Perfect Shadow

4/5

A quick read to begin 2019 and to conclude my experience of rereading the Night Angel trilogy by Brent Weeks. I adored book one of the trilogy and fund the rest of the series to be massive disappointments.

This novella was no different. The author tried out a jerkier writing style that skipped between scenes more often and I really found that in this case it reduced my enjoyment of the writing. I have to acknowledge that Weeks' technical writing style usually works very well for me and it's often the content of his books that spoil the experience for me. In this novella, I found too much plot was packed into small nuggets of story without being fully immersive.

I wish it had been a full standalone novel.

In my opinion, this isn't really a story. The author gives us a few paragraphs, describing a vignette in the guy's life. These scenes jump back and forth in time, giving us little snippets of how the character came to be who he is. Eventually the reader picks up enough details about the character, the world, and the way magic works to (hopefully) want to read the trilogy.

You can't go wrong with Brent Weeks, even if it's a short novella I must devour it. A brilliant little book giving us more of Durzo's back story. Not much more to say except read this if you enjoyed the Night Angel series.

reviews.metaphorosis.com

3.5 stars

Acaelus Thorne has been alive for a very long time, carrying out the instructions of his long-departed Emperor, Jorsin Alkestes. Acaelus has had several identities, and is shifting to the latest - Durzo Blint, assassin. This is the story of Durzo's (and Acaelus') origins.

I liked Brent Weeks' Night Angel trilogy, and I've been interested to know more about how it all started. The Perfect Shadow provides a very small taste of the answer.

The Perfect Shadow reads more as a collection of scenes than as a short story. In fact, one might suspect it of being composed largely of the author's background character sketches, loosely tied together. It provides the answer to why Acaelus/Durzo became a wetboy (assassin), but in a strangely unsatisfying way. While the story is told from Acaelus' point of view, there's very little introspection. It's a classic case of telling and not showing, so that while we know he's upset about losing wife after wife to age and violence, we don't really feel what he's feeling.

All in all, it's a mildly interesting addition to the series, and only for fans. While chronologically first, it should definitely be read last. Without knowledge of the main trilogy, this story will both confuse readers and spoil later revelations.