Cast in Shadow

Chronicles of Elantra, Book 1

By: Michelle Sagara

Narrated by: Khristine Hvam

Length: 14 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Seven years ago, Kaylin fled the crime-riddled streets of Nightshade, knowing that something was after her. Children were being murdered— and all had the same odd markings that mysteriously appeared on her own skin….

Since then, she's learned to read, she's learned to fight and she's become one of the vaunted Hawks who patrol and police the City of Elantra. Alongside the winged Aerians and the immortal Barrani, she's made a place for herself, far from the mean streets of her birth.

But children are once again dying, and a dark and familiar pattern is emerging. Kaylin is ordered back into Nightshade with a partner she knows she can't trust, a Dragon lord for a companion and a device to contain her powers—powers that no other human has. Her task is simple—find the killer, stop the murders… and survive the attentions of those who claim to be her allies!

Spellbound? Listen to more Chronicles of Elantra.

©2011 Michelle Sagara (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Entertaining but not fully compelling.

This is an entertaining start to a series, although not fully compelling for me. My rating 3.75.

Kaylin is a young woman seeking to be accepted as a Hawk warrior. The Lord of Hawks has accepted her into the Hawks for training and she is improving. Kaylin is sent on an assignment but must work with Severn, a childhood friend who has become an enemy to her. Kaylin and Severn are accompanied by a Dragon, Tiamaris. Fortunately, Tamaris, a formidable and quiet man, has great forbearance as he tires to keep Kaylin and Severn from attacking each other.

Children are dying in a bizarre manner in the poorer, crime-riddled section of the city known as Nightshade. Kaylin and Severn are familiar with the Nightshade as they were raised there as orphaned children. Seven years earlier Kaylin and Severn left the area, separately, after suffering the loss of friends who were being killed. The murdered children, then and now, are marked with tattoos which appeared on Kaylin’s skin too. Kaylin discovered that she has unusual healing powers that seem connected to the tattoos appearing on her body. But somehow she brings danger to others. Under the direction of the Hawklord, she is not supposed to use her healing skills without permission and she must keep her powers hidden.

Kaylin braves an audience with the Lord of Nightshade, an immortal who might be an enemy but currently is intrigued by Kaylin. He gives her a mark of protection. Although the mark doesn’t fully bind them as it might others, it is enough to raise questions by other powerful leaders possibly turning allies into enemies. While some try to take Kaylin down she struggles to save the children before another of her friends, a girl kidnapped from the orphanage, is killed.

I appreciate the world building and the different characters. Kaylin was a bit difficult to fully like as she is a messy character: immature, undisciplined and hotheaded. She is independent, a strong fighter and did mature some during the book providing hope for better behavior in future books. I definitely liked the interaction with the other characters, especially Tiamaris. It was annoying that others knew secrets regarding Kaylin’s powers but no one would share with her.

Between the interesting world, characters and action, the story kept my attention. I will likely try the next in the series at some point, although I don’t feel compelled to rush off to get it. I think readers who enjoy strong fantasy and YA characters should give this a try.

Audio Notes: Khristine Hvam does a good job narrating. She gives fitting voices to each character which adds depth to the audiobook. The narration enhanced my enjoyment of the story.

Good fiction but no romance.

Have you listened to any of Khristine Hvam’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No I have not listened to Khristine Hvam before but found she makes the books seem more realistic and the change in peoples voices is perfect. She was consistant with her people and voice change and it made the book easy to follow.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no it was not a page turner as I would call it. I enjoyed the book but was dissapointed in how there is no romance. I kept looking for more to develope with severn but turned out to be highly disapointed.

Loved it!!!!

I loved the storyline and the narrator. You fall in love with the characters! If you’re just looking for a good story without overbearing romance and sex this is for you.

Good story, fine narrator

Where does Cast in Shadow rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

It's pretty good, the story is decent as is the narrator.

Any additional comments?

The narrator was a little distracting- but after I got used to her, she did a good job.

Audible Obsessed

Michelle Sagara and Khristine Hvam are a great team! Sagara's storyline hooks you from the first novella. Hvam brings the characters to life and has an amazing range for the character's voices.

I'm devouring the books faster than I can get my credits for them! :P

Great stories.

If you like mystical characters you will love this. It was slow moving in the beginning but once I got into it very enjoyable and exciting.

Great performance

FOr the Audible book
I read the books first and catching up with the Audiobooks going backwards! Since now I buy the Audiobook first, this is the last one. If you like the books please try the Audio books it's just great. The narrator does a wonderful job adding voices to the characters!


Original review for the book
I really didn't think I will be hooked to this series so quickly, I read the first book then I read all that are available in a day!! I have to admit I found the main character annoying at times when talking about the past, but with such past I suppose it is understandable. I find the world and characters interesting and looking forward to more!

Cracker of a novel and start to a series!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, it's interesting, fun, multi-layered and exciting. It combines many principles of fantasy in a new way.

What about Khristine Hvam’s performance did you like?

She embodies Kaylin and brings the other characters to life beautifully!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I devoured this book and have systematically consumed each of the subsequent ones!

Any additional comments?

Love this series - try it now!

A great story

What does Khristine Hvam bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator does a wonderful job giving the characters emotions and inflections. I am so glad to see that she continues narrating this series.

Any additional comments?

A great beginning to a series. It has some interesting twists and turns, a clearly the beginning of a larger story. I finished the first one and immediately wanted to move on to the next.

Lack of Focus!

I was initially captivated by the story line--poor orphan makes good--but as the story progressed, the characters remained static and became more and more incomprehensible. I don't think the author really knew who her characters were. I got very tired of Kaylin not knowing why she did things and saying so frequently. I couldn't find any rhyme or reason for the actions of many the characters, and I frankly gave up on the story before the end because I didn't care about any of her people. The narrator does a creditable job with poor material.