Half Sick of Shadows
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- Create Date：2021-08-21 06:51:37
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Laura Sebastian
- ISBN：0593200519
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Summary
Everyone knows the legend。 Of Arthur， destined to be a king。 Of the beautiful Guinevere， who will betray him with his most loyal knight， Lancelot。 Of the bitter sorceress， Morgana， who will turn against them all。 But Elaine alone carries the burden of knowing what is to come--for Elaine of Shalott is cursed to see the future。
On the mystical isle of Avalon， Elaine runs free and learns of the ancient prophecies surrounding her and her friends--countless possibilities， almost all of them tragic。
When their future comes to claim them， Elaine， Guinevere， Lancelot， and Morgana accompany Arthur to take his throne in stifling Camelot， where magic is outlawed， the rules of society chain them， and enemies are everywhere。 Yet the most dangerous threats may come from within their own circle。
As visions are fulfilled and an inevitable fate closes in， Elaine must decide how far she will go to change fate--and what she is willing to sacrifice along the way。
The Lady of Shalott reclaims her story in this bold feminist reimagining of the Arthurian myth from the New York Times bestselling author of Ash Princess。
On the mystical isle of Avalon， Elaine runs free and learns of the ancient prophecies surrounding her and her friends--countless possibilities， almost all of them tragic。
When their future comes to claim them， Elaine， Guinevere， Lancelot， and Morgana accompany Arthur to take his throne in stifling Camelot， where magic is outlawed， the rules of society chain them， and enemies are everywhere。 Yet the most dangerous threats may come from within their own circle。
As visions are fulfilled and an inevitable fate closes in， Elaine must decide how far she will go to change fate--and what she is willing to sacrifice along the way。
The Lady of Shalott reclaims her story in this bold feminist reimagining of the Arthurian myth from the New York Times bestselling author of Ash Princess。
Reviews
Etta
，
Half Sick of Shadows tells the story about Elaine of Astalot （Elaine of Shalott） and is a retelling of the Arthurian tales。 She is an oracle who has spent time on Avalon to learn magic where the cast of characters， Gwen， Arthur， Morgana， and Lancelot come together for their quest to make Arthur king。 While the novel takes a lot of inspiration from the original material， the author creates a unique tale that does not fully align with the source。 It would not be apt then to compare the two and， in Half Sick of Shadows tells the story about Elaine of Astalot （Elaine of Shalott） and is a retelling of the Arthurian tales。 She is an oracle who has spent time on Avalon to learn magic where the cast of characters， Gwen， Arthur， Morgana， and Lancelot come together for their quest to make Arthur king。 While the novel takes a lot of inspiration from the original material， the author creates a unique tale that does not fully align with the source。 It would not be apt then to compare the two and， instead， have the story standalone in a way for the main character。 Now for the main story， it is very clear that the author has researched the source material and makes it apparent from the beginning of everything will end for some of the characters。Although the story keeps the focus on Elaine’s perspective， it also follows the stories of Arthur， Gwen， Morgana， and Lancelot。 There are the subplots of the dynamics of their friendships and even two romances with Gwen and Arthur and Elaine and Lancelot。 I love romances in stories， but it was difficult to fully connect to either romance as there was a lot going on in each relationship， especially Elaine and Lancelot。 Her inner dialogue and conflict about the relationship created so much doubt in the romance that I eventually gave up being invested and did not mind how it ended one way or another。 The characters themselves are very interesting and I liked how they evolved throughout the story。 I wish that more time was spent on the reader getting to know them as there are multiple instances of telling the reader their characteristics rather than showing。The story’s timeline can be difficult to follow， as there are three within the novel: the main present day tale， the multiple flashback sequences， and the multiple visions Elaine has of the future。 As I listened to the audiobook， I do not know how the story is formatted in the print version。 By listening to the story， it was very confusing at times to fully follow what timeline we were in during some parts of the story。 There are some key terms that let the reader know it will be a transition to the past or present， but if you miss the wording， then it takes a moment to fully comprehend the situation。 Even though it was difficult to follow at times， I greatly enjoyed the future visions as it was interesting how the events would change based on the decisions they made in the present。 I connected less to the past portions and， for me; I would rather have left these parts out of the story and focused more on the present and future， with a larger emphasis on the present。Overall， I honestly do not fully know how I feel about the story as a whole。 It was neither good nor bad and instead was just okay， for me。 