Shadow Prowler by Alexey Pehov – review

Can a master thief save the land of Siala from being plunged into chaos and destruction by the evil Nameless One? If the thief is the inimitable Shadow Harold, and if Shadow Harold is the one named “the Dancer in the Shadows” in a centuries-old prophecy, possibly so. But like with all of the best fantasy series, nobody said success will come easy.

Harold, the first-person narrator, has to overcome many obstacles and dangers while still in the kingdom of Avendoom, where he resides, before setting out on his quest to regain the famed magical Rainbow Horn from the legendary General Grok’s sepulchre in the multilayered labyrinthine hallways and galleries of Hrad Spein, also known as the Palaces of Bone. He has lots of misgivings about taking a binding promise, or Commission, from the king for a hundred thousand pieces of gold to steal–er, recover–the Horn, but when the king himself, Stalkon the Ninth, requests your assistance, it’s a difficult request to turn down.

Still, Harold wonders why, of all the thieves in the land, he was chosen by the king as being vital to the mission:

“And you want me to get the Horn out of the grave?” I asked in amazement. “But what do you need me for? Any gravedigger with a spade could manage a simple little job like that!”

Lady Miralissa, a beautiful fanged dark elfess (in this case, “dark” does not mean that she’s evil–it just means the dark elves use slower, though powerful, shamanistic magic, as opposed to the magic of wizards, which works faster but isn’t always as strong), insists that he is the only one who can do the job, even though experienced soldiers and eight magicians of the Order of Magicians–”an expedition of more than a hundred men”–have been killed, gone missing, or have been driven mad trying the same thing. Shadow Harold’s alternative, rotting in the prison dungeons of the Grey Stones, convinces him to accept the Commission.

Pehov’s Shadow Prowler fantasy universe is embodied with similar archetypal characters and creatures to Tolkien, such as elves, dwarves, humans, and, yes, orcs, and others like ogres, giants, and gnomes. There are no hobbits or walking trees, or Rangers, though, and Pehov’s proposed trilogy isn’t set in Middle Earth. Tolkien is just one of many influences that served as a jumping-off point for Pehov’s imagination, fueling it to kick into overdrive.

I liked Shadow Prowler quite a bit, despite at first thinking to myself, “Oh, it’s another fantasy epic series that’s based on Tolkein’s books–yawn.” That’s because, though I loved reading The Lord of the Rings and watching the movies, there’s only one Tolkien. Stories that are about orcs and hobbits, etc., can be cool, but only if the author can take these characters in different directions, and make them his or her own.  As I read further on in the story, I found myself getting into Shadow Harold as a character; he’s almost like some character out of The Adventures of Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser saga by Fritz Leiber. He’s an unlikely sort of hero for a series, which added to my growing interest in The Shadow Prowler.

Shadow Prowler is a very good beginning to Alexey Pehov’s trilogy. There are lots of challenges Harold and his band encounter on their way to Hrad Spein. As with any excellent fantasy series involving magical quests, there are mysterious forests and mountains to pass through and climb over, and plenty of enemies that have to be dealt with either by magic, skill with weapons, or a combination of the two. Shadow Harold’s wry sense of humor and his self-effacing attitude, as well as Kli-Kli’s practical jokes and antics, add a touch of comic relief to the novel to lighten up its tone, so it doesn’t get too serious.

The book was translated from the original Russian by Andrew Bromfield, best known for his work on the highly successful Night Watch series. Alexey Pehov’s Shadow Prowler is a magic- and suspense-filled beginning to what promises to be a fantastic series. I’m looking forward to reading the second novel of the series whenever it is published in the United States.