Review: Shadows in the Mist (Booke of the Hidden #3) by Jeri Westerson

Flora Reviews… Shadows in the Mist by Jeri Westerson. Book 3 in her urban fantasy series, Booke of the Hidden.

Shadows in the Mist is the third novel (approx 296 pages) in adult urban fantasy series, Booke of the Hidden.

Booke of the Hidden is set in the beautiful but fictional, rural village of Moody Bog, Maine, USA. Our key human characters include: Our heroine, Kylie Strange. A local coven of Wiccans – retired doctor and part-time plasterer, Doc Boone, middle aged Seraphina, a bohemian free-spirit and ‘sensitive’, Nick Riley barista and Goth and sixteen year old researching whiz kid and budding Wiccan Jolene Ayrs. Moody Bog’s Sheriff and hotty, Ed Bradbury. His criminal brother and leader of the Ordo – a coven of biker witches into black magic – Doug Bradbury. Plus Ruth Russell, a descendent of Moody Bog’s founding families who is firmly at the top of society’s hierarchy.

There’s no set mythology to the paranormal elements of the tale (e.g. Norse, Christian, Egyptian, etc). Therefore the non-human species that we encounter can be found in any folklore rather than from a specific belief system. This includes the elusive and enigmatic demon, Mr Erasmus Dark.

I focus my reviews on how the story was told rather than the plot itself. I’m looking at the author’s writing style, how they paced their plots and how well they constructed their characters and setting. Therefore, my reviews don’t contain spoilers or reveal plot twists.

Here’s what the official blurb has to say about the story.

This series has turned me into a fan of Jeri Westerson. I find her writing style engaging, intelligent and easy to read. I love the way Jeri weaves her plots; they are complex enough to keep me intrigued without being convoluted. I feel that there’s always a good balance of humour, action, tension, mystery and romance in her tales. The pace that they develop and when things are revealed just feels right.

I loved the way Jeri continued to craft her world, building on the previous books. As the series has progressed, the characters have evolved too. I like Kylie more and more with each book. She’s intelligent and has heaps of gumption (even if she does find herself in a quandary on the romantic front). I like how she’s evolving, becoming more self-assured and comfortable in her Chosen Host shoes. She’s grown since the first book and continues to do so during this adventure in both her skills and knowledge.

The secondary characters that Jeri created to populate her world, feel just as real as our lead. All have strong, memorable personalities and aren’t just filling the page. For example kind old Doc Boone has turned into quite the mage and a wonderful patriarch. Teenager Jolene has also come into her own as the series has progressed and has become pivotal to the group. I love that Jeri writes her characters with the complexities that we’d see in those around us. They have a good balance of strengths and insecurities to make them feel real, even the supernatural ones. Who knew I’d end up really liking Kylie’s scummy ex-boyfriend, Jeff?!

Shadows in the Mist definitely kept me guessing. I was holding my breath at times, on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. And I admit, I was scared a few times too, waiting to see what horrors would come out of that damn mist. I loved the shocking revelations, tense stand-offs and action-packed fight scenes. However, don’t worry it’s not all tension and scares. There are giggles and a good sprinkling of tummy tingling passion to balance it all out too.

As you can tell, I did really enjoy this book. However I feel I should explain why I rated it 4 stars rather than 5. In other words, what took the shine off for me?

As my regular followers will know, I’m not a fan of cliffhanger endings. Shadows in the Mist doesn’t end in an obvious life or death situation. However, the book does kinda just stop right after an exhilarating fight scene. I’d prefer a scene or two to allow the adrenaline to come down (for me and the characters). I found it ended too abruptly and jarringly.

So far, Kylie and her coven friends have had to deal with different Booke escapees in each book. By the end of the book the escaped monsters are duly captured and dealt with. While certain continuing storylines have been running in the background of the whole series. For example Kylie’s destiny/curse, the origins of the Booke and her romantic relationships. Jeri eloquently weaves any pertinent facts regarding previous adventures into this tale. However you’ll lack many little details reading the series out of order or this one as a standalone. For example knowing re-occurring characters and understanding the dynamics of those relationships.

I really enjoyed this book; I couldn’t stop reading it. It kept me guessing, made me chuckle and put a lump in my throat. However it also warmed my old romantic heart and sent tingles of titillation to my nether regions. The final book in this series – The Darkest Gateway – is due to be released later this year. I can’t wait to see how Jeri ties everything together for Kylie and her friends.

Content Warning:

Shadows in the Mist contains scenes of graphic violence, sexual content and disturbing nature. Therefore I’d only recommend it to adults who aren’t offended by this type of content.

If you love reading well-written tales of magic, curses, mystery and horror. Stories with a bit of passion and romance thrown in the mix, then Shadows in the Mist is for you.

Has my review of SHADOWS IN THE MIST (BOOKE OF THE HIDDEN #3) encouraged you to find out more? I really hope so. Click on any of the links below to check out the book yourself. Keep reading to find out more about this amazing series and Jeri herself.

Thank you for taking the time to read this review. I really love this series. To read everything I’ve written about the books, click HERE.