Shadowshaper (Shadowshaper Cypher, #1)

by Daniel José Older

Come to the crossroads, to the crossroads come

Sierra Santiago planned an easy summer of making art and hanging with her friends. But then a corpse crashes the first party of the season. Her stroke-ridden grandfather starts apologizing over and over. And when the murals in her neighborhood begin to weep real tears . . . Well, something more sinister than the usual Brooklyn ruckus is going on.

Where the powers converge and become one

With the help of a fellow artist named Robbie, Sierra discovers shadowshaping, a thrilling magic that infuses ancestral spirits into paintings, music, and stories. But someone is killing the shadowshapers one by one -- and the killer believes Sierra is hiding their greatest secret. Now she must unravel her family's past, take down the killer in the present, and save the future of shadowshaping for herself and generations to come.

Full of a joyful, defiant spirit and writing as luscious as a Brooklyn summer night, Shadowshaper introduces a fantasy heroine and magic unlike any you've ever seen before, and marks the YA debut of a brilliant new storyteller.

• ISBN10: 060639124X
• ISBN13: 9780606391245
• Publish Date: 30 August 2016 (first published 30 June 2015)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 20 July 2022
• Imprint: Turtleback Books
• Edition: Bound for Schools & Libraries ed.
• Format: Hardcover (Library Binding)
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

Shadowshaper was a pretty good read! It all starts when Sierra's grandfather, who recently suffered a stroke, tells her that someone is coming and mentions something about shadowshapers. Everyone thinks the old man is crazy, but Sierra believes him and wants answers. Her grandfather had also told her to find a boy named Robbie to help her finish the mural she's been working on. Turns out that Robbie knows all about shadowshapers, because he is one. And so is Sierra.

Shadowshaper was quite fun and unique. Although at times I couldn't help but think about that SpongeBob episode Frankendoodle (which is one of my favorites, but still weird). The ability of the shadowshapers is really interesting, but also creepy at times. I mean, pulling a spirit into a drawing and having it come to life to do your bidding is pretty awesome. Unless you're power mad like the villain is, which is when things go terribly wrong. Of course, there's also family secrets. I love family secrets!

The one thing I didn't like about Shadowshaper was that the pacing was very inconsistent. There's infodumps, then Sierra is dancing, then there's some action, then another infodump, more dancing, then more action. Lather, rinse, repeat. It was just very up and down which made my attention waiver. I wanted to know more about how shadowshaping worked and why the villain was doing what he was doing, but it all took the form of "lessons" from Robbie, Sierra's brother Juan, or a librarian named Nydia. Then those lessons are interrupted by baddies, and pick up later on. It was rough.

In the end, I enjoyed Shadowshaper. It was a bit of a bumpy ride and I definitely wanted more world-building. But it was a fun, one-sitting story. I'm not sure if it ended with me being invested enough to want to read more though.

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Stephanie]

This book was a lake and someone was just skipping stones across it. There is something deeper underneath all of this but I felt so disconnected from the characters. Meh. Bumping up one star because I want more of Older as an author because he is hilarious.

[Heather]

Sierra is an amazing artist.  She has been asked to paint a mural on an abandoned building in her neighborhood.  There is a lot of street art around her but lately she's been noticing that they are starting to fade.  Then one day she sees a mural change in front of her and start to weep.

Her grandfather had a stroke soon after her grandmother died but now he is agitated and wants Sierra to know that he is sorry for... something.  Her mother seems to know what he means but shuts Sierra down every time she asks.  Some of her grandfather's friends point her towards another artist at her school for answers before they start to disappear themselves.

The writing in this book was amazing.  Contemporary Brooklyn is a character as much as a setting of this book.  Older shows the joys of living in this neighborhood with dance clubs and vibrant art as well as the problems of street harassment of teenage girls and the specter of police brutality.  I've never been impressed by New York City at all but this book almost made me feel like it would be an interesting place to be.  Seriously, salsa thrash metal?  Yes, please.



The cast of characters was inclusive without it coming across as forced for the sake of inclusiveness.  There is a lesbian couple.  Most of the cast are Latina(o).  There are both male and female characters who are important parts of the story and the significant secondary characters range in age from teenagers to elderly.

There are discussions about racism in the community.  Sierra remembers a time when she surprised herself by apologizing for her dark skin.  Her aunt is tells her that she shouldn't date a Haitian because you don't want a boyfriend whose skin is darker than the bottom of your foot.

If this was a contemporary novel it would be nearly 5 stars.  But, this is a fantasy story and that aspect was not as strong for me.  The idea of being able to make your art come alive when necessary is good but the stakes of the conflict never felt high.  It felt like something bad was going to happen but it wasn't clear what that was supposed to be.

If you like the idea of art featuring in urban YA fantasy you can also check out these titles.

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson

"The lush city of Palmares Tres shimmers with tech and tradition, with screaming gossip casters and practiced politicians. In the midst of this vibrant metropolis, June Costa creates art that's sure to make her legendary. But her dreams of fame become something more when she meets Enki, the bold new Summer King. The whole city falls in love with him (including June's best friend, Gil). But June sees more to Enki than amber eyes and a lethal samba. She sees a fellow artist.

Together, June and Enki will stage explosive, dramatic projects that Palmares Tres will never forget. They will add fuel to a growing rebellion against the government's strict limits on new tech. And June will fall deeply, unfortunately in love with Enki. Because like all Summer Kings before him, Enki is destined to die."

Ink by Amanda Sun

"On the heels of a family tragedy, the last thing Katie Greene wants to do is move halfway across the world. Stuck with her aunt in Shizuoka, Japan, Katie feels lost. Alone. Then there’s gorgeous but aloof Tomohiro, star of the school’s kendo team. How did he really get the scar on his arm? Katie isn’t prepared for the answer. But when she sees the things he draws start moving, there’s no denying the truth: Tomo has a connection to the ancient gods of Japan, and being near Katie is causing his abilities to spiral out of control. If the wrong people notice, they'll both be targets."

Truthfully, this one was a little too "He's SO DREAMY!!!!!" with no actual explanation of why so I DNFed it.

 

I received this book as a gift from my OTSP Secret Sister as part of my Easter box.  The cover is gorgeous.  I'm going to read more by this author because I love his writing.

My Easter box from my #otspsecretsister. I was just thinking about this book last night.

A photo posted by @dvmheather on Mar 25, 2016 at 3:32pm PDT

This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story