I think one day I will re-read it and maybe I will feel one way or another， but， for now， I am just middle ground。 The writing was well done as the general style was very enjoyable and I would read more from the author。 This novel was very ambitious as there is a lot of content with both the plot and characters。 At times， it read similar to an upper YA novel compared to an adult。 The one thing that made this more adult is that the characters are older than the typical YA characters。 The ending itself is semi-abrupt for those not as familiar with the source material， so I think it would have appealed to a larger audience by expanding on it a little。 I would recommend this novel to others as it is a fascinating tale and I have added it to my re-read list， again， as I want to try the print version to see how my opinion on the story alters。 。。。more
Naomi （naomi。reads。world）
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DNF at 40%。I love the content， however the writing style of Half Sick of Shadows was not my cup of tea。 I can handle nonlinear timelines， but each chapter is written from the main character’s first person perspective， and in the middle of chapters there are scenes from the past alongside visions of the future。 It made it difficult to feel invested in the characters or the story。 The bulk of the story read to me as speculation on the future and on other characters， with minimal actual character d DNF at 40%。I love the content， however the writing style of Half Sick of Shadows was not my cup of tea。 I can handle nonlinear timelines， but each chapter is written from the main character’s first person perspective， and in the middle of chapters there are scenes from the past alongside visions of the future。 It made it difficult to feel invested in the characters or the story。 The bulk of the story read to me as speculation on the future and on other characters， with minimal actual character development and a very slow-moving present-day plot。 This didn’t intrigue me， it only served to annoy me。It certainly makes sense to structure your story this way when your main character is an Oracle， but it just wasn’t for me。Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the free advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review！ 。。。more
Rachel
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Overall， really enjoyed it - but maybe its closer to a 3。5 or 3。75 for me。 I was a tad disappointed with the ending， and was left wanting more that I got。 It will stay in my library for now， but it may be something I never pick up for a re-read。 We shall see。
Megan （Glitter and Plato）
，
"There was nothing more terrifying in Camelot than a girl who refused to follow the rules。"I am struggling with how to rate this one。 I am not sure how feminist I thought it was。 Each female character was expected to sacrifice everything to get Arthur on the throne。And the non-linear timeline was often more disjointed than helpful （we spent time in the past， present， and future through Elaine's visions）。 But I am not super familiar with Arthurian legends so maybe I would have been less lost if I "There was nothing more terrifying in Camelot than a girl who refused to follow the rules。"I am struggling with how to rate this one。 I am not sure how feminist I thought it was。 Each female character was expected to sacrifice everything to get Arthur on the throne。And the non-linear timeline was often more disjointed than helpful （we spent time in the past， present， and future through Elaine's visions）。 But I am not super familiar with Arthurian legends so maybe I would have been less lost if I was。I did really enjoy Morgana and Elaine as characters。 Morgana more than anyone felt very relatable， and despite the stories where she is the villain， I really wanted her to succeed。 （to be fair， she wasn't portrayed as the villain in this book。）"Camelot" was this overarching shadow of oppression over them， but we never actually saw how it was so harmful。 The quote above does seem to set up a really empowering story， but。。。。it doesn't really happen。I guess I see this book as one with lots of fun ideas and potential， but it didn't really hit it out of the park for me。 。。。more
Amelia
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a retelling of arthurian legends。it follows the main character Elaine who is an oracle。 She must get Arthur onto the throne alongside her friends Morgana， Lancelot， and Gwen。 The characters are distilled to their archetypes and giving it that authentic legend feel。 The story is also not told chronologically since the main character is an oracle which is an intriguing style。
CN。 Holly
