Shadow Play

Black Magic Outlaw, Book 2

By: Domino Finn

Narrated by: Neil Hellegers

Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's Summary

I'm Cisco Suarez, and a week ago I was dead.

Cursed into serving a clandestine shadow group, I have a lot of blood on my hands. Good thing I also have a juvenile problem with authority. I'm not taking orders anymore, and the first thing on my bucket list is bringing them down.

If I'm good at anything, it's looking in dark places. But I've got shadows of my own. Horrific deeds coming back to haunt me, and not the metaphorical kind of haunting, either. I'm talking ghosts, mages, and that thing with the glowing red eyes.

Just goes to show you, it really is true what they say: What goes around comes around. I only hope to give more than I get.

Is resurrection overrated or what?

©2016 Domino Finn (P)2016 Domino Finn

A fresh take on urban fantasy.

Jumps right in from where the last book ended. and I enjoyed the whole ride. A nice balance of Dresden and Sandman Slim in the best way possible. I love those series and love this one as well. I cant wait tobsee what happens next.

intense

popcorn action movie style book very intense narration I enjoyed it as background while doing other things

lots of action

I love this series it has lots of action can't wait for the next one

A great book

This is both the first Domino Finn and first Neil Hellegers book I’ve listened to. Even though it’s the second book of the series I didn’t have any problem getting into it and it filled in the back story enough that I never felt lost. This book is great as a standalone novel, but it leaves you wanting more at the end. The narrator did a great job and I really liked the voice he used for the main character. I felt that the deep voice he gave Cisco really brought the character to life. He nailed the smart aleck comments perfectly. Speaking of the main character, he definitely had a sarcastic in-your-face attitude which I really enjoyed. I’m pretty big on fantasy books, but the concept of magic in this book was something that I haven’t really seen before. The main character is a Voodoo magician who can use the shadows to his advantage in innumerable ways. There are also undead creatures like vampires, zombies, and ghosts, but there were also other magic creatures like elementals and other forms of magic, such as paper magicians. The whole book was an action packed adventure mixed with snarky comments from chapter one until the end and I definitely plan on listening to the rest of the books in the series.

This audiobook was provided by the author at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review.

Good follow up

If you enjoyed the first in the series then this is a worthwhile sequel. Interesting new layer to the story, good world building, sticks the ending.

Better than Book 1!

Note: As Book 2 in this series, it works best if you’ve read Book 1. I wouldn’t recommend reading this as a stand alone.

Cisco Suarez, a dead necromancer, has his hands full with this one. He’s cursed into serving a group he doesn’t like and which he wants to bring down. Also, he’s dealing with some serious ghosts from his past horrific deeds. Toss in whatever that thing is with glowing red eyes, and Cisco could really use a vacation. No such luck for him!

With Book 1, Dead Man, I had one quibble and that was that the ladies were these throw away characters that were mostly comforters or sex symbols. Well, Domino Finn has definitely corrected that with this book. The ladies play larger roles and Cisco’s machismo has to deal with it.

I really enjoyed the quest for the Horn of Subjugation and what that could mean for Cisco long term. Also, those red eyes that follow him turns out to be a scary and interesting treat for us readers. Not sure Cisco is so stoked about it though. Ha! I love the mix of cultures that are brought into play in this series and this book doesn’t disappoint in this. With info about the Horn of Subjugation comes info about the Taino culture from Cuba and how that’s tied to Cisco.

In Book 1, Cisco destroyed the villain he believed responsible for killing him and turning him into a murdering zombie. Well, we learn that there’s a little more to that in this book and Cisco is dead set on tracking down whoever was controlling that villain. They are just as responsible, if not more so, for all the deaths Cisco was forced to do as a zombie.

Now this is an urban fantasy that features a necromancer, so of course we have to play with dead things. I like that the cat from Book 1 could be used as a scout of sorts with Cisco being able to peer through its eyes. Now Cisco needs the memories of the dead and that involves little graveyard worms. Poor Cisco! I really felt for him when he digs into the deaths of his family. He has to defeat whoever masterminded this tragedy in order to put their spirits to rest.

He also has to try to reconnect with his best good buddy Evan Cross, who heads up a special police squad that investigates and takes down organized crime. Things are strained between the two, as we learned in Book 1, partially because Evan married Cisco’s old girlfriend after Cisco disappeared for 10 years. Awkward. Plenty of intense feelings in those scenes.

All together, it was a great follow up to Book 1 and I look forward to more Cisco adventures.

I received a free copy of this book.

The Narration: Neil Hellegers makes the perfect Cisco Suarez. He does such a great job with the variety of accents throughout this book. Also, there were plenty of intense scenes with both bullets and emotions flying around hitting things. Hellegers was great at voicing these scenes.

Better than the First!

What made the experience of listening to Shadow Play the most enjoyable?

Since the first book laid the groundwork, this book took off with action very early. It also went further into what had happened to him during a 10 year period in which he had no memory. I also enjoyed the more in depth explanation of his ancient Taino powers that emanated from his ancestors in Cuba. The Cuban artifact that held similar power as he did came into play as well as a cross section of other worldly characters to include a vampire and a mange.

What other book might you compare Shadow Play to and why?

I would compare this book to the Dresden Files (which I consider to be the gold standard in this genre); however, it takes off in a very different direction and uses its own originality in the storyline as well as the character development.

What about Neil Hellegers’s performance did you like?

He was just enjoyable to listen to.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The end of the book was a crescendo.

Constancy of action, action dialogue, and action!

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

Yes Yes Yes!!!

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The plot is never ending and the twist are amazing. The action never stops and the dialogue is action packed as well. No superfluous dialogue and long speeches. Everything is PERFECT! Author and Narrator are a match made in heaven.

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

EVERYTHING! Inflection, emotion, mood, drama, tone, raspy voice, spanish, irish, australian, ITS ALL THERE!! He's my new favorite narrator. . . sorry Fred Berman. . .

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Milena. . . Her pain at the realization that Cisco killed his family. This drama came immediately after they battled a poltergeist, leaving us with the illusion of their alliance being mutual and permanent. Her revelation takes her out of the next two books.

Any additional comments?

Keep it coming! Dont know how you can get better than best, but you did it here!

great concept small issues with motivation

MC and everyone around him treats his time as a mindless slave like he made choices to kill and hurt. like he was a person instead of a weapon. also his old gf and bff really need to die because every 10 seconds he finds out they betrayed our kept something vital from them. other than that it's an awesome book.

Superb sequel...

This story picks up right after the events of the first book (Dead Man) and Cisco Suarez still can’t seem to catch a break. Be ready to hit the ground running as Cisco does not believe in taking a moment to regroup. The action is non-stop, the hits just keep coming, and twists and turns kept my attention from start to finish. Cisco is the quintessential damaged antihero type of character but he is also very likable and has an impressive command of snarky banter. The narrator, Neil Hellegers, once again provided a great performance in the audiobook version of this story. There are still more loose ends for Cisco to deal with if he is ever going to get the justice he is seeking for the losses he has endured. I am eager to see how things will play out for him in the next book. Great job by both the author and the narrator.

I was provided with an audio copy of this story by the author and I am voluntarily offering my honest and unbiased review.