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Shades in Shadow
(Inheritance Trilogy #4)
by
Three brand new short stories by Hugo, Nebula & World Fantasy Award nominated author N.K. Jemisin, set in the world of the Inheritance trilogy.
From the shadows of the greater stories, away from the bright light of Sky and wending 'round the sagas of the Arameri, come three quieter tales. A newborn god with an old, old soul struggles to find a reason to live. A powerful de ...more
From the shadows of the greater stories, away from the bright light of Sky and wending 'round the sagas of the Arameri, come three quieter tales. A newborn god with an old, old soul struggles to find a reason to live. A powerful de ...more
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Start your review of Shades in Shadow (Inheritance, 0.5, 1.5, 2.5)
Brilliant, as always! Three short stories:
1. The first one is about Nahadoth's imprisonment and takes place before the events of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It was really sad and uplifting at the same time! Perfect!
2. The second one is about Hado, the human vessel of the god of darkness and what happens to him after he's freed. Beautiful!
3. And the last one follows Glee, the daughter of the God of light, and her journey to finding her father and figuring his purpose in life.
Sill fangirling b ...more
1. The first one is about Nahadoth's imprisonment and takes place before the events of The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It was really sad and uplifting at the same time! Perfect!
2. The second one is about Hado, the human vessel of the god of darkness and what happens to him after he's freed. Beautiful!
3. And the last one follows Glee, the daughter of the God of light, and her journey to finding her father and figuring his purpose in life.
Sill fangirling b ...more
First of all, I strongly recommend this to be read AFTER the main books in the trilogy, as it contains some (not so small) spoilers.
The collection consists of three very beautiful, yet somewhat cryptic, stories about discovering one’s true self and finding a meaning in life:
The Wild Boy is the story of Nahadoth’s early period of coping with Itempas’s betrayal;
The God Without a Name follows Hado (Nahadoth’s daytime vessel during his imprisonment) after he is freed and let to live his own ...more
This little anthology of short novellas was really enjoyable. The first, especially, offered an interesting insight into the state of things in book one. The second made me almost wish book three had been by his perspective. And the third.. it was good, maybe just okay, but still a nice addition considering the connection to the second.
This is definitely a worthy read if you've read the series. ...more
This is definitely a worthy read if you've read the series. ...more
This ebook is a collection of three short stories set in the same universe as The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It revisits some of the characters and the consequences of the original trilogy, giving us a little more of Nahadoth, Hado and Glee Shoth, in turn. I’m fairly sure I missed out on some of the details because I haven’t read the books recently enough; I’m very sure I’ll reread this when I have, to fully appreciate it. As it is, though, they’re well-crafted stories, with the beautiful imager
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Enjoyable short story collection. The 1st story tells how Nahadoth got his semi-human doppelganger. The 2nd story tells of the doppelganger's life without Nahadoth. The 3rd story tells of one of Itempas' children who decides to change the world. Aside from the 1st story, I don't know that these tales introduce readers to any new Inheritance Trilogy lore, but it was fun to spend some more time with side characters that I'd enjoyed.
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N. K. Jemisin's Shades in Shadow is a modest collection - three stories set in the universe of her Inheritance trilogy - but a welcome one. In a sense, these small gems are almost sidebars to the main story told in the trilogy, scenes that were not essential to the overall narrative, but enhance our understanding of some of the characters.
"The Wild Boy" is a prequel, set in the early days of Nahadoth's confinement, and tells a story of his relationship with a mortal determined to avenge himself ...more
"The Wild Boy" is a prequel, set in the early days of Nahadoth's confinement, and tells a story of his relationship with a mortal determined to avenge himself ...more
Excellent addition to the Inheritance trilogy, although I wouldn't classify it as a prequel. Each of the stories require knowledge from the original trilogy, even if one of them is set chronologically beforehand.
