Falls the Shadow by Daniel O’Mahony
Reviewed by David RobinsonBroadsword issue oneLink to Falls the ShadowNot very inspiring!By inspiring I mean that you become inspired to do something great. You may finish the book and go “Wow what a great book, that gives me an idea” and the next thing you know you’ve composed a song, painted a picture or even written a NA. There are some books that have this effect on me (those weak willed readers should skip to the next paragraph) for example, Warhead, Transit, Lucifer Rising, Iceberg.Quiet simply Fall the Shadow is not in their league. It lacks punch, rhythm, and meaning.Don’t misinterpret me, it is not a terrible book, it just isn’t all that great. Falls the Shadow is a half hearted story that is done very well. There are a lot of fascinating concepts but they’re not linked together very well. The book had a great deal to offer.Easily the worst bad guys in Doctor Who, Gabriel and Tanith are worse than evil. They have no consideration, nor can they have justification for their actions. Just deadly, very deadly.The novel is packed full with emotion, terror, anxiety, anger, pride, hatred, lust, love, sympathy, confusion, and pity. The emotions in the book are strong and forceful, but they lack any meaning.The best meaning the book offers is that there doesn’t need to be a meaning. Which leaves you feeling sort of hollow.Although Falls the Shadow is one of the longest NA so far it didn’t have enough room to fully work out all the issues, either that or the author was just far too zealous and tried to pack too much in.