Shadytown by Mike Sherer

Combining religious mysticism, indigenous folklore, and witchery, Shadytown is your classic tale of good v evil.

Buy or Pass Recommendation: A decent buy for children between the ages of 8 and 14. The price is steep for Indian markets.

The Good

I was hooked from the get-go. The mystery surrounding the ‘large yellow box’ was intriguing, and I wish the box had featured more prominently in the book.

Shadytown has an eclectic mix of characters. In particular, I enjoyed the twins’ antics, Maeve’s transformative abilities, and Pliss’ devotion to Sean.

Making Sean’s family the target of evil forces was a good choice. It heightened the sense of danger and excitement, and made you feel and root for him.

Shadytown has the makings of a good series.

The Bad

The final face-off between Sean and Robar aka the Spirit Tree fell shy of expectations. Seraphina and Tenskwatawa were more compelling antagonists. With them being human or at least in human guise, it was easier to imagine the evil they could unleash. Hard to do that with a tree, even one that’s possessed by a demon.

That said, Shadytown is a series, and first books are all about setting the stage. As the true extent of the Spirit Tree’s demonic abilities as well as its origin story become clear in the books to come, it’ll help readers appreciate (and fear) Robar more. 

The Nit-picks

Teeny-tiny proof reading errors of which there are few and far in between.

I enjoyed reading the book. My ten-year-old self would’ve loved it. If you like reading horror and fantasy adventure books that are intelligently written, you should give Shadytown a try.