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**30 Books in 30 Days**
Book 2/30
I pre-ordered this and it downloaded on release day. In July 2015. I did this little collection a disservice by waiting six years to read it. I really had to do some Google-fu to refresh my memory on the events and the characters in the series. In the end, I still think I would have given it three stars, maybe 3.5, but it wouldn't have been so much frickin' work. (The Awakened Kingdom, the novella Jemisin released as an addendum to this series, gave me a lot more ...more
Book 2/30
I pre-ordered this and it downloaded on release day. In July 2015. I did this little collection a disservice by waiting six years to read it. I really had to do some Google-fu to refresh my memory on the events and the characters in the series. In the end, I still think I would have given it three stars, maybe 3.5, but it wouldn't have been so much frickin' work. (The Awakened Kingdom, the novella Jemisin released as an addendum to this series, gave me a lot more ...more
I loved this trio of short stories set in The Inheritance Trilogy world. We get a little of how the Nightlord first dealt with his incarceration, how The Nameless God found his nature, and how Glee tracked down her father. I wouldn’t recommend reading them until you finish the main trilogy though, spoilers are involved if read before the last book. I will miss this world Jemisin created.
The short stories give nice insight into characters
These short stories are an excellent addition to the main series. I particularly liked the Nahadoth story, as he is such an interesting force in the Inheritance universe.
N.K. Jemisin is one of my favourite authors and I absolutely loved her Inheritance trilogy. So when Shades in Shadow was released, I was so happy to get to go back to that world. I loved the way the stories connected to the three original books and to each other. Apart from featuring characters from the books, the stories also strongly echo some of the larger themes of the books: identity, free choice and self-determination, and how love takes many different forms.
Of the three stories, the final ...more
Of the three stories, the final ...more
From the mind of N. K. Jemisin comes three indisputably original short stories that give us another glimpse into the Inheritance universe.
These three stories take us into the mind of an imprisoned god as he drifts and bides his time for his escape; the god without a name sets out to discover what his nature is and also whether 'he' needs a name; Glee wants to find her father and in doing so uncovers her destiny and ushers in her father's 're-birth'.
All three were utterly enthralling and I did n ...more
These three stories take us into the mind of an imprisoned god as he drifts and bides his time for his escape; the god without a name sets out to discover what his nature is and also whether 'he' needs a name; Glee wants to find her father and in doing so uncovers her destiny and ushers in her father's 're-birth'.
All three were utterly enthralling and I did n ...more
This is a short story set in the Inheritance Trilogy, it focuses on 3 characters, fleshing out the stories they had in the books. While it was nice to see a little more background and it's always a treat to learn more about this world, I felt like the individual stories were all a little too short to really add much to the overall plot. It's a fun companion to the trilogy, but it can easily be skipped.
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I think this novella is better enjoyed relatively soon after the Trilogy. I struggled in particular to remember what was going on with the middle character. I think I'm good now to leave this universe, and I'm looking forward to The Fifth Season.
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Returning to Inheritance
To come back to the world of the Inheritance trilogy through this triptych reminded me why I fell so in love with the series. The characters are so uniquely loveable, and the way N.K. puts words down is simply magical.
To come back to the world of the Inheritance trilogy through this triptych reminded me why I fell so in love with the series. The characters are so uniquely loveable, and the way N.K. puts words down is simply magical.
N.K. Jemisin is as good as ever.
I love this author, and I really liked the last story in this book, but the others not so much. I think it's because her world building works better in a longer tale, or that I didn't like the vagueness of her descriptions. The series which starts with The Fifth Season is my favorite of her books, just fabulous.
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Short stories continue to be problematic for me. I liked how they added bits of richness to the trilogy, but they didn't pull me in a thoroughly as The Awakened Kingdom is. I like Jemisin when she has a bit more room to wiggle.
That said, a worthwhile addition to the trilogy. ...more
That said, a worthwhile addition to the trilogy. ...more
Three little stories that fit in the Inheritance Trilogy -- read because I'm a completist, but enjoyed because they're wonderful. One more to go.
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A collection of 3 Inheritance short stories about Nahadoth, Ahad and Glee. Timeline-wise it's all over the place, so it's best to read this after finishing the trilogy.
The first story features an enslaved Nahadoth and takes place before The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It explores his nature and was quite interesting. The ending had a twist that I didn't expect (surprising since it's a prequel), and answers some unexplained questions from the trilogy.
The second one focuses on Ahad/Hado and takes p ...more
The first story features an enslaved Nahadoth and takes place before The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. It explores his nature and was quite interesting. The ending had a twist that I didn't expect (surprising since it's a prequel), and answers some unexplained questions from the trilogy.
