To Kill a Shadow (Mistlands, #1)

by Katherine Quinn

On the day of The Calling, Selena Carlisle knows her beloved brother will be chosen. Each family is expected to sacrifice a son to the Knights of the Eternal Star, fated to protect the lands against the mist that poisons the land, its creatures, and its people. Infecting them with chilling evil.

But Selena is a true warrior. Defiant, angry, and fierce, she is a living weapon with a will to match. And so she is chosen instead: the first girl in over half a century.

The others whisper about her, awed by her speed, as lethal as the shadow beasts rumoured to roam the mist. And always those gloves, hiding her secret shame. Only their fearsome and quietly dangerous commander, Jude Maddox, sees the possibilities of Selena, even as she awakens a part of him long thought dead.

The king commanded Jude to find warriors.


Most of them will die.


But maybe Selena Carlisle will do what all other knights had failed to do…


And live.

• ISBN10: 1649374313
• ISBN13: 9781649374318
• Publish Date: 15 January 2024 (first published 28 November 2023)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Entangled Publishing, LLC
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 448
• Language: English
• URL: http://melia.co.uk/page/detail/?k=9781649374318

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

Summary:

Kiara Frey is not the most popular girl in her village. She's been seen as something...other for far too long. Her ability to fight just made her stand out further. But that ability has kept her brother safe all these years.

It continues to keep him safe as Kiara finds herself taking his place in the battle that is to come. However, Kiara is about to step into more than she could have ever prepared herself for. As a Knight, she's about to learn the true meaning of fighting evil.

Review:

Excuse me, I need to go and find a quiet corner to sigh in. Sorry. I was SO excited for To Kill a Shadow, so even being a little disappointed by it is a lot. The truth is that I couldn't get into this book.

There are plenty of good reasons for that, I swear. For one, Kiara. Ugh. I wanted to smack that girl. She has strong "I'm not like all the other girl vibes," which drove me up the wall. Combined with the fact that she and the other primary characters don't develop well, I needed more to get me invested.

It's the same for the romance. Kiara and Jude are just magically drawn to each other. Given the fantasy elements, I would almost have bought it better if they were magically drawn together. It distracted from the plot.

I would have given anything to see more of this world and more development in the plot (and characters). This plot had a lot of potential, which is why I'm so disappointed. And it's not like a 3-star rating is even all that bad – so that should tell you how high my hopes were.

Highlights:
Romantic Fantasy
Fighting for Your Life
Dangerous Mists

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[Inkslinger]

'To Kill a Shadow' by Katherine Quinn is a split POV tale that follows the mingled paths of a Knight Commander named Jude Maddox and Kiara Frey, a young woman from a poor village, whose decision to protect her brother lands her in conscription.

 

Jude, also known as the Hand of Death, is a brutally scarred warrior who is said to belong to the King. Marked inside and out, he's suffered greatly at the hands of those who should have loved him.. as much or more than he has from the enemies he has encountered. He's considered cold, hard, and unreachable, considering himself as much monster as the beasts he has felled.

 

Kiara is an outcast in her village. Her connection with anyone left beyond her younger brother, is tenuous at best. Defiant, she's quick to anger and quick to fight, relishing the adrenaline of the challenge.. and that's exactly what puts her in peril.

 

Though there is an overarching plot and clearly intentions for more in a series, I felt most of the book centered on the characters themselves. Quinn seemed to focus largely on the development of Jude and Kiara.. both as individuals.. and on the story growing between them.  

 

Pacing was moderate.. seemingly to allow time for things to expand between not only the main characters, but the cast of supporting characters as well. As is often the case, for me.. that meant it dragged just a little. Not enough that I ever wanted to stop reading, just enough that it felt like it took me a bit longer to read than it needed to. That's just my personal preference though and in no way does it reflect on the quality of the writing.

 

That being said, I did feel there were moments the writing felt a little clumsy, but they were mostly brief and really subject to the same things 90% of modern authors seem to struggle with. Transitional moments in relationships and natural dialogue have got to be two of the most common I see. While these emotional transitions were a little off-balance, the dialogue here is largely pretty good.  

 

My only complaint is probably the actual statement that Kiara 'isn't like others.' I mean, we get it. We get tired of it.. but we get it. You don't have to say it. Again, that's personal taste. On that note, Quinn does have a habit of repeating things she doesn't want the reader to miss, which irks me because I pay attention. However, seeing as most readers seem to lose the plot easily, I can understand her choice to do so.

 

Quinn did do a fantastic job on settings, in my opinion. From the grittiness of the small village, to the opulent, oppressive nature of the Knights home.. and later.. within the mist.. where all manner of vile and carnivorous thing might dwell, her descriptions are visually lush.

 

I really loved Jude though and Kiara is a pretty good co-lead. I found her to be kind and funny.. and she managed not to annoy me.. which is really what I ask most in a 'strong, female character' design. I do hope Quinn continues the story as I am hooked enough that I want to see what Jude has planned.. and there's a villain I'm waiting to find out about in-depth.

 

While I will happily recommend a read, there is a fair bit of violence and gore, and some subjects certain readers might find uncomfortable.. as it is a horror fantasy.  

 

(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)