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 3。5 out of 5 stars， and agains the 。5 was only because of the ending， and even then it's probably a 。25， only BECAUSE of the ending。。。 i have a love and hate relationship with this ending。 TW: suicide， emotional abuse， graphic violence and death。 This book felt like a chore to get through， and it wasn't even because it was a terrible book believe me I wish it didn't end where it did， i would have read another 200-300 pages after where the book ended， and it was very upsetting where it ended with 3。5 out of 5 stars， and agains the 。5 was only because of the ending， and even then it's probably a 。25， only BECAUSE of the ending。。。 i have a love and hate relationship with this ending。 TW: suicide， emotional abuse， graphic violence and death。 This book felt like a chore to get through， and it wasn't even because it was a terrible book believe me I wish it didn't end where it did， i would have read another 200-300 pages after where the book ended， and it was very upsetting where it ended with no talk of doing a sequel， but let's get into this。 （spoilers。。）I had to sit on this book for a minute before i wanted to write this review and the only reason why is because i needed to collect my thoughs before i posted this review。 Normally books do not take me this long to get through。 And this book was pretty great I'm not gonna lie！ But for some reason It felt like a chore to get though and I honestly think it's because I could not get behind the main character Elaine， I loved Morgana。 She was my favorite character and Elaine， she was way tooooo Not good。 I don't understand how you can ask the man of your dreams to leave his home and his mom to travel to a land he's never been to， ONLY to treat him terribly throughout the biggest chunk of the book， only to finally marry him， and then two days later decide to commit suicide， I just。 i don't know I think it's a little douchey to me？ She has spent her entire life trying to change the future not realizing at a younger age that you can't change the future that's been written for centuries， at that point just live your life， again I loved Morgana。 She left， she finally found her line and left， and I don't blame her， I would have done the same thing。 After Elaine kicked the bucket and she became the Lady of the Lake I feel like the book would have gotten soooo much better， it would have picked up beautifully instead of feeling like it only built up the universe to only be let down in the end， I would have rather read a book about Elaine being the Lady of the Lake than basically a book of 'protecting Arthur"， I swear I would have left him long before even Morgana left him。Would I read this book again？ mmmmmmhhh no。 Would I real the sequel？ mmmmmmmhhh yes， espically if we see Morgana become the Goddess of death and Elaine do amazing at Lady of the Lake， and of course Guinevere become the best queen。 But hopefully it doesn't feel like a chore to get through。 。。。more
Vanessa Fernandez
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I was never into the Arthurian legend， though I did read and love The Mists of Avalon in high school。 I enjoyed this version of the story， where the women have agency。 I thought it was compelling and well written。
Hurmat Azeem
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This was an AMAZING book in it's first 2/3rd。 And I will consider it one of my favourites， in the way it is written， the scenery it brought to life， the pain in it's story。But I cannot forgive this book for messing up so horribly all of a sudden。 After all， like friends and soulmates， books need to be trusted to be good。 And this one broke my trust in both seconds and hours it seems and quite anti climactic-ly at that。 This was an AMAZING book in it's first 2/3rd。 And I will consider it one of my favourites， in the way it is written， the scenery it brought to life， the pain in it's story。But I cannot forgive this book for messing up so horribly all of a sudden。 After all， like friends and soulmates， books need to be trusted to be good。 And this one broke my trust in both seconds and hours it seems and quite anti climactic-ly at that。 。。。more
Anna
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"。。。but now I know - there was nothing more terrifying in Camelot than a girl who refused to follow the rules。"First and foremost， I enjoyed that this felt like Fantasy Lite in terms of content。 I thought of this more of a Historical Fiction than Fantasy in a lot of ways。 Technically this is considered a Fairy Tale since it's a retelling of King Arthur， which I've never read before。 I thought this was easier to read because the world-building wasn't as intense as I'm used to with Fantasy。 Maybe "。。。but now I know - there was nothing more terrifying in Camelot than a girl who refused to follow the rules。"First and foremost， I enjoyed that this felt like Fantasy Lite in terms of content。 I thought of this more of a Historical Fiction than Fantasy in a lot of ways。 Technically this is considered a Fairy Tale since it's a retelling of King Arthur， which I've never read before。 I thought this was easier to read because the world-building wasn't as intense as I'm used to with Fantasy。 Maybe that might be bland to some， but I found it refreshing since I didn't have to take thousands of notes while reading。My favorite character was Morgana。 Overall， the author wrote this retelling with bold， brave female leads instead of seductive maidens waiting to be saved by a knight in shining armor。 I appreciate this adjustment to the more traditional lores of this tale。 I've never thought about what it would be like to see the future while having to deal with the present。 It was so incredibly hard for Elaine to have the ability of Sight without revealing the fates to those around her。 It was painful to see her bear the weight of impending betrayal and tragedy。 The plot and writing style were a bit choppy for me。 It was hard at times for me to tell if I was reading a vision or present actions。 No spoilers， but certain plot points seemed slow， while others flew by quickly。 I would have preferred a little more even spacing of the action。 I definitely say give Half Sick of Shadows a try if you're looking for something different and interested in trying my newly coined Fantasy Lite genre。 。。。more
