Wake of Vultures: The Shadow, Book One (Shadow, #1)

by Lila Bowen

'I don't care what else you've seen in the bookstore today. Read this one' - Kevin Hearne

'I enjoyed the hell out of it' - Patrick Rothfuss

Nettie Lonesome lives in a land of hard people and hard ground dusted with sand. She's a half-breed who dresses like a boy, raised by folks who don't call her a slave but use her like one. She knows of nothing else. That is, until the day a stranger attacks her. When nothing, not even a sickle to the eye can stop him, Nettie stabs him through the heart with a chunk of wood and he turns to black sand.

And just like that, Nettie can see.

But her newfound sight is a blessing and a curse. Even if she doesn't understand what's under her own skin, she can sense what everyone else is hiding - at least physically. The world is full of evil, and now she knows the source of all the sand in the desert. Haunted by the spirits, Nettie has no choice but to set out on a quest that might lead her to find her true kin . . . if the monsters along the way don't kill her first

A rich, dark fantasy of destiny, death and the supernatural world hiding beneath the surface.

• ISBN10: 0356506568
• ISBN13: 9780356506562
• Publish Date: 29 October 2015 (first published 27 October 2015)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 11 March 2022
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Orbit
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[teachergorman]

I thoroughly enjoyed this! It was recommended to me by author Margaret Pinard (author of The Keening), and I tore through it. I particularly liked the afterward. I know that sounds odd, but the afterward shows a real thoughtfulness and sensitivity to some of the tricky issues around race and gender that come up when writing both historical fiction and speculative fiction like this. Without such a great novel in front of it, the afterward might have seemed superfluous, but this excellent novel earned it. Now I need to read the whole series, then buy all of Margaret Pinard's novels as thanks!

[Berls]

4.5 stars
Wow that was good! I just love the mixing of Texas History with a paranormal world. And it's such a different, interesting interpretation of a paranormal world! The types of monsters we encounter range from Greek mythology to trickster tales of the Native Americans.

There's a lot going on with gender and sexuality here too. The main character, Nettie, is a young black-native American (race is interesting too!) girl - but being a girl seems like a waste to her, so she poses as a boy. I found this interesting because Nettie's sexual identity is never really clear - it's not that she's transgender in the sense that she feels like she was born in the wrong body, but more that she wants the opportunities afforded to her as a boy. Her sexual interest seems to be for another boy, but she's not sure she doesn't feel something for Wilfred, a woman she grows close too. And she doesn't just defy quick classification, but she really wishes there were no need to classify. And really, why do we feel the need to put a label on everyone's gender and sexual identify? I loved this message.

On top of the messages though, this was just a really well told story. I liked the characters and I loved watching Nettie grow from slave to horse wrangler to so much more. And with the way the book ended, clearly there's even more transformation in her future. I can't wait to find out what awaits her and all her new friends.

[littleread1]

really good, but an abrupt ending. will check out the next book though for sure.

[Angie]

Wake of Vultures was weird. Very weird. I was excited by the idea of a Paranormal Western, but the story didn't work for me. Nettie lives with her adopted parents, but is treated more like a slave. People assume she must be one anyway since she's half Black and half Native American. But then one day Nettie kills a man and he turns to dust. From then on, she can see all of the monsters that were once hidden. She also learns that she's The Shadow: the only one who can kill the Cannibal Owl. Nettie just wants to be a horse wrangler, but she can't until she fulfills her destiny.

Wake of Vultures is a fairly standard "chose one" type of plot. Nettie is just going about her business until she's told under mysterious circumstances that she has to go on this quest. Sadly, I was bored by her quest. That's really saying something, because there's a lot of bizarre things that happen along the way. It just didn't excite me and I never quite connected with Nettie. I didn't see any reason for her to care about this Cannibal Owl either. It kidnaps and eats children, and she has to be the one to stop it. Why?

The one thing that I really liked about Wake of Vultures was its discussions on gender, sex, and sexuality. Nettie lives life as a boy. She feels more comfortable that way, since she sees how women are treated. She doesn't want to be a wife and mother, or "owned" by any man. She also can't get a job as a horse wrangler as a girl. Then she starts questioning her sexuality. She has a crush on a boy, who she thinks might like her, but he thinks she's a boy. But she also finds herself drawn to a girl skinwalker. Nettie has no idea what this all means, but she figures that everyone gets to decide for themselves who they are and who they'll love.

Wake of Vultures was an okay read. I loved the alternate historical Wild West setting and all of the monsters that live in the desert. But the plot just really did not grab me. Nettie and Company travel through dangerous terrain to find the Cannibal Owl before the new moon. Nettie is the only one who can kill it because of reasons. Then more weird things happen. I don't know.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.