Review of 'Shadow in the Empire of Light'

Shadow in the Empire of Light showed much promise but ultimately failed in every aspect.

Poor Characterization

Honestly, I had a rough time getting into this novel, mainly because of the characterization. After the first three chapters, I contemplated putting the book down and adding it to my DNF pile. However, I had an audible credit, so I decided to give it another shot.

Big mistake.

Shine, our main protagonist, lacks any personality, and her narrative is at times confusing. Before listening to this novel, I thought she was a young girl, a teenager. It was not until I was listening to the audible book that I discovered she is an older woman; in her twenties, I would say.

That shows an inconsistency in the voice of the character. Shine’s voice stays the same throughout the novel. Sure, she faces challenges, but nothing about her makes the reader care about her. Shine has no growth whatsoever. An orphan who wants to discover what happened to her mother, neglected by most of her family for not only not being a mage but also being an interracial child, one would think they have some reason to care. However, that is not what happened.

The only character worth reading about is Katti, the telepathic cat who cares for her. So really, Katti is the only good thing about the novel.

Poor Storytelling

God, this story was not my cup of tea. I expected so much more while reading and was left so unsatisfied while I was reading it.

The bulk of the story takes place during the Fertility Festival. So basically, while Shine is hiding Shadow to avoid an international incident because he is an immigrant, everyone is trying to have sex with one another.

It was like Shadow of the Empire of Light was just one sex scene after another without any depth. I was expecting a story here, but it felt like nothing at all was happening. After reading this on the back cover, “Shine is plunged into dark intrigue; stolen letters, a fugitive spy, and family drama mix with murder, sex, and secrets,” I was expecting more.

Shine’s biggest dream is to travel, discover what happened to her mother, and escape the estate that keeps her trapped. Except nothing happens. Instead, it feels like nothing happened and that there was no resolution to the ending.