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Taming Shadows
All college freshman Shella Danforth wants is to be normal--which is impossible when she's got a blood-thirsty wolf sharing her body. Shella's spent the past four years trying to forget the night of her first shift. The night she--her wolf--killed a man.
But her nightmares won't let her.
When a string of unexplained disappearances rocks the city of Orlando, Shella is sure something supernatural is responsible. Forced to team up with lifelong nemesis and fellow shifter Tran Dashner, Shella discovers that the culprit may be closer to her than she'd like to believe. To unravel the mystery, Shella must face her tragic past head-on and learn to control her wolf - before it learns to control her.
But her nightmares won't let her.
When a string of unexplained disappearances rocks the city of Orlando, Shella is sure something supernatural is responsible. Forced to team up with lifelong nemesis and fellow shifter Tran Dashner, Shella discovers that the culprit may be closer to her than she'd like to believe. To unravel the mystery, Shella must face her tragic past head-on and learn to control her wolf - before it learns to control her.
299 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2011
1 person is currently reading
227 people want to read
About the author
Krista Alasti
1 book5 followersKrista Alasti is a freelance writer, part-time student at Southern New Hampshire University, and full-time book reviewer on Goodreads.
She grew up listening to the thrilling tales of her Iranian father, who spent his childhood in Tehran battling snakes, racing wild horses, and riding on the backs of giant desert-tortoises. Or so he claimed.
Now, Krista spends as much time as possible creating characters with as many layers as she hopes to have in her future wedding cake. In her free time, she volunteers at local animal shelters, (even though she already has 3 terrific dogs of her own) feeds her mind with book after glorious book, and engages in a generous amount of psychology and creative writing courses. She also tap dances on the moon. Or so she claims.
She grew up listening to the thrilling tales of her Iranian father, who spent his childhood in Tehran battling snakes, racing wild horses, and riding on the backs of giant desert-tortoises. Or so he claimed.
Now, Krista spends as much time as possible creating characters with as many layers as she hopes to have in her future wedding cake. In her free time, she volunteers at local animal shelters, (even though she already has 3 terrific dogs of her own) feeds her mind with book after glorious book, and engages in a generous amount of psychology and creative writing courses. She also tap dances on the moon. Or so she claims.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 10, 2011
I may be biased, because I know the author, but I think this book is pretty great. The best thing about it is the characters, hands down. Let's take a look at them, shall we?
Shella, our main character/narrator, is--in one word--a bitch. But the great thing about her is she's very aware of this. She knows she's a bitch and she readily admits it to anyone who asks. Shella has been through a lot, and it's taken its toll on her. She believes she's evil, and it will take a lot to convince her otherwise. She wants to deny she's a shadow-shifter, but here we see that's impossible. It's great watching her learn to really accept herself for the first time.
On to Tran, Shella's sort-of love-interest. Everyone knows Shella has a thing for Tran--except Shella (or so she tries to tell herself). Really, I can't blame her. Tran's an awesome guy. He's funny in a subtle way, and the way he reacts with Darcy and Marshall's baby is so sweet, really showing a softer side of him. Tran has some major baggage he has to work through as well, and my heart broke for him toward the end when his past was revealed.
Marshall, Shella's brother, is another fantastic character--even if it takes Shella herself a while to realize this. He wants the best for his sister, and for everyone else he cares about. He won't let Shella get away with being a brat and he calls her on it on several occasions.
Kye is a cool guy, too. He seems like a typical teenager, but there's more to him than that, and his friendship with Tran is a very nice touch. He doesn't immediately (or ever) fall in love with Shella just because she's a girl, and he won't let her insult Tran.
I can't mention the bad guys without giving anything away, but I can say they were pretty believable! Their motivations made a twisted sort of sense, and they weren't completely evil. It was odd to feel sympathy for a villain!
Overall, this is a strong character book. It's not about action or plot, but about real people and their lives.
Shella, our main character/narrator, is--in one word--a bitch. But the great thing about her is she's very aware of this. She knows she's a bitch and she readily admits it to anyone who asks. Shella has been through a lot, and it's taken its toll on her. She believes she's evil, and it will take a lot to convince her otherwise. She wants to deny she's a shadow-shifter, but here we see that's impossible. It's great watching her learn to really accept herself for the first time.
On to Tran, Shella's sort-of love-interest. Everyone knows Shella has a thing for Tran--except Shella (or so she tries to tell herself). Really, I can't blame her. Tran's an awesome guy. He's funny in a subtle way, and the way he reacts with Darcy and Marshall's baby is so sweet, really showing a softer side of him. Tran has some major baggage he has to work through as well, and my heart broke for him toward the end when his past was revealed.
Marshall, Shella's brother, is another fantastic character--even if it takes Shella herself a while to realize this. He wants the best for his sister, and for everyone else he cares about. He won't let Shella get away with being a brat and he calls her on it on several occasions.
Kye is a cool guy, too. He seems like a typical teenager, but there's more to him than that, and his friendship with Tran is a very nice touch. He doesn't immediately (or ever) fall in love with Shella just because she's a girl, and he won't let her insult Tran.
I can't mention the bad guys without giving anything away, but I can say they were pretty believable! Their motivations made a twisted sort of sense, and they weren't completely evil. It was odd to feel sympathy for a villain!
Overall, this is a strong character book. It's not about action or plot, but about real people and their lives.
June 14, 2011
Alright so I’m a tad biased seeing as the author is a dear friend and I love her to bits, but I honestly thought this book was brilliant. Looking at it as a story completely its own with no connection to anyone I know, I feel it was a fun, funny tale that was believable and very realistic at times. The storyline itself was a very simple one and yet the beauty and power behind it was that, take out the supernatural element, and its very plausible. The motives and reasons behind the “bad guy/s” is something that you can understand and actually see happening in real life.