The second one focuses on Ahad/Hado and takes p ...more
Shades in Shadow is a very indulgent little collection. Jemison is extremely good at coming into story late, so that events are well in motion by the time the protagonist arrives on the scene. in the Inheritance series this means that many important characters go through significant development between books. Each of these stories focuses on showing that skipped over development. So these stories are filling in content that was deemed unnecessary in the novels. Fortunately I like indulgent stori
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Jun 03, 2016
Cari
added it
These are great short stories to learn more about some of the "Inheritance Trilogy" main characters. The first one features Nahadoth ("The Wild Boy"), the second one Ahad ("The God Without A Name") and the third one Glee ("The Third Why").
Nahadoth's story takes place before "A Hundred Thousand Kingdoms." Ahad's story is best understood after reading the whole trilogy. And Glee's story happens some time after "The Broken Kingdom." ...more
Nahadoth's story takes place before "A Hundred Thousand Kingdoms." Ahad's story is best understood after reading the whole trilogy. And Glee's story happens some time after "The Broken Kingdom." ...more
Tasty little ficlets.
It's been a while since I've been in this world, so I'd forgotten a lot of names and details, but it's still good reading.
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The three stories in this collection are very short and give you a tiny piece of what happened between the stories in the Inheritance Trilogy. The stories focus on Nahadoth, whatever name you want to give the human who basically time-shared a body with Nahadoth in the first book, and Glee, respectively. They're pretty good if you'd like more of the Inheritance world, although I wish there was a 3.5 story as well. The stories read like extra ideas from the trilogy. Don't get me wrong, they're all
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No need to spend as much time developing characters or plot, as these short stories are insights to already-introduced characters. Outside of the major plot lines of the trilogy but still a nice supplement to the world we were introduced to.
THE WILD BOY
Nahadoth adapts to a new reality. A god with conditions to his powers, he finds renewed purpose.
This is the prequel to the trilogy and sets the stage for how the Enfedah carries out their vengeance.
THE GOD WITHOUT A NAME
He (Ahad/Hado) is made fro ...more
THE WILD BOY
Nahadoth adapts to a new reality. A god with conditions to his powers, he finds renewed purpose.
This is the prequel to the trilogy and sets the stage for how the Enfedah carries out their vengeance.
THE GOD WITHOUT A NAME
He (Ahad/Hado) is made fro ...more
For those who enjoyed the Inheritance series, this is a decent, though largely unnecessary, addition. It's three fairly short stories that are tangentially related to the main series.
The first story is about Nahadoth early in his captivity, and how he reacts and adapts to that. Its an OK story, but doesn't really add anything to the greater story. The second short story is about Nahadoth's "day form" from the first book, and how he adapts to being separated from Nahadoth and develops into his o ...more
The first story is about Nahadoth early in his captivity, and how he reacts and adapts to that. Its an OK story, but doesn't really add anything to the greater story. The second short story is about Nahadoth's "day form" from the first book, and how he adapts to being separated from Nahadoth and develops into his o ...more
I really enjoyed these short stories in the Inheritance trilogy world.
The first story gives a great deal of insight into the time just after Itempas changed the world and how Nahadoth was a roiling mass of pain and anger chained at the bottom of a well. The story gave the reader a deeper understanding of the first book in the trilogy The Hundred Thousand Kingdom.
The second book is about Ahad/Hado and how he evolved from what he began his life as, to what he became at the end of the trilogy.
The ...more
The first story gives a great deal of insight into the time just after Itempas changed the world and how Nahadoth was a roiling mass of pain and anger chained at the bottom of a well. The story gave the reader a deeper understanding of the first book in the trilogy The Hundred Thousand Kingdom.
The second book is about Ahad/Hado and how he evolved from what he began his life as, to what he became at the end of the trilogy.
The ...more
Three short stories interspersed throughout the Inheritance Trilogy's narrative.
First one about Nahadoth deciding to fight back against Itempas, didn't care for. Characters' perspectives, plot, just didn't do it for me.
Second one about Ahad's life through the end of the trilogy was amusing, mostly because of the ambivalence he has with his own existence. Raised with mortals, when he finally realizes his own godhood, he sullenly follows his mild interests through the world. The tone of the story ...more
First one about Nahadoth deciding to fight back against Itempas, didn't care for. Characters' perspectives, plot, just didn't do it for me.
Second one about Ahad's life through the end of the trilogy was amusing, mostly because of the ambivalence he has with his own existence. Raised with mortals, when he finally realizes his own godhood, he sullenly follows his mild interests through the world. The tone of the story ...more
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