Teresa
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I loved this story and had a hard time putting it down。 I know that some of have said they found the flow from past to present and future confusing but I loved how it added to the story for all the characters。 I truly enjoyed this book！
Jude Stone
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This book was very well written and captivating！ However， the pace was a bit slow throughout （particularly in the first half） and the ending felt rushed。 Still， it was an interesting story with some of the best developed characters I've ever read。 This book was very well written and captivating！ However， the pace was a bit slow throughout （particularly in the first half） and the ending felt rushed。 Still， it was an interesting story with some of the best developed characters I've ever read。 。。。more
Loren C
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i liked it but also found it upsetting。 not an easy read as a lady。
Liz Stradtman
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All I have to say is ✨Morgana was right✨ and the characters’ decisions in this book make no sense。
Beth Green
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I was intrigued by our MC Elaine， Lady of Shalott， a seer training with Nimue， the Lady of the Lake。 She is a friend to Arthur， Guinevere， Morgana and Lancelot—growing up with them in Avalon and later going to court in Camelot to aid Arthur in gaining and keeping his throne。 Elaine’s visions of the future are revealed in pieces， some fixed and some changeable。 The timeline of her life story is told out of order， but it is easy enough to follow。It’s not really a spoiler to say this （even if you d I was intrigued by our MC Elaine， Lady of Shalott， a seer training with Nimue， the Lady of the Lake。 She is a friend to Arthur， Guinevere， Morgana and Lancelot—growing up with them in Avalon and later going to court in Camelot to aid Arthur in gaining and keeping his throne。 Elaine’s visions of the future are revealed in pieces， some fixed and some changeable。 The timeline of her life story is told out of order， but it is easy enough to follow。It’s not really a spoiler to say this （even if you don’t know anything about the Lady of Shalott because the ending is revealed in the author’s note and ch 1） but it was sometimes difficult for me to read this knowing that Elaine’s going to drown and that she won’t fight it。 The book is about her journey and her reasons—which are unexpected and tied to the plot more than mental illness。 So be a prepared reader。There were moments of adventure， beauty， magic， and love。 There are great twists to this Arthurian retelling that you won’t see coming。 But it was also frustrating to watch Elaine invite heartbreak in early to prevent future heartbreak she has foreseen that she thinks will be worse。 She agonizes over the future a lot， to the point where at times I was like “enough already， let’s move the plot along。” And despite knowing the grim ending was coming， I’m not sure I agree with the way it was presented/handled/justified。 There is an interesting twist at the end that I won’t spoil but I admit I will ponder it for a few days more I think。 This is a thought-provoking tale with fierce strong women at its center。Overall this is a well-written and engaging book， but not one I see being a repeat read due to content/tone。 。。。more
Emily Blair
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 This story is beautifully written。 The words and the world captured me from the very beginning。 I love that it takes a feminist twist on the point of view of the typical King Arthur/Round Table original telling。 It paints a sorrowful story of friendship and betrayal that I wasn’t quite ready for， but kept me turning pages。 I’m partial to a happy ending， and this story left me wanting in that regard， but it was a great read！
Christina
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This book was a nicely paced read and beautifully written。 It was a little repetitive at times but there’s a reason for it。 It is important to note that retellings aren’t bound by rules， and other reviewers are silly for being so critical in regards to the traditional stories。 I definitely recommend it， and can even see myself rereading it in the future。
Alex
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I decreased the rating by one star because of how frequent and irritating the corset complaints/anachronisms were。
Emily
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I’m loath to call this a feminist retelling of the Arthurian legend， that’s definitely overselling a novel in which the three key female characters Morgana， Guinevere， and Elaine spend 90% of the book as victims of fate and sacrificing themselves for Arthur。 The twist that finally frees them and allows them to reclaim their own individual lives involves one of them committing suicide。 So yeah this was a flop for me and riddle with similar issues as Sebastian’s previous series in terms of infanti I’m loath to call this a feminist retelling of the Arthurian legend， that’s definitely overselling a novel in which the three key female characters Morgana， Guinevere， and Elaine spend 90% of the book as victims of fate and sacrificing themselves for Arthur。 The twist that finally frees them and allows them to reclaim their own individual lives involves one of them committing suicide。 So yeah this was a flop for me and riddle with similar issues as Sebastian’s previous series in terms of infantile plot and character development。 I was mildly intrigued by werewolf Guinevere but that storyline only made a brief appearance 。。。more
