The Serpent's Shadow

Elemental Masters

By: Mercedes Lackey

Narrated by: Michelle Ford

Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

From the magical mysteries of India to the gaslit streets of Victorian London, Mercedes Lackey's unique departure from her Valdemar series follows a young woman doctor as she searches for the secret behind the sorcery in her blood.

Enchanted? Listen to more titles in the Elemental Masters Series.

©2002 Mercedes Lackey (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Mercedes Lackey returns to form in The Serpent's Shadow...."This story takes place in the London of 1909, and is based on "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." Lackey creates echoes of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, pays affectionate homage to Dorothy Sayers's Lord Peter Wimsey (who plays an important role under a thin disguise), and turns the dwarves into seven animal avatars who masquerade as pets of her Eurasian heroine, Maya." (Amazon.com review)

Misty does it again

I've been a lifetime fan of Mercedes Lackey, and while some of her stories are weaker than others, she remains one of the authors who I'll buy her stories if I only have enough for one book. Even if I've already read it in one format or another. Her Elemental Masters series is my favorite of her many-imagined series, with this story being one of my favorites among these books.

I've been a member of Audible for years, and while I don't usually write reviews (who actually has time for that?) the various negative reviews irritated me enough to write to counter them. If you enjoy YA books, or Disney-esque good versus evil, I strongly suggest this book. Just enough darkness to make this into an entertaining literary meal, without being so dark as to make this depressing, or too light as to be a popcorn read. In short, the tone is right, the plot strong, and the character development believable.

Very Satisfying

This was the first of Lackey's Elemental Masters books I listened to and it remains my favorite (although "The Wizard of London" is a very close second). It has a very smart and tough heroine, believable romance, good and evil magic and the exotic atmosphere of India brought to London. I thought the aspect of being a woman physician in late 19th century England added interest to the main character. I grew so fond of Maya and Peter I wish there were other books about them.

It was OK

It was an ok listen. The story was good and the performance was excellent.

Another reviewer nailed it.

I read a review about the book being a remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and that is what this story is about, but with the Mercedes Lackey touch. There is some romance in it, but it's G rated and there's not much of it in the book, which is good from my point of view. The Magic System is too predictable and that subtracts 1 star as I rank fantasy books. The narrator is very good. She mispronounced a few words, but it might just be that she's not speaking American English. Overall the story is good, not great, and not horrible, so I give 3.5 stars.

Fans of Mercedes Lackey will enjoy

The narrator was perfect for this book, and made the story even better. It doesn't have the passion of the Valdemar stories, but it's a good yarn, and a fun read. My only criticism is it took too long to get to the meat of the story. If this narrator reads any of the other "Elemental Masters" books, I'll be sure to buy it.

Good Read/Listen

Any additional comments?

This was a good book. I enjoyed the visuals I was able to conjure up while listening.

Very Enjoyable

I didn't really know what to expect, as all my previous Lackey books had been very different from this. However it was extremely entertaining. The story was well developed, with distinct surprises toward the end. The narration was one of the best I have ever heard! This was especially welcome as the last book I listened to ( one of the dragon chronicles) had very disappointing narration. I'm looking forward to more like this.

Another well crafted tale

Mercedes Lackey does it again with characters you care about in a good story.

Very enjoyable

This is my favorite of Mercedes Lackey's re-told fairy tales, and I was pleased to find it available in audio format. Maya Witherspoon is a terrific character and you immediately become engrossed in her story as a young Anglo-Indian woman who has successfully conquered the barriers of the male-dominated English medical/surgical profession in the late 1800s. The people she meets in her London charity hospital work and her private medical practice are vividly portrayed, and many become her friends and supporters.

Michelle Ford does a quite good job of differentiating the characters' voices and accents, both male and female.

Highly recommended, and I know I'll listen to this again and again.

Wonderful Story, Bad Pronunciation

Would you consider the audio edition of The Serpent's Shadow to be better than the print version?

No. The reader/performer did not do a very good job with pronunciation. It would have been nice if she had done some research about the correct way to pronounce words like epitome. If you can ignore that, she does a great job with the voices.

What did you like best about this story?

The richness of the background world.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

I hated the incorrect pronunciation of common words. I loved the voices.

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

Yes, almost did too.