''"I was the queen's shadow. I could not remember a day when I wasn't by her side. Three old men in hooded grey capes, which strangled their wrinkled necks and flowed down to the floor, ordered me to stay with her at all times. I knew they hoped a flaming arrow flying her way would pierce and burn me, not her. It was a lonely life, but I accepted it. I might not be a queen or a gentle lady or even a saucy servant girl who had a real cot to sleep on, but I knew what I wanted. I lived for a hope: One day I would leave the queen's dreary castle and venture out into the world. I would escape."
->-Shadow
->-Shadow
Shadow is a fantasy novel written by Jenny Moss and published in 2010.
Long ago, in the Kingdom of Deor, it was prophesied at her birth that the queen would die before her sixteenth birthday. So Shadow, an orphan girl the same age as the young queen, was given the duty to watch her every move. And as prophesies do tend to come true, the queen is poisoned days before her birthday. When the castle is thrown into chaos, Shadow escapes with a handsome young knight, Sir Kenway, whom she believes was betrothed to the queen.
Unsure of why she is following Sir Kenway, but determined to escape as far as possible from the castle, her long-time prison, Shadow sets off on an adventure with the handsome knight who has been charged with protecting her. As mystery builds, and romantic tension does, too, Shadow begins to wonder what her role in the kingdom truly is. Soon, she learns, it is up to her to save her land.
This novel includes examples of:
- Abusive Parents: Kenway's father openly berates his son in front of guests, and at one point slaps him for talking back. It's implied that this rough behavior is a consequence of being expelled from the royal castle after King Alfrid's death, an act he was suspected to be a part of.
- Almost Kiss: Between Shadow and Sir Kenway at the latter's home, before they are interrupted by Kenway's father.
- Always Identical Twins: Roe and Rowe. It takes Shadow a minute to understand the differences in their names.
- Alpha Bitch: Lady Fay, described by Shadow as 'the slyest of the ladies", is the ringleader of Audrey's trio of ladies-in-waiting and is often the one who provokes incidents in which Shadow will be punished.
- Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Shadow, who's mentality is understandable since she's been emotionally and physically abused nearly all her life by Queen Audrey and her ladies.
- Arc Symbol: The blackberries and the medallion.
- Big Bad: Fyren, who orchestrated the poisoning of Queen Audrey/Devona, and also murdered King Alfrid, Shadow's father.
- Big Damn Kiss: Shadow and Kenway have two: one on the cliffside at Kendra's house, and another towards the end at the castle, after Shadow has been restored to her rightful place as Queen Audrey of Deor.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension. Shadow and Sir Kenway.
- Book Ends: The first chapter of the book begins with Shadow standing at Queen Audrey's window, and the final chapter begins with her standing at the same window, but this time having learned her true place as the true queen of Deor.
- Condescending Compassion: Sir Kenway is initially very cold and condescending towards Shadow at the beginning of their journey, mostly due to their difference in rank. Things begin to change as the two start to fall in love, and upon discovering Shadow's true identity.
- Covert Pervert: When a feverish Kenway is being tended to by Tayte, Shadow traces his lips with her finger, then traces her own as a sort of indirect kiss. She quickly mentally scolds herself for her behavior.
- Dangerous 16th Birthday: Queen Audrey was prophesied from birth to die before her sixteenth birthday, a fear which is uneasily brought up by a few of the queen's ladies before a grand dinner celebration. When Audrey is poisoned and dies in her sleep, it looks like the prophecy has ultimately come to pass, only for it to be revealed later that Shadow is the real Queen Audrey, and that the "Audrey" who was poisoned was actually a peasant girl named Devona who was swapped with Shadow at birth to protect her.
- Death by Childbirth: How Queen Anne died. In actuality, it was because Erce had lost the desire to be human after her husband's murder, and the woman who's body she had taken to become Queen Anne was too weak to survive Shadow's birth.
- Disney Death: Eldred is stabbed by one of Fyren's men and seemingly dies. However, he returns later in the story alive, having been nursed back to health by Ingrid and Hilda.
- Disney Villain Death: Fyren dies from falling off the castle balcony, his body splattered all over the courtyard below. Yikes...
- Divine Parentage: Queen Anne, Shadow/Audrey's mother, was the physical form of Erce, the goddess of nature, therefore making Shadow part divine. Ingen is also revealed to be a descendant of the sea god.
- Dumb Blonde: Queen Audrey, who would rather spend her time gossiping with her ladies than learn the intricacies of ruling her kingdom.
- Embarrassing First Name: Shadow isn't too fond of her birth name Audrey at first, which is understandable, since the name is synonymous with someone who has done nothing but torment Shadow all her life. She later learns to accept it.
- Foreshadowing: When recalling events from her childhood, Shadow remembers how Eldred always insisted that she be educated alongside Queen Audrey, and appeared to focus many of his lessons towards her rather than the young queen. This is because he was aware of Shadow's true identity as the real Queen Audrey, and was subtly preparing her for the day when she'd take back her throne.
