Wednesday 27 January 2016

What to Expect from the Book 'Stalking the Shadows'

Stalking the Shadows is a book filled with action and magical events. The factors that keep readers on the edge of your seat are:
  1. An Exceptional Plot - BJ Edwards, the author, has written an extraordinary story. First, the time selected for the characters - between the upper Palaeolithic and lower Mesolithic eras - is very different. BJ's keen eye for details is worth an applause. Two human races are fighting to declare superiority over the other race. During the same time, there is a conflict between good and dark gods. Dark gods - Balor and Camulos - are controlling the minds of people, who lack a strong will. They wish to end the golden road by which soul travels when a human dies. Other than that, they want to destroy the silver bridge, by which souls enter into the world. Good gods - Vantis and Modron - are determined not to let the dark gods win. Humans are also divided into the good ones and the evil ones, based on their actions. Dark gods begin interfering with evil humans to drive them towards the destruction of good humans.
  2. Magnificent Description of Animals - BJ did not keep animals devoid of his excellent penmanship skills. His description of horse, wolf, unicorn, mammoth, and other animals is written with utmost accuracy and intelligent words. For instance, look at the portrayal of the mammoth in BJ's words - "She stood tall, proud, majestic and huge, her form mountainous and dark against the grey sky, her tusks long and curved shafts of ivory, pointed and deadly. She surveyed the land below her, her huge ears flapping gently, her trunk questing. With an effort, she shook her massive head and tried to make for the thick cover of the distant forest, but her joints ached and her great heart pounded with the effort of movement." Another unique characteristic of this book is that the animals narrate their tale by themselves. Mammoth tells her emotion, unicorn remembers her past, and horse thinks about the events that happened in his past. 
  3. Majestic Glory of Nature - Description of river, mountains, sun, moon, land, etc. is very attractive. "The warriors had never seen the great river before, or even sand – the strange colour intrigued them; but the river awed them. It was huge and silver, deep and mysterious. It lapped gently at the shore, moving like a living thing and calling with a soft voice."
  4. An Outstanding Portrayal of Physical Appearance - BJ's selection of words to describe the physical appearance of the characters of his story is absolutely perfect. He paints the physical appearance of neanderthals and homo sapiens is worth mentioning - "The men who inhabited this land were one of the surviving pockets of Homo neanderthalensis. They were a robust species; tall, proud, strong and viciously territorial. Their features were strong, their foreheads narrow, their jaws and brows slightly jutting. Their bodies and limbs were thick with muscle, and although slightly hunched they were fast and athletic. The enemy was a new breed of man, the Homo sapiens sapiens. They were taller and more wiry; where the Neanderthals had hair and muscle, the Homo sapiens had paler skin and sinew, their foreheads broad, their lips thinner, and their noses sharper. They lacked the power and the strength of the Neanderthal, but they made up for it in intelligence, adaptability, and resilience." This is just one instance. There are several characters, and description of each of them is marvellous.
  5. An Accurate Expression of Emotions - This book consists of various emotions and actions, such as fear, cruelty, bravery, etc. BJ chose his words flawlessly to impart the emotions as per the plot's demand; the best part is that the readers begin feeling the same emotions in their heart and head. When he described the acts of cruelty of evil men, I actually felt a shivering down my spine - "She smiled up at him, and his rage and revulsion boiled over and exploded. He took his stone club and smashed her baby’s skull; she screamed with terror and grief." 
  6. An Epic War - Although I do not like the action genre in books, BJ's writing changed my viewpoint about them. His words drew a painting of warriors and gods fighting against each other in epic battle, in front of my eyes. I am sure other readers will agree with my opinion.
This book has a lot to offer to its readers. Experience an excellent combination of rich vocabulary and excellent plot when you read it.


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