Shadows in the Water (Shadows in the Water Series)

First of all, let me please say that after reading all of Shrum's other work, this one took me by surprise. It wasn't what I expected at all. Having said that, it is my favorite piece of her work so far.

This book begins the tale of a young woman, Lou (mid 20's) who has the power to travel from place to place via the dark. There is also a special place that she can go to by travelling through water. While others share her ability to travel through dark, water travel is unique to Lou. At first I was confused as to why the character has to have two powers when one seemed to do the job as it were, but it became slightly more obvious as I read the book. I think that as the series progresses we will learn more even more about that.

Lou is hard-core. I absolutely LOVE that. There is none of that wishy washy stuff that happens with a lot of female characters now. She doesn't kick butt in one scene and then curl up with a bucket of ice cream sniveling at a romantic comedy in the next. She's tough, she's a bit mean and she's quite possibly a bit psychotic and I really REALLY hope she stays that way. Oh course she'll have to open up a wee bit if we are ever going to get to know her but I hope she never loses her dark edge.

As for all the side characters, I really liked them all. Yah, they could have been a bit better developed but again, this is a series and that will all come with time. I enjoyed them all and look forward to learning more about each of them as the series unfolds.

My only hesitation with this book is the possible love interest(s) that is/are developing. Please please PLEASE don't let this turn into ANOTHER love triangle. I absolutely HATE love triangles almost as much as I HATE the strong female lead going ga-ga over the bad guy (the other possible outcome here). No, no, no. Lou seems like someone who is so broken that she will never have a real relationship. She might have a string of flings but never anything real, and certainly nothing as emotionally complicated as a love triangle or a bad-boy lover. Hopefully Shrum will surprise me and avoid these potential disasters.

Overall, the book was amazing. My gauge of how good a book is is by how much I want to read more. This book, these characters, this whole unique premise.....I DESPERATELY want more. So yeah, I can NOT wait for the next book in the series. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a bit of paranormal mixed in with their mystery. Enjoy!

Let me start by saying I am a huge fan of Kory Shrum and the Jesse Sullivan series. I had an opportunity to read her latest book, Shadows in the Water as an Arc in exchange for an honest review but I think you’ll find this story is nothing like the Jesse Sullivan series.

It starts out kind of slow, and jumps around a lot between characters, even though the book is truly following Lou, who has a special talent (gift? curse?) for disappearing into the shadows and appearing elsewhere, wherever she sets her mind to – at least most of the time anyway. She doesn’t always have complete control of it. But she takes it upon herself to use this talent to punish those who took away the only people she’s ever loved.

It was very difficult to get to know her, or even like her very much, despite knowing how horrific it was for her to witness her parent’s deaths. I think that is by design. She’s hard, and cold, and very calculated, and she doesn’t want anyone to get too close. But as the main character, it was difficult to find a way to identify with her. I identified more with Lucy, her aunt, who also has this same talent.

There isn’t a lot of action until about halfway through the book, and then it moves pretty quickly as Lou starts to learn the truth about her parent’s deaths. She also starts to thaw a bit later in the book as she realizes that maybe she doesn’t want to be as alone as she has been.

She is enlisted to help Robert King, a retired DEA agent who worked with her father, to work on another case that may or may not have ties to her parent’s. King is a bit like Brinkley from the Jesse Sullivan series. He wants to take Lou under his wing, but he doesn’t know how to reach her.

This book doesn’t have any of the snarky sarcasm that Jesse has. It’s not much on laughs and is much darker, with more descriptive deaths of the men she hunts.

I hope we get to know Lou a bit better in future books, and hopefully, she starts to thaw even more toward the people in her life. Also, there is no romance in this story, although it looks like there may be room for some in future books.

I look forward to reading more in this series. I definitely recommend it if you’re a fan of Kory’s books. Just know that it’s not the same as what she’s written in the past. And that’s definitely not a bad thing.

I think this author is awesome anyway, but this book was awesome in itself too. I think others have said the beginning is slow, or hard to follow, and you might find it the same. We jump around a bit to much between characters at first, in my opinion. I actually think this is to intentionally make us feel as confused as they are, super rude, but effective. We figure things out along with them. But I like being in everyone's head. This is a great first book. Things are left unfinished, but not in a way the book feels like it didn't end. I definitely recommend it.

