The Shadowmancer Returns: The Curse of Salamander Street

In this thrilling, much-anticipated sequel to the runaway hit Shadowmancer , G. P. Taylor once again takes readers on a gripping journey. Kate and Thomas have barely escaped the evil sorcerer Demurral, and are sailing to London to make a fresh start. But someone knows they are coming, and is lying in wait to lure them into the darkest heart of the city. Meanwhile, Raphah, who has had a narrow escape of his own, sets out on a terrifying journey to find his friends, all the time haunted by a shadowy beast. Eventually, the friends' paths meet on a cursed street, hidden from the world - a place where fates are decided and old enemies seek revenge. They thought it was over...but can evil ever be destroyed? ** From School Library Journal Grade 7 UpThis muddled sequel to Shadowmancer (Putnam, 2004) follows Kate and Thomas as they flee to London with the smuggler Jacob Crane, hoping to escape the evil vicar Obadiah Demurral. Their Ethiopian friend [...]Raphah, last seen falling overboard their ship, has made it to shore in the belly of a whale, with the help of Riathamus, "the power of all goodness." He is taking a land route to the capital in the company of Demurral's former servant Beadle. Eventually Kate and Thomas are kidnapped by a sinister alchemist who uses supernatural means to control his child-labor force, while Raphah and Beadle uncover a plot involving the Holy Grail. The development of this story of good against evil is rather slapdash: at one point Kate is force-fed a hallucinogen and instantly starts behaving like an addict at rock bottom. The flashes of inspiration are weighed down by Taylor's awkward prose and heavy-handed moralizing. Fans of the first book will likely welcome a sequel, but other readers of both fantasy and Christian fiction already have many superior resources to call upon. Christi Voth, Parker Library, CO Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist With stakes no smaller than absolute dominion over heaven and earth, an epic battle continues in this sequel to New York Times bestseller Shadowmancer (2003), part ofa larger series of Christian allegories set in old-time England and written by a former parson. Unlike the intervening Wormwood (2004)and Tersias the Oracle (2006), this book revisits Shadowmancer's main players. Friends Kate and Thomas flee demon-conjurer Obadiah Demurral only to find themselves caught in a sinister trap;a parallel storyfollows Beadle, Demurral's reformedlackey, as he and the prophetlike youth Raphah sort friends from enemies among passengers on a coach journey to London.From a Hound of the Baskervillesstyle subplot to dark, wildfairy magic, Taylor writes arrestingly of evil's many guises, although the overcomplicated plot can be difficult to follow, andthe death of one of the main characters will shock some readers.Even so, this should be aspopular as its predecessor. There's a scarcityof excitingfantasies that placeshivery magicin the context of Christian beliefs and provideheroes guided by heavenly purpose and the "deep magic" conferred by faith. Mattson, Jennifer Copyright American Library Association. All rights reserved