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First tagged "christian" by Katrina
christian fantasy(3), fantasy(2), magic, christianity
Product Description
Vicar Obadiah Demurral isn’t confident using a affairs of his village. Now he wants to control a world, as good as God and His angels—and he will stop during nothing. As a shadowmancer, a magician who speaks to a dead, he even commands nervous souls to do his bidding. Who will mount opposite him? Raphah has come a prolonged stretch to retrieve a ancient vestige Demurral has stolen, yet Raphah is young. Even younger are Thomas and Kate, incidentally drawn into this fight between good and evil. Their onslaught opposite Demurral will move them face-to-face with a powers of dark in an epic conflict . . . and a star binds a breath.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #938304 in Books
- Published on: 2004-04-01
- Format: Bargain Price
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Hardcover
- 304 pages
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
An baleful conflict between good and immorality is vigorously, vigourously fought in British author G.P. Taylor's suspenseful, action-packed fantasy. The story, set in a 1700s on a Yorkshire coastline, revolves around Vicar Obadiah Demurral, a corrupt-but-inept, dead-conjuring "shadowmancer" who desires to control a star by overthrowing God, or Riathamus. When dual hard-luck near-orphans, (13-year-old Thomas Barrick, a sour rivalry of Demurral, and his uneasy crony Kate Coglund) rope together with a immature African foreigner named Raphah, they spend a rest of a book perplexing to stop a disagreeable Vicar as if their really souls are during stake...they are. Along a way, a 3 youths accommodate an huge expel of friends and foes, some agents of Riathamus, others of Satan (Pyratheon), and some irreverent (but not for long) smugglers like Jacob Crane.
Readers who adore illusory storybook characters will find mermaidlike Seloth, sharp hobs, leg-dragging servants, goodhearted whores, and good boggles. Age-old superstitions abound, yet aged sorcery and sorcery are clearly denounced here as a work of a devil. Indeed, a author, an English vicar himself, tells a really Christian story and his mostly deliciously thespian journey lapses into stiffly presented glowing-halo Touched by an Angel moments(readers will be lured into a Enchanted Forest, yet duped into Sunday school). Nonetheless, Shadowmancer, a initial of a series, is a pageturner ripping with sorcery and myth, and will interest to anticipation lovers who don't mind a Bible churned in with their boggles. (Ages 11 and older) --Karin Snelson
From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up-The windy Yorkshire seashore is a environment for this good contra immorality fantasy. Local vicar Obadiah Demurral desires a energy to authority God. To do this, he needs an radiant figurine called a Keruvim and a tellurian equivalent. As he uses his substantial powers to acquire a Keruvim, a immature male named Raphah comes seeking an intent stolen from his African kingdom. It is shortly apparent that Demurral's angel and Raphah's stolen esteem are one and a same. Once Demurral has it and Raphah underneath his control, he believes he will be master of a universe. Thomas and Kate, dual internal children, are inadvertently drawn into a struggle. Soon their lives are in jeopardy. The tract twists and turns, divulgence that Demurral is not a ultimate immorality yet merely a apparatus in a hands of a depressed angel. The book is abounding with minute descriptions that infrequently bluster to overcome a story. There are a series of illusory creatures warring on a side of evil, yet during bottom this is a severely eremite story dressed in a accoutrements of high fantasy. Biblical allusions abound, infrequently adjacent on approach quotes. The thesis of a delight of adore and light over pristine immorality reflects a Christian gospel message, with overtones from Paradise Lost. Thomas has dreams or visions of someone who can usually be Jesus. Raphah heals a deaf child and casts out demons. He is also brought behind from death. Whether teen readers will know all this is a matter of conjecture.-Bruce Anne Shook, Mendenhall Middle School, Greensboro, NC
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a multiplication of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
In a post-Potter star where Oscars accumulate to films set in Middle Earth, publishers' "big" books (the ones that accept a lion's share of publicity) are mostly fantasies. Such is a box with this entrance novel, that was purchased by Putnam in a $500,000 three-book understanding after it done headlines in a UK, carrying given Harry Potter a run for a money. Expect requests for this novel, generally after a author appears on a Today show, yet a genuine doubt is possibly it will continue to disseminate after a initial hum fades.
