Cover Image: The Shadows

The Shadows

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

This one gave me serious creepy vibes. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I don’t usually find books as scary/creepy on audio but this was a definite exception. Thought the narrator did a great job of creating atmosphere.

Was this review helpful?

Dark and creepy just how I like it! This psychological thriller had me questioning everything. Loved it! I will read anything Alex North writes. Please give me more!

Was this review helpful?

I loved this book. It was dark and creepy in the best ways. I ended up reading Alex North's previous book as a result and cannot wait for their next work.

Was this review helpful?

This book is a creepy and dark story; the plot and the characters will keep you reading way into the night. You will not want to stop reading until you get to the conclusion of the story. The reader was good, there was just enough creepy atmosphere coming through to work for this book.

Was this review helpful?

Overall, I really liked this story! It's intricate, it's detailed, it's thoughtful. It's a story that deals with grief and confronting and coming to grips with the past. All wrapped up in a dual timeline, small town thriller about lucid dreams ending in murder. I loved that it vibed like a supernatural thriller. And it was 100% creepy and chilling! I was definitely freaked out at times. All the twists and turns and shocks in the first half had me on the edge of my seat completely pulled into the mystery, but the over plot twist and whodunnit at the end sort of fell a little flat for me. But overall a great read, especially if you're into urban legends and dreams.

Was this review helpful?

I finally was able to read/listen to this book. It was good mostly Eh for me. But I did like it better than The Whisper Man. I do like reading Alex North and I will continue to read his books.

I liked the concept of lucid dreaming. I think there could have been so much more done with this book.

Was this review helpful?

This one was kind of middle of the road for me. I didn't dislike it, but I also think a month from now, I won't remember much about it. I did find it intriguing at the beginning learning about Paul and his friends as kids, but then too many characters and such started to make things confusing and not as enjoyeable of a read. I did like the narrator for this story.

Was this review helpful?

I had high hopes going into this one, but overall I think it's just not for me! It's got an interesting premise, but I found myself generally uninterested throughout most of the book. Even though the book starts off with a lot of secrets and intrigue, it still felt slow. It took forever to really get into the meat of the story, and I found myself losing interest quite often, unfortunately! I'm used to thrillers keeping me on the edge of my seat, and when one is unable to, I'm just not really a fan.

I did like the audiobook narrators, though, and I appreciated that each character POV got their own narrator. It separated the two POVs sharply, and made each section feel tonally different as well. Paul's narrator seemed to fit the vibe of Paul perfectly, and it really added to the atmosphere of the book, even if it wasn't quite enough to sell me on the story as a whole. Amanda's took me longer to like, but I also think it took me longer to connect with Amanda overall, especially as a large part of the book/intro was focused on Paul and his backstory.

Overall, I'm not sure if I'll try another book by this author, but I do think many will still enjoy this book!

Was this review helpful?

The alternating time lines and large cast of characters took concentration to keep it all straight. In my opinion, “The Shadows” held such promise and yet somehow, it simply didn’t quite deliver. I was left wanting and waiting. Much of the time while reading I was waiting for the plot to pick up the pace and give me something meaty to bite into. At the end the author provided us with a delicious twist that I didn't see it coming and it was great! It was unexpected and heartbreaking all at once

Thank you to NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Another incredibly creepy book by Alex Noth. This book was extremely difficult for me to put down! I thought I knew what was going on, but the twists and turns kept me guessing the whole time. A must read!

Was this review helpful?

This book was super creepy, with a great atmosphere. The talk of the woods and the shadows was my favourite part. I really enjoyed the plot twist at the end. But the overall ending fell flat for me.

Was this review helpful?

This was not my favorite novel by Alex North, and I found it incredibly difficult to stay engaged with the story.

The overall narration was fine, and I appreciated the opportunity to listen in exchange for my honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This was one of the best narrations I have listened to in a long time. I was sucked in from the first sentence and even though much of the story was confusing, I enjoyed listening to the end.

Paul was a teen when something horrible happened and he leaves his village as soon as he turned 18 and did not go back until his mother needed him.

Amanda is a detective who is investigating the copycat murders that happen as soon as Paul comes back home.

This story has 2 timelines and about a million people in it and I am not gonna lie that I got lost a lot. I refuse to take notes when listening to a book so I have to go by memory and mine is bad.

I thought the lucid dreaming bits were done well, but the ending was a little bit rushed and wrapped up too nicely.

Was this review helpful?

This had an interesting premise and I wanted to love it cause it’s right up my alley but it was just ok. It felt like it took forever to get into. I listened to the audiobook and for me, the narrators weren’t the greatest. There were really good creepy moments but it mainly fell flat for me.

The side characters really made this story though! I loved Jenny and her obsession with Stephen king! And Charlie was super creepy!! This book definitely had promise and I would be interested in reading future books by this author to see how his talent develops.

Thank you to Netgalley, Alex north, and Macmillan audio for allowing me to listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

This audiobook was creepy af. Which is the intent. The narration of this story was amazing. I was hooked for the first chapter and I hated when I had to turn it off and go to work, because I listened on my commute. The characters were great and I am excited to read more from this author.

Was this review helpful?

Loved the premise of the book, but I wanted it to creep me out as much as Whisper Man had and, unfortunately, it fell short in that department.

Was this review helpful?

This was an okay read for me. I was let down because I went into this story thinking there was going to be something non-human/supernatural that was murdering,.. not what ended up being the truth.

The pacing is what really caused me to rate this only 3 stars. It was very slow moving and took me soo long to get through. It felt like it was a 100 pages longer than it was. I had to pick up the physical book on this just to follow along. The plot overall was a little underwhelming as well.

Was this review helpful?

So creepy and atmospheric. Exactly what I was looking for. I will continue to read from this author.

Was this review helpful?

This book was hard to get through. I had already tried reading the physical copy a couple of times and thought the audiobook might help. It did help me get through it and the narrator did a good job, but the story itself was too slow-moving for me. I liked the overall story and the way it ended, but it was very slow-paced so keep that in mind. It does get better if you can hang in there!

Was this review helpful?

I loved Alex North's last book The Whisper Man so I was beyond excited for this one unfortunately it didn't capture me as much. I found the storylines confusing and the dream sequence was really hard to follow, especially via audio.

The narration and production was good. I really like that they added in suspenseful music

Was this review helpful?