SYNOPSIS
Deep within the forests of Nyn’Dira, darkness rises, and Neer finds herself hunted at every turn.
Fleeing from relentless enemies and vicious creatures of darkness, she embarks on a treacherous journey through the dangerous woodlands in search of strength and salvation.
As the humans push further into the forbidden lands, the Nasir and his men close in, finding strength in the blood of the innocent. With the balance beginning to shift, Neer is caught in a war she was never meant to be in and is forced to make a decision that could change the tides of fate or cause it all to collapse and burn.
REVIEW
With Shadows of Nyn’Dira, H.C. Newell takes everything that was great about Curse of the Fallen and The Forbidden Realms and turns it up to 11.
Picking up right where we left off in The Forbidden Realms, we find Neer lost and alone in the mysterious woods of Nyn’Dira. But not alone for long, as we see some faces we’ve been missing for quite some time, as well as others we haven’t missed for too long, finally bringing the cast together in one not so happy family.
While the last two books were wall-to-wall action, this time Newell pumps the brakes a little bit so we can catch up with all the characters. But that doesn’t mean the action isn’t there. The battle scenes in this novel are absolutely phenomenal, with huge stakes, bloody violence, terrifying monsters and loss. No one is safe in this series and that sentiment is doubled-down upon in this entry.
The lore and magic is unveiled like never before, with revelations that change everything. While Curse and Realms feel largely stand-alone, in Shadows we tie everything together. It’s here we learn what the big bad is as the main-arc of the series as a whole starts to bloom. I won’t get into detail about any of that but believe me when I say it is brilliant and horrifying.
Where this book truly shines, as did the previous entries, is the characters. Neer is given time to really think about who she wants to be and reckon with what she’s become. She is given some tough choices and her decisions were both surprising and completely believable. Aella gets her share of the spotlight as well having some incredible development and great twists involving her past. Every character is given equal treatment, whether they’re POV characters or not, but knowing who may be considered a spoiler to some so I’ll leave that for you to discover on your own.
Shadows of Nyn’Dira is the third in a six book series that shows no signs of slowing down. Less action doesn’t mean less tension, with some of the most stressful scenes containing no violence. But less doesn’t mean none and the action and violence has never been more visceral in this series. H.C. Newell steps up her game in every respect, delivering a bloody, scary, heartbreaking novel that raises the stakes and sets the stage for the back half of this sure to be amazing series. So batten down the hatches, A Storm of Sorrows is on the horizon…
RELEASE DATE: OCTOBER 31st, 2023
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