
based on
0 ratings.
11 reviews.
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But does he actually have wings, or...... -_-;
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I love Angels but often end up disappointed in the ones found in books, This book however I enjoyed a lot. I found this book to be a fast paced exciting story line that kept me guessing what would happen next. The characters are convincing and certainly praise-worthy. I recommend this book for all of us out there that enjoys read about the paranormal.
*** Received ARC copy of book from NetGally.com and Indigo Book Publishers ****
L.
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The beginning of Shadows was so gripping. I was so intrigued by everything. I mean, have your sad the synopsis of it? Gaby lost her brother a year ago, barely has contact with her parents, and is now trying to move on. Her pain through losing her brother was so playable.. my heart was aching for her. However when a guy suddenly appears claiming to know her brother.. all hell breaks loose. Let me tell you, whatever you think the direction of the book will go.. I can guarantee you, it isn't that. I was looking out for the typical paranormal cliche plot falls and I received none. From the mysterious Rafe that isn't mysterious at all, to the big mystery behind her memory loss and her nightmares. It is all just well written. The attraction, the romance, the friendship, and the introduction of an onslaught of new characters were all brilliantly written in a way that gives depth to ally he characters, as well as makes them all memorable, including the secondary characters.
The plot guys.. it was just so addicting. Everything is laced with mystery. Yes it is paranormal and a sub-genre that has been excessively done, but this is so unique in the memory loss aspect. Also, can we please crown Gaby the most kick butt character ever? I loved how all the characters didn't hold back. There was no censorship going on. They said what they wanted, swore when they couldn't hold it back.. this is something typical of seventeen to eighteen year olds. There was no air of innocence that is usually present in YA books. The first book was one heck of a book. I knew instantly this is going to become one of my favorite series, however I could only confirm it by reading Haze.
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This is so hard for me to review simply because I don’t want to offend anyone’s feelings. Don’t get me wrong, I liked this book, but since everyone was so excited about me reading it and saying how much they adored it? Um, I just don’t want to disappoint anyone by saying that it wasn’t as amazing as I thought it would be.
“Most stories are based on something real.”
Alright, so I just need to get this out of the way: THESE COVERS ARE FREAKIN’ GORGEOUS!!! *stares* Love them! There better not be a cover change. Ok, um. I really liked that the book was set in Australia. Loved Rafa of course, how could I not? He’s the comic relief in most of the situations and he did bring the feels for me, already at the very beginning. Oh, that reminds me! I really thought I was going to DNF it at first since the beginning was so.. weird O.o
Firstly, you can always tell it’s an Aussie writer since their style is recognizable. It’s something I still haven’t gotten used to, but it’s very brief and straight to the point. Secondly, I found it incredulous that every single character was basically okay with these supernatural creatures in our world. Like, what? Humans are curious by nature, but they’re also afraid of the unknown and how everyone took this in without much more than a few questions? I just couldn’t help but roll my eyes. There are some things that come out later so it makes a tad more sense, but still. Also, why in the world would Gaby and Maggie tell Jason anything? Let him believe what he wants to believe. You just met the guy, can you not spill all these secrets to a stranger? O______O
I didn’t form any connections with the characters. Perhaps it’s because Gaby has so much to figure out and there are all these bits and pieces here and there, but just as her, I don’t know what to think or believe. Then again, I didn’t really feel any strong emotions towards any of the other characters either. I did like the whole mythology part of the angels: Fallens, Demons etc, and how fast paced this book was. I’m glad that we got some answers, but there are still so many unanswered questions and that’s the part I’m most looking forward to in the sequels, especially some regarding Gaby and Rafa (one thing in particular and if you’ve read the book, you probably know what it is).
I’m aware that this seems more like a negative review, but believe me, it’s not. I had a lot of fun (and feels too) with this read, but I clearly had issues too. I can’t wait to read the sequel and the third one just came out, so yay! This one put a different spin on angels and I’m very excited to cover more ground on the questions looming over all the why’s and how’s. I hope we will meet a certain someone in the flesh next book and one will have some answers for us. If not, then perhaps one will join our MC-s to uncover all the secrets that lie between us and the answers. Decent read, but unfortunately not a favorite.
Overall rating: 3.3 out of 5.0
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It’s no secret that I have a love/hate relationship with books featuring an angel theme. With a few exceptions, I mostly love to hate them. I was pleased to discover that Paula Weston’s Shadows is one of those very rare exceptions.
I really enjoyed Weston’s writing style. Overall it hits that perfect balance between descriptive and concise that I love so much. Descriptive enough that I could easily visualize the characters, setting and action, but not so flowery that the important details got lost in the padding. There were definitely moments when the writing was just a little too simplistic, but it never felt juvenile. The world building was solid, and offered a unique twist on the Nephilim/Rephaim lore. While most angel-themed books tend to center on the Nephilim, I have yet to come across one that approaches it at the angle Weston does and I’m extremely excited to see where she is going with it. Another plus in the writing column is that all of the characters were well developed, and likable for the most part.
