Book Review of The Shadow – Taut Thriller Retold
Table of Contents
My Rating – 4 out of 5
Plot Summary – The Shadow
‘Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?’”
Lamont Cranston aka The Shadow
This genre that James Patterson has got into – Young Adults – is rather new to me and to be very honest, I’ve mostly liked what I have read. Even here, one of the chief protagonists is 16 years old Maddy Gomes, in the dystopian world of 2087. The World as we know it has broken down and is ruled by a World President! The societal divide between the HAVE’s and the HAVE NOT’s is huge, and the President rules with an iron fist. Like all autocrats, he’s narcissistic and genocidal – therefore our world is about to come to an end, at least for the HAVE NOTs.
Going back 150 years to 1937, ‘The Shadow’ was apparently a fictional character, made famous by a radio show by the same name – who was a vigilante meting out justice to criminals before the Police could reach. But the truth was that The Shadow was real, his real name being Lamont Cranston, and he and his lady love, Margo Lane would go around New York City preventing crimes and apprehending criminals. Until tragedy befalls them and they are taken out of circulation! Their arch-enemy was Shiwan Khan, one who shares his roots with Lamont, but is a diabolical despot.
As the World hurtles towards total annihilation, Lamont wakes up 150 years later in a New York City that he does not recognize, and Margo also cannot be found. Providence brings Maddy to him, who, as they discover to their joint delight, has some superhero gifts like Lamont! They can disappear at will, can bend the mind to their choice, and shoot balls of fire! The dreaded Shiwan Khan doesn’t forget the hiding handed to him 150 years ago and now he’s after them with renewed vigor.
In the fantasy world that this is set in, the fight between good and evil is perennial and it is no different here. With their superpowers, they set out to defeat the eternal villain Shiwan Khan. The pace of the novel is, as usual, quite breezy, and works very well as a light read. To their credit, the authors stay within their special effects boundary and do not go into an out-and-out Sci-Fi type of genre book. So without stretching the boundaries of imagination, this remains a novel with a touch of somewhat believable fantasy.
Conclusion – Book Review of The Shadow
This would appeal to all fans of the genre and even to those who are not great fans. The story is simple, cliched and yet the pull is unmistakably there. The superpowers endowed to the characters are not overwhelming (as seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe) but more down-to-earth, scientifically explicable types. Adding the futuristic part to a fabled character from 100 years ago is smart and it reads like a nice continuation. The characters are fleshed out quite well and the twist at the end, though expected, dovetails nicely into the story that goes before it.
So, yes, while not being spectacular, this is a nice enough read with no takeaways in the literary sense.
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