Originally self-published by a nation vicar (a old-fashioned fact that contributed mightily to a media cachet in a UK), Shadowmancer , set in an English encampment of a 1500s, pits dual children opposite a hurtful vicar. We're not articulate skimming from a collection plates; a lust for energy has led a vicar to devil-worship, that is hastening a star to Armageddon. A caller from Africa serves as a children's comrade and devout guide, proselytizing a sacrament with a maxims ("In a debility we will find his strength, in a misery we will find his riches") and black (healing of a sick, violation of a bread) of Christianity, yet Taylor substitutes a names Riathamus and Pyratheon for God and Satan (a device also employed by C. S. Lewis, nonetheless many readers might find such elegant permit some-more formidable to accept in this reduction fantastical setting). But issues of doctrine aside, is this a good story? Not particularly. The characters are possibly overjoyed believers ("It's as if we was blind, and unexpected a blindness is gone"), possibilities for conversion, or immorality adversaries, and nonetheless Taylor introduces some deliciously frightful demons and monsters, a moments of high play are merely interruptions in what amounts to a rather hulking sermon, pang from characters too overshadowed by pyrotechnical plots and thematic enthusiasms to entirely glow a imagination. -Jennifer Mattson Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Customer Reviews
Most useful patron reviews
53 of 58 people found a following examination helpful.
disappointing
By A Customer
I began reading this book really compliant to like it, though found it terribly disappointing. Having listened good reviews and comparisons to JK Rowling and Philip Pullman, we plugged on til a end, anticipating that it would get better, though it never did. While we could see that some children competence find a story sparkling since of a consistent coming of smugglers, trap doors, dark tunnels and shifting wall panels, we can't see since this book could cranky over into a adult market. we found a denunciation pretentious and cliche-ridden and a Biblical allegories uninspired and unilluminatingly obvious. It seemed like Taylor was perplexing to write a Christian book that would interest to anticipation readers and Tolkien fans, though a contemptuous story would have Tolkien branch in his grave. It starts rather obscurely, with lots of occultic references, and ends like a Pentacostal reconstruction meeting, though with nothing of a energy since of a awkward writing. Although a dual child characters by a story are ostensible to grow into good Christians (sorry, supporters of Riathamus), their growth is forced. Here's an instance of a pivotal indicate in a growth of Kate, a categorical impression who has been totally one-dimensional adult to this indicate (and stays so, we think.):
"She had mislaid all a trust she had in [her father], in fact in everyone. Life with her father had never been easy. It was his celebration that had always been a problem. He would fly into a fury during a smallest thing, roar and roar and afterwards mangle down in tears. For many years she had suspicion it was her fault, that in some approach she was responsible. Kate could never live adult to his expectations, she could never be a child, never play games. Her lot in life was to prepare and clean, to stitch and mend. These were his demands. He wanted her to be a mother, a servant, though never a daughter. Tonight she had leant that he had been vital a double life, and satisfied that her father had been solemnly tainted by a genocide of her mother, a guilt, a pain, and now a deception. 'It's not my fault, it's not my fault,' she kept repeating underneath her exhale as she suspicion of her father and of how he had tricked her."
Taylor is careful with his impression development; he gets it over in one paragraph. The monsters/demons/scary things were also equally unconvincing. Tolkien creates some good monsters, Taylor never even gives them good descriptions or personalities, only piggybacks on what we know of other beasties from other anticipation stories. And immorality is equally groundless and wholly unattractive. If someone wanted to suggest apparently Christian allegorical books to their kids, there are books out there that are improved written. John White's Anthropos books ('The Tower of Geburah', 'The Iron Sceptre', etc ) are during slightest really readable. And other, not sincerely Christian books can get kids meditative though resorting to churchy denunciation and eremite cliches, only changing names and adding bogeymen.
I admire Taylor's try to make a good, frightful story, and he knows that props will interest to readers, though we consider he needs to keep essay and learn to strength out his characters and emanate a some-more pointed and convincing manifestations of both good and evil. we wish he keeps during it.
22 of 24 people found a following examination helpful.
Just Plain Unprofessional
By Nicole Lowery
While we was reading this book, we couldn't assistance meditative of all of a good writers out there who have had no fitness removing published. Even if we slight it down to Christian anticipation writers, I'm betting that there are a garland that have created something improved than this. Welcome to a puzzling universe of book-buying.
While Shadowmancer is not though potential, a definitely unsuited essay marred any delight we competence have had. It's a poser to me since this book took off a approach it did. we have to contend I'm entirely disappointed.
21 of 23 people found a following examination helpful.
Shadowmancer, not a best book, though a good review anyway.
By C. Thomas
I saw a author in an talk on some morning news module a integrate of weeks ago. we suspicion his book sounded interresting, though proceeded to mostly forget about it.
Two days ago we was in a book store and saw a book on a shelf. The cover design held my eye and we review a information inside a jacket. The information on a coupler reminded me of a talk so we motionless to buy a book.
Taylor's Shadowmancer tells a story of 3 teenagers who are on a query to save an artifact that had been stolen and resold. The artifact is supposed to have some form of visionary powers.
The story takes a teenagers by some moving situations where they contingency urge themselves and a artifact opposite really absolute devout beings and opposite people who would use a artifact's powers to obtain some-more energy for themselves.
I suspicion a story was really enjoyable. It was not a best book we have ever read, though it was not one that we gave adult half-way by either. If we suffer books with some journey churned with torment and devout warfare, we will substantially suffer this book. If we are annoyed by any discuss of sacrament or spirituality, this book is substantially not for you.
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