Review: When Shadows Grow Tall

Author: Maressa Voss

Genre: Fantasy, Dark Fantasy

Rating: 4.5 / 5

Features:

• A blend of magical adventure and revolutionary tale centered around the control of knowledge and the pursuit of truth 

• Slow burn fantasy 

• Enlightenment era world with strong Gaelic inspiration

• Nature and memory based magic system 

The magical dactyli order is on the brink of collapse; threatened by both a new political regime seeking to undermine them and a powerful rogue dactyli who is killing off potential new recruits. As two members of the order try to discover the truths behind these threats, a young woman finds herself among outcasts as she follows the trail left for her by her rebel father. As each goes on their journey, only one thing is certain: the winds of change have arrived in The Grasp. 

The Grasp is an intriguing world at the edge of enlightenment. Voss welcomes readers into this complicated setting with lovely writing and interesting characters. That being said, this is the first book in a series and definitely feels like it. There is a lot to be learned about this world and this book takes its time teaching you and setting up the complicated conflicts that will likely be explored in future installations. Though slow paced, the book never dragged for me. However, the book ends when it feels like things are just beginning and the villain characters don’t get the same quality development in this particular piece. If you enjoy solid world building and don’t mind a slower pace, When Shadows Grow Tall is definitely a book I would recommend! 

Some things familiar, some things new

Though there are many familiar tropes in this book, they are woven together in a way that feels unique and make space for some of the new elements to be introduced. The magic system is based on the elements, but the way it is tied to both nature and memory gives it a fresh feel and makes it more intimately connected to the world at large. Though it definitely has an ‘old world’ vibe, the choice to set this at the start of a period of enlightenment gives the familiar conflicts unfolding a very different feel and a lot more complexity. These are just a couple of many such details that gives this story a unique identity and I love that the book allows you to discover its intricacies on your own. If Voss can continue to deliver on the promises of this book, the next installments will be even more amazing!

Setting the stage

This book moves at a slow pace as it assembles all of the pieces for the central conflict. Though the story never dragged, there is a lot of build up to what feels like the inciting  for the rest of the series rather than the climax of this individual book. There are definitely some unexpected twists and intense moments, but the lack of time spent on the ‘villain’ characters and overall conflict makes them feel a little flat in this particular book. However, I think that a lot of this feeling is because the central plot of the series is just starting. That being said, this book doesn’t exactly end on a cliffhanger, but it leaves you with far more questions and plot lines than you start with. Overall, this is very much a ‘first book’ but I am interested to see where this story will go.

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Special thanks to NetGalley and Collective Ink Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!