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, 15:14, 3 October 2009
{{infobox
|title=Shadow (Firestorm)
|author=Mark Robson
|reviewer=Keith Dudhnath
|genre=Fantasy
|summary=The second book in the Dragon Orb series picks up where the first left off. There's plenty more adventure and excitement for fans of the series to get their teeth stuck into.
|rating=3.5
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Maybe
|format=Paperback
|pages=336
|publisher=Simon & Schuster Children's
|date=January 2009
|isbn=978-1847380692
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847380697</amazonuk>
|amazonus=<amazonus>1847380697</amazonus>
}}
Night dragon Shadow and his rider, Pell, are on a quest to find the dark orb. When he and his three friends collect all four orbs, they'll be able to save the Oracle. On their quest, they'll have to fly to all ends of the Areth - Racafi, Cemaria and in this adventure, Isaa. (See what they did there?) Will they be able to get the orb before the evil Segun puts a stop to them?
''Shadow'' is the second book in the Dragon Orb series, and comes hot on the heels of [[Firestorm (Dragon Orb) by Mark Robson|Firestorm]]. New readers to the series won't feel lost and existing fans will feel right at home. There's everything that made the first book so popular: action, adventure, excitement, tension, dragons, and a familiar yet different fantasy world.
Everything moves along at a fair old lick, with a constantly evolving plot packing the pages. It's easy to relate to the main characters, which draws the reader in and really has them rooting for the goodies from page one. Although there are a number of plot strands, everything is nicely connected, so younger readers won't feel left out. The writing style suits the fantasy theme: it's clear, eloquent and descriptive (even a little florid). It paints a great picture of the world, whilst allowing the plot room to shine.
Middle books (this is the second of four in the series) are always tricky to pitch right: they don't get to set the scene, or have the satisfying conclusion. Mark Robson does a good job of creating a satisfying individual book, whilst still supporting the series as a whole. Fans will be anxious to discover what happens in ''Longfang'' and [[Aurora (Dragon Orb) by Mark Robson|Aurora]], both of which are due out later this year.
My thanks to the publishers for sending it to Bookbag.
For another dragon adventure, check out [[Kira (Shadow of the Dragon) by Kate O'Hearn|Kira]] by [[:Category:Kate O'Hearn|Kate O'Hearn]]. [[The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien|The Hobbit]] by [[:Category:J R R Tolkien|J R R Tolkien]] is a fantastic adventure story that all fantasy buffs will love.
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[[Category:Teens]]