Cast in Shadow

December 12, 2009

Cast in Shadow (Chronicles of Elantra #1)by Michelle SagaraI don't recall whose blog I saw reference to this series (maybe Brooke Reviews with the New Releases posts?) but either way, it caught my eye and I was happy to discover there were quite a few books out in this series already. So I bought the first one, which is this one. When I started reading it I was seriously confused and I had felt like I had jumped into the middle of the series. But that was mainly because:a) I thought this was an Urban Fantasy novel. It is so very much not. But the cover caught me off guard as it does look rather UF-ish, no?b) Since I thought it was UF I was slightly confused by the creatures in the book being not only human, but some were part bird and some part lion. Not were-creatures at all, but actual species.So it took me a little while to get around the introduction and description of characters. I found it was slightly choppy at the start, not the smooth intro to the story that I would have liked.As I continued to read the book I became much more interested in it, I began to like the characters more and found it easier to imagine what they would look like. The plot of the story hooked me by the middle of the novel, which is sort of sad, but once I was hooked I was in that "I NEED to know what is going to happen NOW" state of mind. I began checking to see if the second book was in stock at a store near me (and OH MY GOD! I totally forgot to pick it up when I was at the store this week! GAH! BAH! PHOOEY! That I am just realizing this now, as I write and schedule this post is a sad, sad thing for me.)Kaylin is a Hawk, that is she is a human who works for the Hawklord. She is covered in mysterious markings which somehow linked to the deaths of children when she was young and now it appears to be happening again - the deaths. With each death her markings change. Partnered with two people she isn't sure she can trust, Kaylin is ordered to get to the bottom of the deaths.I liked Kaylin, I liked her Capitan Marcus a Leontine (Lion type creature, from what I understand) and I really liked the Dragon guy who doesn't seem quite human and has a dry, mysterious manner of speaking.I really did get wrapped up in the mystery as I read and although it took me a little longer than I would have liked to truly get into the story, I am happy that I stuck with it because I was left wanting more as I finished that last page. I will be buying the rest of the series, likely with Christmas Gift Cards!The Chronicles of Elantra