Baofan
，
Disappointing。 I think the author somehow both relied too much on familiarity with the source material （leaving me wanting for world building） and also deviated too far from the source material （leaving me questioning how to reconcile new characterizations and motivations in a way that makes sense）。 The pacing was too slow and the narrative was fuddled because of the constant flashbacks and flashforwards， they felt like interruptions instead of filling out the story。 The visions and Elaine’s str Disappointing。 I think the author somehow both relied too much on familiarity with the source material （leaving me wanting for world building） and also deviated too far from the source material （leaving me questioning how to reconcile new characterizations and motivations in a way that makes sense）。 The pacing was too slow and the narrative was fuddled because of the constant flashbacks and flashforwards， they felt like interruptions instead of filling out the story。 The visions and Elaine’s struggle with their inevitability at the center of the story were so repetitive and tedious as nothing new was learned or considered each time。 I also don’t think calling this a “feminist” retelling does it any justice， is centering on a female character’s narration all it takes to make something feminist？ 。。。more
Laura Fox
，
Way too many historical anachronisms and read like YA but not in a good way。 Definitely NOT feminist either。 I'll stick to Mists of Avalon。 Way too many historical anachronisms and read like YA but not in a good way。 Definitely NOT feminist either。 I'll stick to Mists of Avalon。 。。。more
Erica Macri
，
<3
Jessica Straw
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This was fine。 I understand this is the story the author wanted to tell， but it’s just not for me。 I found this incredibly boring。 I don’t know what it is about these feminist Arthurian retellings I’ve read this year （this one; the Guinevere Deception） but why does making the Arthurian myth feminist mean that the main woman character doesn’t get to be an active protagonist？ Surely there is a way to do a feminist Arthurian retelling while giving the main woman character an actual plot and having This was fine。 I understand this is the story the author wanted to tell， but it’s just not for me。 I found this incredibly boring。 I don’t know what it is about these feminist Arthurian retellings I’ve read this year （this one; the Guinevere Deception） but why does making the Arthurian myth feminist mean that the main woman character doesn’t get to be an active protagonist？ Surely there is a way to do a feminist Arthurian retelling while giving the main woman character an actual plot and having her actively work toward a goal of her own。The story flips constantly between present， past， and future tense to tell Elaine’s story。 I appreciate what the author was going for， given Elaine’s powers， but reading in future perfect tense was not enjoyable。This is nitpicky， but “Unsurprised and nonplussed”？？ Nonplussed means surprised。 So the character was “unsurprised and surprised”？Also， Guinevere is a （view spoiler）[werewolf （hide spoiler）]？ UGH 。。。more
Robyn Puffenbarger
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Interesting take！I love the Arthur legends - Mists of Avalon， Crystal Cave， and so many other fun reads。 This one is a very good read， great characters and neat plot with visions and magic as a twist。
Shelby
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I have been wanting to read this story for a long time。 I've always loved Tennyson's The Lady of Shalott and was so glad to finally read her tale。 This book did a great job of enmeshing Elaine's story with the familiar Arthurian myths。 The characters really came alive， and by the end I felt like I understood each of their perspectives。 The way that each chapter had so many possibilities for the future I thought was a brilliant way to let the reader get deeper insight into the choices drawn befor I have been wanting to read this story for a long time。 I've always loved Tennyson's The Lady of Shalott and was so glad to finally read her tale。 This book did a great job of enmeshing Elaine's story with the familiar Arthurian myths。 The characters really came alive， and by the end I felt like I understood each of their perspectives。 The way that each chapter had so many possibilities for the future I thought was a brilliant way to let the reader get deeper insight into the choices drawn before all of them。 Morgana， Lancelot， Guinevere， Arthur and Elaine were depicted as neither heroes or villains really， but as people with choices that might change how they are seen/become one way or another。 The author had such a great approach to these characters。This story was brilliantly done。 A great read if you want to delve deeper into Arthurian myth， become sucked into its story and read characters you can easily relate to。 Definitely a new favorite for me！ 。。。more
