Ratings2
Average rating3.5
From USA Today bestselling author David Dalglish "Prove that you can stand against the darkness and live." In book #4 of the Shadowdance series, Haern is the King's Watcher, born an assassin only to become the city of Veldaren's protector against the thief guilds. When Lord Victor Kane attacks the city, determined to stamp out all corruption, foreign gangs pour in amidst the chaos in an attempt to overthrow the current lords of the underworld. And when a mysterious killer known as the Widow begins mutilating thieves, paranoia engulfs the city. Haern knows someone is behind the turmoil, pulling strings. If he doesn't find out who -- and soon -- his beloved city will burn. Light or darkness: where will the line be drawn? Fantasy author David Dalglish spins a tale of retribution and darkness, and an underworld reaching for ultimate power in this fourth novel of the Shadowdance series, previously released as Blood of the Underworld. Shadowdance A Dance of Cloaks A Dance of Blades A Dance of Mirrors A Dance of Shadows A Dance of Ghosts A Dance of Chaos Seraphim Skyborn Fireborn Shadowborn
Reviews with the most likes.
This one took me a lot longer to read than the previous novels, my interest wavered quite a bit and I ended up reading multiple books while trying to finish this. I think there were just too many new players on the board that I didn't connect with. The main story line which deals with Victor purifying Veldaren was great; watching him evolve in order to truly understand the dark belly of the city and take on the Bloodcrafts was intense! However, some villains were pretty pointless. Take Widow for instance, I just didn't see how she added to the story and while her big reveal was disturbing I felt like it was tacky writing aimed too directly at creating a creep factor. I did like that we learned more about Zusa's past and saw the relationship she has with Alyssa evolve. While we have come to recognize these characters, Dalglish is still providing ample amount of character development and Nathaniel is beginning to take a bit of the spot light. I would like to hear more about him in future novels. I do have to say that the end really brought everything together and made me anticipate the next book as new alliances formed out of not necessarily desperation, but close to it. Hopefully the next will be better and more inline with the previous books.
Series
5 primary books6 released booksShadowdance is a 6-book series with 5 primary works first released in 2010 with contributions by David Dalglish.
Series
1 primary bookThe Watcher's Blade is a 1-book series first released in 2012 with contributions by David Dalglish.