I really loved each and every character in this book. They all had their purpose and reason for being in the story and they were very real. The issues they faced and the things they dealt with were realistic and understandable. Shella, Tran, Marshal, Kye, Darcy and even Amie all had their own personalities and issues. Throw in the supernatural element, one that included a unique twist on werewolves and you’ve got yourself a great story!
I thought Shella was brilliant—in a, “OMG, I wanna strangle this girl, can’t she see what’s right in front of her eyes?” kind of way! There’s no denying that Shella had her flaws. She’s been though a couple of traumatic things in her life already and she tends to lash out a lot, but it’s pretty obvious there’s a lot more to her under the surface. I get the feeling that she’s never really “belonged” anywhere or really had someone she could rely on and that’s why she doesn’t let anyone in, instead relying on her sharp tongue and bitchy—are witty attitude to keep people at bay. Still, there were a few moments during this book where I really could see the potential for her to fit in with that little family bunch her brother had going even before the emotional ending.
I thought Tran was a really great male lead too. He was silent and subtle, but there was no denying that there was a certain spark to the scenes that he was in, particularly the ones where he and Shella were at each other’s throats. Which was pretty much every scene the two of them shared, until towards the end of the book. Tran’s been through a lot too, more so than anyone in this book and throughout the book I did wonder about just what had happened to him in the past. Although, the main thing, the thing that involves cute little Amie, I totally saw coming a mile away! Don’t know why Shella didn’t. (I swear that girl *sigh*). I still feel like there’s tonnes we don’t know about him though, despite everything that came to light at the end of the book and I think it’ll be interesting seeing how his and Shella’s relationship changes. We know she feels something for him, something that could be really deep, even if she’s only just beginning to notice it and is not ready to accept it either.
Kye was another of my favourite characters in this book. I thought the friendship he shared with Tran was sweet although I would have liked a bit more explanation as to how that friendship came about. He added a certain guyish charm to the story and fuelled the humour between Shella and Tran. He was your typical teenager and he acted like one. I certainly look forward to seeing more of him.
All in all this story was a great read. It was something you could enjoy with just the right amount of action and humour, with an underlying feeling of emotion as the main character fights to accept who and what she is. The story ends perfectly with one chapter in Shella’s life coming to an end and another beginning. There’s a lot that’s changed since the beginning of the book and a lot that I think will continue to do so. And not only for Shella, but for Tran too. He’s faced a lot, but he has to keep going on. My heart breaks for him and I want to see him find happiness *cough* with Shella *cough*.
I can’t wait to read the sequel (and if you’re reading this Krista then there better be one or I’ll have your head!) and see what’s next in these characters lives.....
I really loved each and every character in this book. They all had their purpose and reason for being in the story and they were very real. The issues they faced and the things they dealt with were realistic and understandable. Shella, Tran, Marshal, Kye, Darcy and even Amie all had their own personalities and issues. Throw in the supernatural element, one that included a unique twist on werewolves and you’ve got yourself a great story!
I thought Shella was brilliant—in a, “OMG, I wanna strangle this girl, can’t she see what’s right in front of her eyes?” kind of way! There’s no denying that Shella had her flaws. She’s been though a couple of traumatic things in her life already and she tends to lash out a lot, but it’s pretty obvious there’s a lot more to her under the surface. I get the feeling that she’s never really “belonged” anywhere or really had someone she could rely on and that’s why she doesn’t let anyone in, instead relying on her sharp tongue and bitchy—are witty attitude to keep people at bay. Still, there were a few moments during this book where I really could see the potential for her to fit in with that little family bunch her brother had going even before the emotional ending.
I thought Tran was a really great male lead too. He was silent and subtle, but there was no denying that there was a certain spark to the scenes that he was in, particularly the ones where he and Shella were at each other’s throats. Which was pretty much every scene the two of them shared, until towards the end of the book. Tran’s been through a lot too, more so than anyone in this book and throughout the book I did wonder about just what had happened to him in the past. Although, the main thing, the thing that involves cute little Amie, I totally saw coming a mile away! Don’t know why Shella didn’t. (I swear that girl *sigh*). I still feel like there’s tonnes we don’t know about him though, despite everything that came to light at the end of the book and I think it’ll be interesting seeing how his and Shella’s relationship changes. We know she feels something for him, something that could be really deep, even if she’s only just beginning to notice it and is not ready to accept it either.
Kye was another of my favourite characters in this book. I thought the friendship he shared with Tran was sweet although I would have liked a bit more explanation as to how that friendship came about. He added a certain guyish charm to the story and fuelled the humour between Shella and Tran. He was your typical teenager and he acted like one. I certainly look forward to seeing more of him.
All in all this story was a great read. It was something you could enjoy with just the right amount of action and humour, with an underlying feeling of emotion as the main character fights to accept who and what she is. The story ends perfectly with one chapter in Shella’s life coming to an end and another beginning. There’s a lot that’s changed since the beginning of the book and a lot that I think will continue to do so. And not only for Shella, but for Tran too. He’s faced a lot, but he has to keep going on. My heart breaks for him and I want to see him find happiness *cough* with Shella *cough*.
I can’t wait to read the sequel (and if you’re reading this Krista then there better be one or I’ll have your head!) and see what’s next in these characters lives.....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2016
3.5 stars. I enjoyed this one. While I liked Shella for the most part, there was times I hated her and wanted to give her a slap. I felt really bad for Tran and the way Shella treated him. I was kept intrigued throughout guessing what was going on with Tran but I pretty much figured out straight away who Amie's dad was.
I was disappointed in the ending, as I would have liked to have seen more of what happened between Tran and Shella.
I was disappointed in the ending, as I would have liked to have seen more of what happened between Tran and Shella.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews