Review: The Shadows by J.R. Ward

Release Date: March 31st, 2015

Publisher: Penguin

Pgs: 592, hardcover, purchased

Rating: ★★★

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21849362-the-shadows

Synopsis:
Trez “Latimer” doesn’t really exist. And not just because the identity was created so that a Shadow could function in the underbelly of the human world. Sold by his parents to the Queen of the S’Hsibe as a child, Trez escaped the Territory and has been a pimp and an enforcer in Caldwell, NY for years- all the while on the run from a destiny of sexual servitude. He’s never had anyone he could totally rely on... except for his brother, iAm. iAm’s sole goal has always been to keep his brother from self-destructing- and he knows he’s failed. It’s not until the Chosen Serena enters Trez’s life that the male begins to turn things around... but by then it’s too late. The pledge to mate the Queen’s daughter comes due and there is nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, and no negotiating. Trapped between his heart and a fate he never volunteered for, Trez must decide whether to endanger himself and others- or forever leave behind the female he’s in love with. But then an unimaginable tragedy strikes and changes everything. Staring out over an emotional abyss, Trez must find a reason to go on or risk losing himself and his soul forever. And iAm, in the name of brotherly love, is faced with making the ultimate sacrifice...

Review:

I'm always a fan of BDB, but this is going to be a short review.

It was an enjoyable story that held great promise. It could have been a classic favorite, but J.R. Ward did something that broke the contract between writer and reader. I mean, some don't see it this way. I tend to be more lenient about stuff like this because I'm also a writer. But ultimately, I didn't see the point. The main question being: what did killing Selena prove?

The general rule isn't to build something up that's only going to end in disappointment. The point being, you're rooting for something to end well and it doesn't. I get the whole explanation that sometimes things don't go the way you wanted them to. I get that. I do. But when reading this, I honestly felt like Selena and Trez were going to get their happy ending. That's the way the writing was pointing. I know she was sick, but other heroines have died and gotten to come back. Why not Selena?

I get why Wellsie had to die and not come back. That added to the plot, even if people weren't happy about it, it made sense. Selena's death just didn't.

It doesn't matter. It's done with. I will still continue to read this series, even if the Shadows wasn't quite what I wanted. J.R. Ward is still a great writer and story-teller, even if I can't reconcile one plot point.