Crystal ➳ Reading Between the Wines Book Club
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I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this title but I saw that it was a retelling of the King Arthur story and I was here for it。 The tale is told from Elaine of Shalott's point-of-view。 Elaine is an oracle， advisor to Arthur， friend of Guinevere and Morgana， and lover of Lancelot。 It's a slow moving story， and at times I found myself skimming。 It is also told in past， present， and future tense。 Which was occasionally difficult to grasp。 Over-all I did enjoy the story though as well as the wo I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this title but I saw that it was a retelling of the King Arthur story and I was here for it。 The tale is told from Elaine of Shalott's point-of-view。 Elaine is an oracle， advisor to Arthur， friend of Guinevere and Morgana， and lover of Lancelot。 It's a slow moving story， and at times I found myself skimming。 It is also told in past， present， and future tense。 Which was occasionally difficult to grasp。 Over-all I did enjoy the story though as well as the world-building， character development， and the author's voice。 It's not a story that has a happy ending， but I wasn't expecting one。 However， the ending left me feeling a bit depressed by it all （the author does preface the book with trigger warnings） which is not a bad thing I think。 It means I connected with the characters on some level。 All in all， worth a read if you have interest in Arthurian myth。 Full review to come。。。。 。。。more
Shannon
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Reads like a bloated YA novel with slightly aged up characters。 Protagonist was very bland and the conclusion was vague and confusing。
Nikki Fathauer
，
This was such a cool take on a the story of Arthur Pendragon。 To see it from an Oracles point of view and then to follow all of her visions and choices made the story fresh。 Not a lot of excitement per say， but the story kept me interested and gave a good perspective of how choices that you make and help others make can take many different turns that will work or just delay the inevitable。
Milton Public Library
，
If you are familiar with the English poet Alfred Tennyson， prepare to be delighted by Sebastian's spin on Arthurian legend。 I have always been fascinated by Elaine of Astolat， the Lady of Shalott。 The subject of many pre-Raphaelite paintings， she is also the main character in this novel and I enjoyed seeing Camelot through her eyes。 To tell you more would give too many spoilers， but if you think you know the story of Arthur， Gwenivere， Lancelot， and all the rest， I suggest reading this book。 You If you are familiar with the English poet Alfred Tennyson， prepare to be delighted by Sebastian's spin on Arthurian legend。 I have always been fascinated by Elaine of Astolat， the Lady of Shalott。 The subject of many pre-Raphaelite paintings， she is also the main character in this novel and I enjoyed seeing Camelot through her eyes。 To tell you more would give too many spoilers， but if you think you know the story of Arthur， Gwenivere， Lancelot， and all the rest， I suggest reading this book。 You don't know half the tale。Find it today: https://ent。sharelibraries。info/clien。。。Angela B。 / Milton Public Library #CheckOutMPL 。。。more
Diana
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I enjoyed this book， although it keeps losing force the longer it goes， I don't know how to explain it。 I enjoyed this book， although it keeps losing force the longer it goes， I don't know how to explain it。 。。。more
Anna
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I have incredibly mixed emotions about this book。 On on end， it was the book of my dreams: like the author， I was also obsessed with the poem The Lady of Shalott as a teenager and have wanted more of her story for since I read it。 And it was definitely a unique retelling that really moved her from an observer to an important individual with a lot of agency。 The plot and character development was gratifying and fit well overall。 On the other end: this book was ungodly slow for the first 150-200 p I have incredibly mixed emotions about this book。 On on end， it was the book of my dreams: like the author， I was also obsessed with the poem The Lady of Shalott as a teenager and have wanted more of her story for since I read it。 And it was definitely a unique retelling that really moved her from an observer to an important individual with a lot of agency。 The plot and character development was gratifying and fit well overall。 On the other end: this book was ungodly slow for the first 150-200 pages。 I considered giving up， and honestly would have if this was a library book and not a purchase。 I did also really feel that this was a perfect transitionary book between YA and adult， not clearly one or another in a lot of ways， with the exception of the pacing which is certainly unacceptable in fast-paced YA。 Not necessarily a clear pro or con， but definitely something to be aware of。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Half Sick of Shadows
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Half Sick of Shadows&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Half Sick of Shadows&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0