Stories from the Shadowlands

Guards of the Shadowlands #3.1

by Sarah Fine

Not ready to leave the Shadowlands yet? From Malachi’s earliest days in the dark city to some of the characters’ experiences after the final scenes of Chaos, this bonus volume gives readers an in-depth look at other realms within the Shadowlands and what it means to be a Guard, whether in the dark city, or the land of the living.
It includes:

--All of Malachi’s journal entries (more than 200) including 30 exclusive, never-before-published entries that reveal his perspective during the events of Fractured

--A 50-page novella from Jim’s perspective (Libertine)

--Three bonus scenes from Sanctum from Malachi and Ana’s perspective (She is the Mission, An End and a Beginning, and The Dark Tower)

--Two lengthy scenes that show some of the surviving characters post-Chaos

This collection is available in e-book format, only.

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Young Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Ebooks, Romance

252 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 6, 2014

About the author

When I'm not writing, I'm psychologizing (really, I even get a paycheck for it). Sometimes I do both at the same time. The results are unpredictable.

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Reviews

[✨ Helena ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the perfect way to wrap up the series, especially with the last couple of novellas, where we got to see some of Lela and Malachi’s HEA.

I also liked the first 100 or so pages of journal entries. It was nice seeing Malachi’s journey from day one as a reluctant Guard to when we first meet him in Sanctum. I especially liked finally getting some of his POV, in terms of how he felt about Lela. <3

I miss my babies already. *cries*

[B.A. Malisch · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable companion to the Guards of the Shadowlands series and should be read after completing the series. Many of these stories are told from a male perspective, particularly Malachi's perspective, which was an interesting change of pace. If you adored the trilogy, then you definitely want to read this, just so you can spend a bit more time in a fascinating world.

The first story is the longest, encompassing about half the book, and it's Malachi's story, told through journal entries, from when he becomes a Guard of the Shadowlands through Lela's time in the Shadowlands.

Pages: 252

[Sarah Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

(Read using Kindle Unlimited)

This book was just redundant.
The first half of this book was Malachi’s journal entries from his first 70 years in the shadowlands, and boy did that get old. Especially when he kept crossing out lines like he was Juliet from Shatter Me.

We then got a couple of stories, none of them particularly interesting, followed by even more journal entries!
We then finally got a couple of stories that took place after Chaos, but unfortunately they were pretty dull too. I can’t say I was really all that interested in a surprise birthday party for Lela, and debates over whether or not to use confetti canons.
Overall; glad the series is over,
4.5 out of 10

[Γιώτα Παπαδημακοπούλου · Rating 4 out of 5]

Πολλά μικράς extras ήρθαν να ενωθούν σε μία συλλογή και ουσιαστικά να μας δώσουν ένα ολοκληρωμένο βιβλίο που μπορεί να μην είναι ενιαίο μεν, έχει να μας δώσεις πολλά tips δε, ικανοποιώντας κάθε αναγνώστη αλλά και λύνοντας οποιεσδήποτε τυχόν απορίες άφησε η τριλογία πίσω της.

[Christine Bishop · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great addition to the Guards of the Shadowlands Series!

Stories from the Shadowlands is a great addition to the series. This book is filled with journal entries from Malachi, short stories from Anna, Jim, and two short stories from where Lela and Malachi are after the events of Chaos. I really enjoyed Jim’s short story we get a look into his perspective and what the Blinding City is like. If you enjoyed the Guards of the Shadowlands Series then you will enjoy this collection of short stories.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good accompaniment to the series. I enjoyed reading about Malachi’s life in the shadowlands before Lela and seeing how his special bond with Takeshi and Ana began.

I wasn’t as fond of the scenes from the perspective of Malachi and Ana and preferred Malachi’s diary entries.

I would recommend if your loved the series and want more background info on Malachi.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not typically a fan of short story addendums to series that I love. Usually, a good author/editor pair makes great decisions on what scenes and information (and even viewpoints) are necessary in a novel, whereas I feel like short story additions are not always that purposeful.

That being said, I'm still glad I read this--which is significantly more than a "short story". As Fine noted, it's over 200 pages of bonus material. I wasn't always convinced, but I ended up enjoying it overall. Still, I'm glad I put some space between reading Chaos and then this. It's hefty.

Mostly, I love Malachi, and Fine has perfected his voice: shy, sweet, intelligent, from another time. I didn't think I'd enjoy his journal entries that much--I'd read them on Tumblr a bit, but had been undecided on whether I found them necessary and interesting or not. I think my conclusion is that this volume was by no means necessary, but it was a step up from superfluous, my usual qualm with short stories.

