I have read and reviewed the previous books of the series lined above, if anyone wants to look at it before they check this one out.
I do not know of many people willing to risk starting this book at this point, but I came close to being something like such a person. I had forgotten a lot of the events that happened as well as the key players’ names. They did not come rushing back but slowly adjusted themselves in my head, and each settled in their places.
I still would not recommend picking this up first, mostly because, as always, there are more twists to the entire concept of reality here. There has been one in every book thus far, and this is no exception. Each may also alter our understanding of the previous books, but it is done smoothly.
We have PTSD(or its equivalent in this world) discussed in full. The shadow of sorrow encompasses more than one character that we have previously come to rely on. The story has three distinctive parts, diverging from the previously contained location. Each piece comes with its own burdens, secrets and revelations.
Apart from the concept of grief, there is a continued reflection on Honor and what it entails and how people interpret it. There are people whose relationships continue to evolve in unexpected (and very rarely, in expected ways).
The last third of the book was filled with continuous action and heart in mouth moments—the stage is laid for the next with some critical decisions to come. Because of the pacing, I had to differentiate it from the previous ones by rating it lower. This is a series that builds the world and the atmosphere in painstaking fashion brick by (tiny) brick. I even recommended it to my sister and her husband since they liked Mistborn, and they went ahead and bought the entire series published to date! They are also enjoying the series, although initially, the details gave my sister a headache; once past the halfway mark, she liked it much better!
I am so glad my library bought an English copy, and I might have been the first person to borrow it! The new book smell, coupled with the graphics interspersed between the chapters, made the entire experience a treat!
Superfluous Reading 