Although she's human, McKenzie Lewis, a Houston area college student, can see the fae and read the shadows they leave when they fissure from place to place and realm to realm. McKenzie has helped the fae king track down rebels with her shadow reading for the past 10 years. She's also had a crush on Kyol, the king's sword-master for those same 10 years, but the king forbids human/fae relationships, and the honorable Kyol won't go against his friend and king.

But then McKenzie is kidnapped by Aren, the handsome rebel leader, and she learns the fae language and a lot more about the Court much of which she prefers not to believe as it puts much of what she knows as truth in jeopardy. She tries to escape the rebels and won't reveal any secrets, but she also gains a certain degree of respect for Aren and some of the others. And she ends up smack in the middle of a fae Civil War that pits the two men she cares about against each other.

Sandy Williams has created a terrific beginning to what I hope will be a great series. While I wanted to strangle McKenzie a few times, overall I really liked the book. Williams does a nice job with world-building and with giving her characters including those in supporting roles the depth they need for readers to care. Williams has a nice touch, describing the fae realm, both the beauty of the palace and the not-so-nice areas McKenzie also visits. I'm not normally fond of love triangles, but Williams made both of these men credible, so McKenzie's choice wasn't obvious from the beginning.

THE SHADOW READER has a fast pace and once you get pulled in, you'll have a hard time putting it down. I had to force myself to stop halfway through or I wasn't going to get any sleep, and with work the next morning...

Book Summary

Some humans can see the fae. McKenzie Lewis can track them, reading the shadows they leave behind. But some shadows lead to danger. Others lead to lies.

A Houston college student trying to finish her degree, McKenzie has been working for the fae king for years, tracking vicious rebels who would claim the Realm. Her job isn't her only secret. For just as long, she's been in love with Kyol, the king's sword-master--and relationships between humans and fae are forbidden.

Any hope for a normal life is shattered when she's captured by Aren, the fierce and uncompromising rebel leader. He teaches her the forbidden fae language and tells her dark truths about the Court, all to persuade her to turn against the king. Time is running out, and as the fight starts to claim human lives, McKenzie has to decide once and for all whom to trust--and where she ultimately stands in the face of a cataclysmic civil war.