Libertine, predictably, was quite--uh. Don't know what to call it. I mean, it takes place in the Blinding City, in a world of vices and greed, so I guess I should have expected it, but it was a bit much for me.

The last story, of Lela and Malachi having sex, is not super graphic, but I still would have preferred not to have it. I would have preferred to see Lela and Malachi finally getting to do normal things, like going on dates. I don't want to complain, because I wanted some normalcy for Lela and Malachi after Chaos, more than they got in those books, and Fine gave us two stories. But neither of them were exactly what I wanted with "more". I guess I wanted more of the everyday normalcy.

Overall, it was--yeah, hefty, but I love Fine's characters. This almost makes me want to reread the books--but Fractured was unbelievably painful, and Chaos in some ways even more so, so I'm not sure if I actually will be able to, despite the fact that these are some of my favorite characters and this is definitely one of my favorite romances.

[starryeyedjen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author gifted a copy of this collection of stories and extras to me. My thoughts are my own.

This review can also be found at The Starry-Eyed Revue.

When Sarah sent this to me, there was a warning not to view the two post-Chaos scenes until I'd actually read the final book because they were very spoilerish. So, I'm warning you now. I waited and read this collection of journal entries and short stories last, and I think that's the best order, especially when it comes to the short stories themselves.

I'd read some of Malachi's journal entries here and there over the years, but never have I sat down and read them all back-to-back. It was insightful, to say the least. Also, there are entries that have never been shared before, from during the time period that Fractured covers, and those are well worth reading, especially if you know what transpires in that book. Very entertaining and very enlightening.

I knew there was so much more of Jim's story that we weren't getting in Fractured, and I'm glad that Sarah decided to write it and share it with all of us, especially since she fed us more of Henry's story in Chaos. As both were part of Lela's team of Guards in the Land of the Living, it's only fitting that both of their stories be told.

I am so thankful for this bonus content because after I finished Chaos, I was kind of a pile of goo and yet still wasn't ready for the final goodbye. It was nice to get even more from Malachi and Ana's perspectives, though I think my favorite part of this book was having all of Malachi's journal entries in one place finally. This collection is a must-have for any fan of the Guards of the Shadowlands series.

[Relyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmmmm... It was fine.

[Allie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this is a novella. I love, love, loved it! It's a little all over the place, you go from diary entries to a novella like the others to and epilogue, but overall it worked. First is Malachi's journal from his days in the dark city. It was fascinating to read about his first days as a guard to how he met Ana. Then there were a few scenes from Sanctum told from Malachi's point of view and one from Ana's. Then a tale from Jim of his time in the Blinding City, which was very interesting to read about. Then back to Malachi's journal, a new one he's started recounting his days on Earth (from Fractured). Again it was great. Reading Malachi's thoughts in his journal was very interesting and somewhat funny. I loved his explaining of cars, Facebook and "the Internet." Then the collection of stories ends with an epilogue for the series. I enjoyed the first chapter of the epilogue more than the the second, but the second was very Malachi and Lela. As I said a great novella (collection of stories, whatever you want to call it!) I highly recommend reading this if you loved the series and if you're only going to read one of the shorter (though this one is pretty long) books, make sure this one is it.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest, I skimmed many of Malachi's journal entries at the beginning. While I do love Malachi as a character, I was more interested to get to the scenes that also entwined the story we know from Lela's perspective.

I did really enjoy the final story in the collection with a final scene taking place AFTER the 3rd book left off. It was good to sneak back in and see what everyone was up too.

[Suz-anne Midgett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely LOVE this series!!

A complicated coming of age story with so many twists and turns you will be dizzy. You know, hope what will happen...but at times you're sure it won't!! Really spellbinding.

[Donna Wicklein · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great look into events of the trilogy from other character's point of view (mostly Malachi). I loved the additional information that this brought and it helped to further define the characters. My favorite was the look into The Blinding City.

[Caroline Abernethy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Good insight to Malachi with his diaries & the book really supplements the core trilogy. Well worth reading and I got through it very quickly. Good value from Kindle Unlimited package.

[Mlpmom (Book Reviewer)]

*Review to come but I LOVED this!*

[Jenn "Awww Yeaaahhh" · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75 stars. Although technically this is considered a novella, it was actually pretty long and contained a ton of (awesome) extras. Fans of the series do not want to miss this!

[Tracy D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

They FINALLY do IT! Yay!

[RaDo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this one was pretty well done. I like how a lot was written as journal entries so you could see Malachi's history or from his point of view.

[Lynn Pritchard · Rating 2 out of 5]

this is just a very small story, like 100 pages. Did not know this when I paid for it on Amazon.

[Kelly Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

[darling · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 Thank you for this, Sarah Fine! I think I'm ready to let go of Malachi and Lela now.