Where both the nobility and the church are corrupt, Caim has no loyalties and will do just about any job he is paid to do. Caim is one of the best assassins in the dangerous city of Othir. What he has that others do not is a mysterious magical ability and a ghostly companion named Kit who flutters in and out at her own bidding to help Caim. At the beginning of Shadow's Sons, he reluctantly accepts a contract to kill a nobleman that another assassin has dropped. As he slips into the man's home, Caim finds that someone else has beat him to the mark and raised the alarm. During his escape, he kipnaps the nobleman's daughter, Josie. The two must work together to discover who really killed her father and wanted to set up Caim.

While the set up for Shadow's Son is familiar, there a re a few points that set it apart. Caim's shadow magic is interesting and I wish had been explored a bit more. The same goes for his ghostly companion Kit-- I feel her story could have been expanded more. While Josey was a fairly annoying pampered young woman, as she must learn to trust Caim, she loses the helplessness and becomes a character I could care about.

My Recommendation
Shadow's Son has plenty of action and intrigue with a fast pace that makes this a quick read. Several loose ends remain at the end of the novel suggesting a sequel may be forthcoming, which I hope would explore more of Caim's magic. I would recommend this as a nice casual fantasy read.

Shadow's Son by Jon Sprunk
Published by Pyr
279 pages

Shadow's Son by Jon Sprunk is available at Amazon.com

My review copy of Shadow's Son was provided by the publisher