- God in Human Form: Erce took on the mortal form of Queen Anne to be with King Alfrid, Shadow's father.
- The Good King: King Alfrid was this when he was alive. His wife, Queen Anne, was likewise well-loved.
- Gossipy Hens: Queen Audrey's ladies Ingrid, Hilda, and Fay. They spend most of their time gossiping about goings on in the castle, and cruelly mocking Shadow.
- The Hermit: Kendra lives in a solitary hut on a cliff by the ocean. Her reputation for spells and possibly being a witch drove her to choose a life of seclusion.
- I Just Want to Be Free: Shadow's life as a frequently abused servant of the selfish and spoiled Queen Audrey is what primarly drives her to escape the castle and into the outside world.
- Ironic Echo: "How had I ever thought him kind?", which is first said by Shadow about Kenway when they escape the castle and he continues to criticize and order her around. She later says the same thing about Fyren after his deception is revealed.
- Ironic Name: The name "Audrey" means "noble strength", which doesn't really fit the selfish, air-headed Queen Audrey. The name is much more applicable to the true Queen Audrey: Shadow.
- The Kingslayer: Fyren murdered his cousin, King Alfrid, to advance himself further up the line of succession. He also poisoned Queen Audrey/Devona.
- Low Fantasy: Magic is considered to be a superstition or is conflated with witchcraft, and supernatural elements such as ghosts and higher deities are laughed off. However, as the story continues, more supernatural elements begin to appear as Shadow learns more about the forgotten religion of Deor and the gods begin to show themselves again.
- Mad Love: Lady Fay is implied to be in love with Fyren.
- May–December Romance: Kenway's stepmother is noted to be significantly younger than her husband. This causes a bit of friction between the two, mostly on Kenway's end due to his hang ups about his late mother.
- Morality Pet: Piers is this to Shadow. While she's not evil, she us incredibly sullen and jaded due to her abusive upbringing. Piers is one of very few people she trusts completely, and he in turn trusts her with his own secrets and insecurities.
- Oh, Crap!:
- The queen's ladies all gasp in horror when Shadow asks if Queen Audrey is "so stupid as to not remember the names of [her] own lords.", leading the queen to fly into a rage and attack Shadow.
- Fay suffers a version of this when she realizes that the girl she and the ladies had been abusing all these years is the true Queen Audrey.
- One-Word Title: Only One Name-type Protagonist Title.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Shadow's true name was forgotten at her birth. She later discovers what her name really is: Audrey.
- Poison Is Evil: Queen Audrey dies from being poisoned, as the prophecy foretold. However, the prophecy isn't technically fulfilled because Audrey wasn't even the true queen in the first place.
- Prophecy Twist: At her birth, a prophecy foretold that Queen Audrey would die before her sixteenth birthday. Audrey later dies in her sleep from poisoning, causing most to believe that the prophecy came true. The twist is that Queen Audrey was actually a commoner stand-in named Devona, who had been Switched at Birth with the real Audrey (aka Shadow) in order to protect her.
- Rags to Royalty: Shadow is a Sleeping Beauty example. She was swapped at birth with the commoner Devona, who was raised to be Queen Audrey in her place, while Shadow (the real Audrey) was raised as a servant to protect her from the prophecy that foretold her death.
- Really Royalty Reveal: As it turns out, Shadow is actually the real Queen Audrey, having been switched at birth with Devona, who was raised in her place.
- Regent for Life: This is Fyren's ultimate goal, planning to rule as regent until before Queen Audrey's 16th birthday, when she would reach her age of majority. Shadow rediscovering her true identity as the rightful queen ensures that this scheme never comes to pass.
- Servile Snarker: Shadow tends to take jabs at Queen Audrey in private, considering her to be vapid and vain, and barely qualified to be a ruler.
- Shipper on Deck: Kenway's youngest sister flat out asks Shadow if she's going to marry him, and Kenway's father gives a "knowing laugh" when Kenway insists on Shadow being given the room next to his. It's also revealed that Eldred wanted Kenway to marry Shadow all along, but wanted to wait until she discovered her true identity as Queen Audrey.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Shadow is described as heavily resembling her mother Queen Anne/Erce.
- Switched at Birth: Shadow/Queen Audrey was switched with peasant girl Devona at birth, in an attempt to protect her from death.
- Too Important to Remember You: Having been orphaned at birth, no one ever bothered to give Shadow a real name, and she went on to adopt the nickname "Shadow" as she was only considered to be the queen's shadow. Half of the time, the inhabitants of the castle barely even bother to call her by any name at all.
- Unwitting Pawn: Devona had no idea that she was nothing more than a stand-in for the real Queen Audrey: Shadow.
- Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Queen Audrey, who was almost like a sister to Shadow when they were children. But then she locked Shadow in a trunk to punish her for answering her instructor's questions meant for her, and neither girl was the same after that.
