• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
FanFiAddict

FanFiAddict

A gaggle of nerds talking about Fantasy, Science Fiction, and everything in-between. They also occasionally write reviews about said books. 2x Stabby Award-Nominated and home to the Stabby Award-Winning TBRCon.

  • Home
  • About
    • Reviewers
    • Review Policy
    • Stance on AI
    • Contact
    • Friends of FFA
  • Blog
    • Reviews
      • Children’s / Middle Grade Books
      • Comics/Graphic Novels
      • Fantasy
        • Alt History
        • Coming of Age
        • Epic Fantasy
        • Fairy Tales
        • Grimdark
        • Heroic Fantasy
        • LitRPG
        • Paranormal Fantasy
        • Romantic Fantasy
        • Steampunk
        • Superheroes
        • Sword and Sorcery
        • Urban Fantasy
      • Historical Fiction
      • Science Fiction
        • Aliens
        • Artificial Intelligence
        • Alt History
        • Cyberpunk
        • Dystopian
        • Hard SciFi
        • Mechs/Robots
        • Military SF
        • Space Opera
        • Steampunk
        • Time Travel
      • Thriller
    • Guest Posts
    • Lists
    • Neurodivergence in Fiction
    • Why You Should Read…
    • Interviews
      • Book Tube
      • Authorly Writing Advice
  • Fear For All
    • Demons
    • Ghosts
    • Gothic
    • Lovecraftian
    • Monsters
    • Occult
    • Psychological
    • Slasher
    • Vampires
    • Werewolves
    • Witches
    • Zombies
  • SFF Addicts
    • SFF Addicts Clips
    • SFF Addicts (Episode Archive)
  • TBRCon
    • TBRCon2025
    • TBRCon2024
    • TBRCon2023
    • TBRCon2022
  • FFA Book Club
  • FFA TBR Toppers
    • Advertise Your Book on FFA!
  • Writer Resources
    • Artists
    • Cartographers
    • Editing/Formatting/Proofing

Review: The Shadow Gate (Dragon Spirits #2) by L.L. MacRae

April 15, 2023 by Craigbookwyrm Leave a Comment

Rating: 10/10

Synopsis

Opening the shadow gate is the only way Fenn’s memories can be restored—and with them, his life and family.

It could also destroy the world.

Guided by dragon spirit Hassen and manipulated by the Myr, Fenn fights the corruption spreading through Tassar—and himself—in an attempt to find his family. Separated from his allies and unable to trust even his own mind, the arduous journey takes its toll.

Far from home and reunited with her sister, Calidra battles to keep her loved ones safe. But when the fickle loyalties of dragon spirits shifts, and darkness lurks around every corner, running from her fears is no longer an option.

And in the far south, consequences of the past catch up with those fighting for their freedom.

Book two in the DRAGON SPIRITS epic fantasy trilogy! Return to the magic-drenched world of Tassar, where ancient artefacts awaken and the seeds of corruption are sown.

Review

Possible mild spoilers from book 1, The Iron Crown.

My thanks to the author for providing me with an eARC to review prior to the book’s release on April 28th.

The Shadow Gate is the exceptional follow-up the SPFBO7 finalist, The Iron Crown. This book is everything its predecessor was and more, exceeding all my expectations, and one of my best reading experiences of this year so far.

The story picks up where we left off in The Iron Crown, following a large scale Myrish attack. POV characters introduced in book one return, with Calidra, Fenn, Torsten, and Apollo. Additional POV characters are introduced this time around with Selys stepping up from the side-lines to great effect, along with her brother, Kaio, who is introduced for the first time in this book.

Balancing multiple POVs whilst introducing different and new ones, is no mean feat. MacRae masterfully controls the narrative through the six POVs; dividing the book into three parts, the author uses four different POVs in each part, which keeps the narrative fresh and maintains interest as the perspective changes. These distinct groups of characters provide wonderful depth to the sprawling world and storyline that ebbs and flows at the right moments, whilst continuing to sweep along to an extremely satisfying climax and set-up for book three.

There are three main recurring POV characters who appear throughout each part of the book – Calidra, Fenn, and Torsten. All three of their story arcs are developed well from their introductions in book one. Fenn, who was a bit of an enigma in book one, takes on a central role in this book, with his development being the most improved in my opinion.

Calidra, however, is my favourite character of them all, with her personal story being one of the more relatable. Her mental health is brilliantly explored, especially through her anxiety borne from her childhood trauma. Each character’s internalised struggles are brilliantly conveyed, which kept me guessing at their motivations and actions; nothing is ever as straight forward as it seems.

Despite being a great character driven story, we cannot ignore the phenomenal world building on display. MacRae expertly immerses you in her world with vivid clarity and purpose.

Now, let’s talk about the dragons. Not just any dragons, but dragon spirits. This was always a favourite aspect of mine from book one, and I was hoping for a lot more from them in this book. I was not disappointed. The dragon spirits are even more mesmerising in this book. And there are more of them too. They fight, some are corrupted, and others just kick-ass. Combined with further development of the mysterious Myr, the magic and world building throughout this book is on another level. The dragon spirits alone are a wonder of imagination, but now I am just as intrigued and as excited about the Myr!

One final observation, before I wrap up, is the slightly darker tone of this book. It’s subtle, but it’s there in places. I appreciated these darker moments – the menace, doubt, manipulations, fear, anxiety, and tension, which are all very palpable. Again, it is subtly done and only when necessary, which is credit to the author’s skill and empathy with her characters’ plight.

The Shadow Gate is a sweeping epic fantasy that just kept getting better and better. Tight, fluid prose, exemplary character work, and extraordinary world building. Absolutely incredible and as close to perfect as you are going to get.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read my review.

Filed Under: Dragons, Epic Fantasy, Fantasy, Reviews Tagged With: Dragon Spirits, Epic Fantasy, l.l. macrae, Review, Self Published, The Shadow Gate

About Craigbookwyrm

Craig is from the small country of Wales in the UK – famous for its castles and dragons! He is married and has 3 daughters. Craig works a desk job full time, but in his spare time he reads as much as possible. Having fallen back in love with reading again, after discovering the indie and self-published SFF book community, Craig loves to share his passion with other readers in the community.

Other Reviews You Might Like

Review: The Girl in the Walls by Meg Eden Kuyatt

Review: The Vengeance (The Vampires of Dumas #1) by Emma Newman

Review: Overgrowth by Mira Grant

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Sponsored By

Use Discount Code FANFI For 5% Off!

FFA Newsletter!

Sign up for updates and get FREE stories from Michael R. Fletcher and Richard Ford!

What Would You Like To See?(Required)
Please select the type of content you want to receive from FanFi Addict. You can even mix and match if you want!

FFA Author Hub

Read A.J. Calvin
Read Andy Peloquin
Read C.J. Daily
Read C.M. Caplan
Read D.A. Smith
Read DB Rook
Read Francisca Liliana
Read Frasier Armitage
Read Josh Hanson
Read Krystle Matar
Read M.J. Kuhn

Recent Reviews

Recent Comments

  1. Mark Matthews on COVER REVEAL: To Those Willing to Drown by Mark MatthewsJanuary 7, 2025
  2. Basra Myeba on Worth reading Jack Reacher books by Lee Child?January 5, 2025
  3. Ali on Review: Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory by Yaroslav BarsukovJanuary 5, 2025
  4. Carter on So you want to start reading Warhammer 40,000? Here’s where to start!January 4, 2025
  5. M. Zaugg on Bender’s Best LitRPG reads of 2024January 3, 2025

Archive

Copyright © 2025 · Powered by ModFarm Sites · Log In