Shadow's Voice - (Shadowstalker) by Natalie Johanson (Paperback)

About the Book

Rose has a secret, a magic, that's kept her alive but alone. When mercenaries and the king uncover her magic, she's drawn into a conspiracy that could ignite a kingdom. Dark magic and intrigue for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Maria Snyder.

Book Synopsis

She can move through shadows - but the wrong people are following her. If she fails, others will die.

Rose's magic is a secret and a curse: she slips through shadows like doorways, watching people and places from the safety of darkness. It has kept her alive - and alone. When mercenaries hunting a dead man's secrets close in, a stranger from the Light Horse saves her life and leaves Rose stranded with more questions than answers. The stranger's death pulls her toward the king's castle and into the orbit of the Light Horse - an order that values magic and wants Rose's help to uncover proof of a growing conspiracy.

Rose must learn to use the shadows she hates to destroy those hunting her. As she is pushed into a mission to find ledgers, plans, and proof that can stop an assassination and a rising army, she faces an impossible choice: stay hidden and survive alone, or join a flawed, stubborn group that might finally become the family she never had. If she fails, the kingdom could fall - and countless lives will pay the price. Shadow's Voice asks: what will you give up to stop what's coming?

Fans of Sarah J. Maas's Throne of Glass and Maria Snyder's Poison Study will love this dark, fast-paced, and tightly wound fantasy with political intrigue and magic.

Second Place winner in BookFest's book awards for Action/Adventure and Magic, Myths, and Legends

First Place winner in Firebird's book awards for Young Adult Fantasy

Review Quotes

Shadow's Voice by Natalie Johanson is a Sci-Fi/fantasy novel. It is a story about Rose Trewin, and how she got entangled in a stranger's mess. She has abilities she has been made to feel ashamed of and to hide from most people. These abilities allow her to move in the shadows unnoticed and allowed her to be molded into a ruthless mercenary by her father. She has been on the run for a very long time and fears staying in any place too long, in fear that he would find her. She has learned to trust no one which has served her well in the past. The story develops when she encounters another lone traveler, who strikes up conversations with her, changing her destiny forever. The story is filled with magic, betrayal, newfound friendship, and death.

I am thrilled I got to read this book, and I enjoyed the story so much I was sad when it ended. It fit the genre perfectly, and it ended up falling into a storyline that I love. Ones filled with magic and set in a time filled with dirt roads, cobblestones, and lone travelers going on quests. What I liked most is that things were able to develop naturally, and it wasn't rushed or forced. [...] I think the book was well edited and well written. I loved so many things about this book, and I could not stop reading nor could I stop thinking about it. It was an absolute page-turner. [...] I would recommend this book to all lovers of fantasy novels, ones with magic and set in a non-modern world. There were no graphic or explicit scenes and is okay for children.

-Onlinebookclub.org

Shadow's Voice is a dark and exciting work of fantasy fiction penned by author Natalie Johanson. The central plot follows the young Rose Trewin, a drifter who has much more to her than first meets the eye. Rose has been imbued with deadly magical powers, allowing her to merge with shadows, and now those powers are building into something even more terrifying. As Rose tries to escape those who gave her such powers in the first place, her homeland verges on a devastating civil war. Rose is one of the few people who could actually help to bring peace against an enemy with magic like her own, and so she must face her true self to help those people she cares for.

Author Natalie Johanson writes a cracking read right from the first few pages that immerse readers into the plot right away. Rose Trewin is a character that readers can relate to and be intrigued by at once, journeying with her as different obstacles force her to confront and discover the limits of her own power. The enemies she faces seek the usual power, greed, and total control, and the fact that Rose is far from a pure, selfless hero makes it interesting to see her own motivations coming through as she finds ways to combat forces greater than herself. Overall, Shadow's Voice is an exciting and enjoyable fantasy read that is sure to please fans of the genre who are seeking unlikely heroes, exciting magical peril and plenty of drama.

-Readers' Favorite