"این که آدم ببیند آزادی این قدر نزدیک است و به آن نرسد، خیلی وحشتناک است" ( )

Reviewed by Randstostipher "tallnlankyrn" Nguyen for TeensReadToo.com

As always, thrills and chills are felt in this next installment in the horrifying and gripping THE DEMONATA series.

Bec has returned, and what aches her the most, besides adapting to the newest technology of the always-changing world, is having to deal with Dervish and the miles of questions surrounding his deceased nephew, Bill-E.

Although this does frustrate Bec extremely, no time is to waste as werewolves and demons attack the house and the hospital that Dervish ends up in. They are once again reunited with Juni Swan, who escapes to a powerful ship that has the magic in aiding Dervish and Sharmila.

Arriving at the ship, the group becomes trapped, surrounded by demons and their leaders, Juni and Lord Loss, who has now embodied Cadaver. Here the battle begins, and surviving just does not seem possible at all, especially since a demon stronger than Lord Loss is now upon them.

Deeper and darker than ever, Darren Shan continues his series with the infamous gory details and action sequences. The battle continues in DEATH'S SHADOW between Dervish's clan and those serving Lord Loss, and fans will not want to miss any minute of it. Also in this installment, Beranabus' character becomes even more developed, as we get a closer look at his life before joining forces with Dervish. ( )

Another great story by Darren Shan! ( )

Fast paced, full of action, and beginning to look deeper into the personalities of the central characters. Good stuff. ( )

When you read a lot of Darren Shan, you learn to cope with the disappointment of having characters you love brutally killed. Indeed, Shan's bestselling children's horror series, The Demonata, has three narrators for this very reason; there is no guarantee that all three will survive to the end of the tenth and final book! To have a deceased narrator come back to life, then, is a decidedly pleasant surprise. Death's Shadow – the seventh and latest instalment – sees the return of Bec MacConn, who was killed off three books ago, (or so we thought,) and her narration makes a welcome change from the usual Grubbs Grady. Shan alters his tone just enough to suit a different narrative voice, without destroying the fast-as-a-movie fluidity that he has become famous for. The change in narration enables Shan to explore new complications and emotional content, making for a particularly enjoyable first third of the novel.

Death's Shadow is a very appropriate name for Shan's latest bloodbath – if you thought he was already killing off characters at top speed, think again. He describes this book as the start of the Demonata's 'real storyline' – a 'new beginning' of sorts which is matched by his writing. His use of Greek myths to provide background for Beranabus' character is especially creative, and adds depth to the story. There are new ideas, new mysteries, new characters, and, just in case demons and werewolves weren't enough, Shan even throws zombies into the mix this time around. (Hey – they work!)

But is it as good as its predecessors? Somehow, I just can't bring myself to say 'yes'. Perhaps I've become desensitised from reading two Demonata books in a row, but Death's Shadow seemed to lack that extra something that the other novels did – be it a great premise, a heartbreaking ending, or an extra splash of creativity, depending on the book. Somehow, this instalment feels like it has been cut just a little too methodically from the Demonata cloth, without that extra burst of inspiration to truly bring it to life.

Regardless; even on a bad day, Darren Shan still beats the vast majority of his competition hands down. Death's Shadow is a pacy and thoroughly enjoyable read that Demonata fans won't be able to put down. I look forward to reading the next instalment. ( )