Shaman Rises (Walker Papers, #9) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Oct 28, 2013 Christal rated it really liked it

Shelves: arcs, magic, female-lead, urban-fantasy, gods-and-goddesses, shamans-and-druids, time-travel, murder, 2014-favorites, fiction

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Shaman Rises is the end of the road for Joanne Walker and her friends -- they will either destroy or be destroyed by the Master. This book was a rollercoaster ride from the very beginning and, even though I didn't know this was the last book in the series until right before I started reading it, I felt pretty satisfied with the way everything ended. I am hoping that we will get some short stories or another novella sometime in the future See this review and others like it at Badass Book Reviews!

Shaman Rises is the end of the road for Joanne Walker and her friends -- they will either destroy or be destroyed by the Master. This book was a rollercoaster ride from the very beginning and, even though I didn't know this was the last book in the series until right before I started reading it, I felt pretty satisfied with the way everything ended. I am hoping that we will get some short stories or another novella sometime in the future because there are a few things I still have questions about.

This book picks up right where Mountain Echoes ended; I mean exactly where it ended. There was no rest at all for Joanne between these two trials so she's not exactly running at 100%. Being who she is though, there was no hesitation for Jo to pack up and run back to Seattle. The Master has decided to bring the fight to her and she's the only one who can stop him from destroying her city.

One of the things I really liked about Shaman Rises was seeing all of the secondary characters again -- and I do mean all of them! Of course we have Morrison and Gary Muldoon, but we also get to see the Holliday, Coyote, Suzanne Quinley, and Cernunnos again. There were also very minor characters who's lives Joanne has touched sprinkled throughout the book. It really felt like a homecoming for her.

Of course, no battle can completely avoid sorrow and loss and some characters do pay the ultimate price. Though I hated losing those that we did, the pain made the battle more realistic and gave Jo an extra jolt of determination that she needed. Though all of her friends contributed in their ways, I have to say that I was most captivated by Suzanne. I loved her in the earlier books but here she has really come into her own. The granddaughter of a god, she has incredible strength and even helps to keep Jo going at times. Suzie Q takes on an incredible burden towards the end of Shaman Rises and she is someone who I would definitely love to see again... hopefully in her own novella one of these days.

With so much non-stop action, I did think some of the development between characters was lost. I would have liked to see a little more between Jo and Morrison because I feel like it has been go-go-go for them ever since they got together. It would have been to have at least a few scenes of just them and their deepening affection in Shaman Rises. I also would have liked a little more with the Hollidays, but I understand why they were sidelined for most of the story. They only other thing that stopped me from giving this 5 stars is that I actually felt a little confused during some of the action scenes. Jo has always been an interesting character because much of her fighting is done mystically and often in other worlds, but sometimes that fast-paced magically fighting combined with the transition between different realities got a little hard to follow.

In the end, I think this was a very successful series for C.E. Murphy and Shaman Rises was a great final entry. Even though I had some problems with the first few books, I think this is one of the better Urban Fantasy series around. Jo is a unique characters who stayed entirely human for the duration of the series and struggled to balance her growing powers. She never became all-powerful and often had to depend on the help of others, but she grew into herself and her role as warrior shaman. I will miss her and the rest of the colorful characters that populate The Walker Papers. Here's hoping for a wonderful new series for C.E. Murphy very soon!

Thank you to Harlequin Luna and Netgalley for providing an ARC copy of this book! ...more

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Sep 20, 2014 The Flooze rated it it was amazing

Shelves: vanquished_2016, owned, urban-fantasy-paranormal, favorites

I think what matters most is how you feel when you finally close a book. The emotions that flood through you as you read the final lines, finish the last page. What has the writer left you with after your journey together?

In this case, it's hope. And satisfaction. A smile, and a lot of snot and tears.

Thanks, C.E. Murphy. And I say that without an ounce of sarcasm.

I knew from the moment I picked up Urban Shaman that I'd found a series to love. Whatever confusion I experienced along the way I think what matters most is how you feel when you finally close a book. The emotions that flood through you as you read the final lines, finish the last page. What has the writer left you with after your journey together?

In this case, it's hope. And satisfaction. A smile, and a lot of snot and tears.

Thanks, C.E. Murphy. And I say that without an ounce of sarcasm.

I knew from the moment I picked up Urban Shaman that I'd found a series to love. Whatever confusion I experienced along the way never diminished my fondness for the world or my utter glee at sharing time with such well-drawn, likable characters. Jo has been an exasperating, determined delight; Gary a study in ever-present courage and wonder; Morrison a steady force of encouragement (and dishy, too). They have distinct flaws, but that's just served to make each of them more relatable. The same can be said of most of the beings Jo encountered along the way, each bringing their own strengths and weaknesses to the mix and shoring up the authenticity of the world.

Which makes saying goodbye that much harder.

In Shaman Rises, Murphy brings everything full circle - emphasis on everything. Usually a fast-paced storyteller, she litters an already jam-packed plot with so many nods to the past that the action is positively frenetic. I found myself re-reading passages to solidify what was happening. I also had to google a few characters and events from previous installments to remind myself of the connections and implications. The all-inclusive nature didn't drag the story down or seem out of place in the grand scheme of things, but it did make me wish I'd done a series re-read prior.

Those little info-gathering pauses did nothing to diminish the number of feelings that cascaded through me. This is an intense volume, made all the moreso because Murphy just does not let up. My fierce empathy for Joanne had me crying and gasping and laughing and, towards the end, feeling just as wrung out as she did. I'm sure my own personal difficulties at the moment had a hand in me effortlessly following Joanne's mercurial emotions...but still. I've grown so attached to these characters; is it any wonder I'm going to start grieving or spilling tears of happiness right along with them?

I'm not going to deny that Jo takes some wrong turns - she's the type who learns by pushing boundaries. Or that Murphy made a few odd choices in trying to ratchet up the tensionof the final face-off with the Devourer. It's not all perfect.

But the ending is. It's the kind of closing that makes you feel something better is on the horizon. That although we too often experience loss and pain, something bright and shining can still be wrought from the wreckage. That a little belief - if not from us, then from others - can make all the difference.

Thanks. I needed that. ...more

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Jun 03, 2018 Midu Hadi rated it liked it

Shelves: reviewed, series-completed, middlers, missing-shelf, person-on-cover, urban-shaman-series, 300-400-pages, read-in-2018, read-in-june

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aug 08, 2015 Deidre rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: series, fantasy-paranormal, fantasy, fantasy-magic, box-c

I got this when it came out, and then lost it by putting it in with cookbooks. Finally found it, I was very excited! But it was meh. Basically, she became every god that ever was, everyone else dies, and the end. Okay, I'm exaggerating, but not by much. ...more

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