There is a whole lot of death, I mean, our main character is a serial killer. But it's cool. She only kills the bad guys.

I am going to compare this book to Dying For a Living, even though I said I wouldn't. If you haven't read that series yet, get to it.

Some things below that might spoil it for you.

Lou is a messed up character. She is great. Written well and you feel for her. But she has a messed up life and view of the world. One of those you hate to love, but you do it anyway. We center around her and her life. Even though nothing in this book is romantic, I am sensing some relationship stuffs in the future. This is where I compare, I think we are going to do the whole triangle thing again. I don't mind so much as I think this will help Lou grow as a person. Seriously, she needs a personality (flawed as a person, not a character). It's different in that Lou isn't in a relationship with anyone yet. But I am sensing the same path Jesse was on. And the whole lot's of death thing.

I really hope the next book focuses on where the powers come from and why in the world Lou and Konstantine are connected. If this book was stand alone I would be super upset that wasn't addressed, but I trust that Kory will give us answers on that one.

Lou/Louie Thorne: a young woman who discovers at an early age that she is capable of more....

Konstantine Martinelli: the bastard son of a Mafia boss, all powerful but lusting for more... the last of the Martinelli line, he covets Lou's powers....

At the age of 10 while bathing, Lou first experiences her power to "slip"... glide from one location to another via water. Unlike her aunt Lucy, who also can "slip" in deep shadows, Lou is able to do it in water or deep shadows... if Lou "slips" via water, it takes her to La Loo... an alternate dimension/world/planet where deadly predators abound....

Lou loses her father and mother in a "hit" ordered by Angelo Martinelli, and grows up under her aunt Lucy's care. Overcome by guilt and grief, her aunt Lucy does everything in her power to raise Lou, but something is broken in Lou....

Konstantine Martinelli is establishing himself as the heir to the Martinelli drug empire. One night he is surprised by the appearance of Lou. After several, infrequent visits, Lou leaves him a souvenir, and from that point forward, Konstantine is utterly consumed with finding and keeping Lou. "SHE IS MINE...."

Wow, what a ride! Amazing character development, action packed thriller with twists of the paranormal twining throughout. Excellent plot development that keeps you guessing what will happen next.

As a huge fan on Kory M. Shrum's, "Dying For a Living," series, I was so excited and somewhat hesitant to give this novel a try as I was told it was going to be a lot different but, boy, am I glad I did. Right away, "Shadows In The Water," caught my attention. Without giving too much away the whole book starts with a mystery and I was immediately invested in Lou's character.

I find this novel very reminiscent of some of Dean Koontz' best work. It's kind of scary, very complex and one of those books you will probably read in one setting.

I'm a huge fan of this author and I love her Dying for a Living series. She has such a great imagination. This book was different from past reads but this is again a book you don't want to stop reading. The sad part is when the book is done and you have to wait for the next book in the series. I enjoyed learning about Louie and what would come next. I don't like to tell about the story as I'm not a creative type and the author has giving a great synopsis. Really, you just need to read it. The book doesn't disappoint.

As a fan of Ms Shrum I was eager to read this book. I have faithfully followed her Jesse novels and love each one of them. Ms Shrum kept saying she was doing something different. And oh boy has she!! Once again she weaves a world that is so real, with character's you come to know. This has a grittier feel somehow but an outstanding story by a gifted author.

Kory M. Shrum is a superb writer. This creative, imaginative story will engage you from the very beginning with many diverse and multidimensional characters. I am looking forward to the next book in this series.

Wow! I'm new to this Author, but I'm blown away. Fantastic new plot! So many movies and books are just rewrites of old story plots. Not this one. It's all new. I couldn't put it down, it's now 1:47 am and I just finished it. I just love all the characters as well. The main female character Lou is fantastically scary and cool. Lots of action constantly happening. Reads really smooth and fast. No graphic sex in this book but a lot of violence and death. I recommend this book and can't wait for more. “I received a complimentary ARC copy for an honest review.” Which I gave.

-ARC review-

Louie/Lou Thorne has issues, serious issues. And a gift that is also a curse.
Robert King is an ex DEA agent working a case for an old partner.
Konstantine Martinelli a bastard heir to an empire.

As an adult, Lou slips into a world of vigilantism seeking retribution for the murder of her parents when she was a child.

Kory M. Shrum delivers a supernatural thriller with a hard core female lead and well developed side characters.