Shadowshaper (The Shadowshaper Cypher, Book 1) by Daniel José Older Published by Scholastic Inc. on June 30th 2015
Pages: 304
Amazon-Indiebound
Goodreads
Sierra Santiago was looking forward to a fun summer of making art, hanging out with her friends, and skating around Brooklyn. But then a weird zombie guy crashes the first party of the season. Sierra's near-comatose abuelo begins to say "No importa" over and over. And when the graffiti murals in Bed-Stuy start to weep.... Well, something stranger than the usual New York mayhem is going on.
Sierra soon discovers a supernatural order called the Shadowshapers, who connect with spirits via paintings, music, and stories. Her grandfather once shared the order's secrets with an anthropologist, Dr. Jonathan Wick, who turned the Caribbean magic to his own foul ends. Now Wick wants to become the ultimate Shadowshaper by killing all the others, one by one. With the help of her friends and the hot graffiti artist Robbie, Sierra must dodge Wick's supernatural creations, harness her own Shadowshaping abilities, and save her family's past, present, and future.
My Thoughts:
Oh, hey, look! Another book that came out years ago that I just finally got around to reading. I had heard such good things about it (and I really enjoyed hearing the author speak and read from it at a conference!) so I snagged the audiobook with the last of my audible credits. Both the audiobook narration and the story itself were excellent.
There were so many things that drew me into this story:
- I mean, that cover!
- The contemporary urban setting with added magic!
- Sierra, a character I instantly fell for.
- Sierra’s friend group… each one was unique and fun. Loved their interactions.
- The Shadowshapers and everything about the supernatural element.
- The history that goes along with the Caribbean magical system.
- Seeing Sierra learn about the world of the Shadowshapers and become stronger.
- Everything about Robbie and Sierra and the ways they interacted.
I could go on and on. I was simply captivated! I cannot wait for the next book.
Audiobook Notes:
I loved the narration on this one. Anika Noni Rose’s narration was perfect for the magical realism/urban fantasy feel. The audiobook is under 8 hours which makes it a fairly “quick” listen as well.
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