I enjoyed Gaby’s attitude and sense of humor and I’m intrigued by the Gaby that we don’t know, the person she was before the accident that killed Jude and took her memory. At times she walks the edge between likable and irritating, but she never crosses it. While she sometimes does and says things that I found to be frustrating, she always managed to redeem herself in my eyes. I liked that she is older than most YA heroines, and that while she spends most of the book in the dark about her past, she never came off as weak or frail. While she isn’t the badass that the other Rephaim say she once was, she worked with what she had and I found that admirable. While I enjoyed seeing her in action, my favorite Gaby moments were the ones where she was thinking about Jude. Much of the emotion in the book is centered on her heartbreak over losing her twin, and I wanted to cry right along with her at times. Jude came to life through her memories, and felt like another supporting character, which was excellent.
Shadows also has a great supporting cast of characters. I ADORE RAFA. Yes, I find it annoying that he is keeping so many secrets from Gaby and that he has a man-whore reputation, but I believe that underneath all the bluster and egotism is a genuinely good guy. I also really loved Maggie and Jason. I hope their relationship progresses and that we see lots of them in the remaining books.
I also really liked the way Weston handled the development of all the relationships in the book. Maggie and Gaby’s friendship is a great, and I love how supporting Maggie is despite everything. Of course there were times I was frustrated with Maggie’s over-protectiveness, but not so much that I ended up disliking her. And yes, I was sold on Rafa and Gaby’s relationship from their first meeting. While I did have some concern about it turning into an insta-love situation, especially since Gaby was dreaming about him before meeting him and they were making out within an hour of meeting, but thankfully it never went down that road. The fact that they have at least a hundred years worth of history, even if Gaby doesn’t remember it, makes me even more interested in seeing how their relationship progresses. I JUST WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING.
Of course there were characters I hated, particularly Daniel, Nathaniel and Simon. Daniel’s brand of blind loyalty is always terrifying, especially when that loyalty is directed at someone like Nathaniel, who is obviously a lying liar who lies. Simon just irritated me in general, and came off as sleazy to the extreme, but that was probably just me.
Shadows is a solid debut with a unique premise and a fantastic cast of characters. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.
I received my copy of Shadows as an eARC free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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Rating: 4 Stars
Series: The Rephaim #1
Genre: NA Paranormal/Fantasy/Romance
Publisher: Text Publishing
Pages: 388
Best for: 17+ (heavy language)
Check it out: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Good Reads
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was pretty excited to read Shadows since I’d seen some pretty good reviews on Good Reads. Not gonna lie, it reminded me some of Lauren Kate’s Fallen. Shadows is less romanticized, a little darker, a little more merciless than Fallen. (P.S. I’m a fan of Fallen. Not my fave, but I enjoyed it)
I was completely intrigued by Rafa and Gaby’s relationship. I mean, I was very intrigued by Gaby and her past, but I really want to know what went down between her and Rafa. There are many references to tension in their past, but you don’t know why. I’m extremely interested to see how all that pans out. I appreciated that the romance was supplemental rather than the primary conflict. That’s not to say it wasn’t there. It was an integral part of the story, but it added to the plot rather than taking over it. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good straight romance book every now and then, but I normally like a good balance of plot and romance or relationship building. Shadows did an excellent job at this.
There were quite a few surprises throughout this book. It felt like every few chapters, something new and shocking was revealed, which easily kept me interested. There’s a lot of mystery surrounding Gaby and her brother Jude, and their respective relationships to all the other Nephilim. Weston does a good job of world building, giving us enough information to really grasp what’s going on, but leaving enough unsaid to keep us interested and asking questions.
None of the secondary characters really stood out as fabulous to me, but that’s not to say that I didn’t like them. Rafa and Gaby were the most interesting to me. Neither of them seemed really typical to me, so they were pretty fun to read and imagine.
Especially Rafa.
High stakes throughout made this a fast read for me. There were some exciting action/fight scenes, when things really started heating up with the Nephilim. And of course, a good bit of romance. All these together make this dark novel about angels and their half-human descendants a quick and very entertaining read.
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Great story. Loved that they had some serious potty mouths.
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Angels and Demons and Mortals, OH MY!
We all know about that typical fallen angel story, but one is seldom told in way that tugs at your heart and gets your adrenaline going like Paula Weston's Shadows (The Rephaim #1). Weston does an amazing job world building the many levels of angels, demons, mortals and everyone in between! Shadows is a story of discovery that will leave you breathless and wanting more.
Who can she trust, is right! Poor Gaby! My heart goes out to her and seriously, this novel kept my breath held waiting for Gaby to come into her own power and strength. The characters sprinkled throughout were increasingly vivid and Weston did a brilliant job hiding enough of the details to keep the reader intrigued and revealed elements at precisely the right moments.
The pace of Shadows worked and as I have said earlier, it really is Weston's world building that I felt was the best done element. The various locations are just so beautifully written that I can see and feel the various settings. When you dive into the world that Weston builds you can taste the sawdust in the cage in one moment and the next you're tasting the salty air of Pandanus Beach.
One thing, however cannot be overlooked....this book has some intense and building FEELS ahead! The way Weston writes the relationships between the characters and building sexual tensions are really quite masterful! Can I just say that Rafa makes me SWOON in a major way and when you include the added tension of Daniel...Oh MY! Some of the scenes I could seriously read a time or two again...
Overall, I'd say that if you're looking for a quick read or another series to get into Shadows is your go to! It has action, romance, paranormal and a mystery to work your way into! Weston creates and amazing story that I, for one, cannot wait to continue on with Haze!
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