Stephanie Erickson's book "Through the Valley (The Shadow of Death Trilogy; Book One)" was fairly interesting with a pacing that kept one turning the pages; blind protagonist Lily was engaging although this reader would have liked to have seen her fleshed out more than she was. However, this was book one of a planned trilogy which allows Lily time to grow. Lily started out as a strong female but at times wallowed into stereotypical "damsel in distress" mode and then she would bounce back into a "semi-confident-working-on-strength" type character. Yet, Lily's ability to read auras and discern things about the person based on their aura was what kept this reader truly involved in the tale. The male characters had even less depth to them, compared to Lily, although this reader slowly began to feel an affinity towards Tommy, the man that raised Lily. Dialogue between Lily and Tommy felt authentic, as if these two characters truly cared about one another and knew each other well. A lot of male character Asher's dialogue with Lily felt forced, to this reader, and somewhat stilted and unrealistic; Asher seemed to be the least developed character and this reader was never able to develop any empathy for or with him... which is a shame, because the beginnings of his back story actually sounds highly intriguing. While this reader is somewhat curious about Asher's soul, she also found herself easily distracted by mundane items in her own life, when Asher was on the pages. There were some grammar, spelling and punctuation issues found, mainly towards the latter half of the book... along the lines of missing words or even incomplete thought processes. Meaning, a sentence or two simply seemed "not to fit" where it was placed, like an incomplete thought or a sudden idea popping into one's head. It still kept this reader along for the ride, however. There isn't a happily ever after ending to this tale, although some things were wrapped up - yet, this reader would not call the ending a cliff hanger, either. The ending simply answered some of the questions and left many more open and waiting for answers... but, it is book one in a series so that does fall under acceptable endings for many. Point of view changed continually, between Lily and Asher - which made it a muddled read quite often and confusing to follow. Erickson gave readers an imaginative tale to read, loosely based in mythology and legends, and wove her piece with a pace that steadily quickened and braked, before beginning again - like the lazy swoops and falls of an older roller coaster. Think of the old wooden roller coasters not the newest and fastest - it was an excruciatingly slow build from the start. Added to that, this reader simply wasn't able to fully engage with the main characters. However, knowing that her own daily happenings may have contributed to her not feeling invested in these characters, she will not fault the writer for this and will recommend Erickson's story. In fact, this reader plans to re-read the tale at a later date with a fresher mind. Maybe. ** Review originally posted to Amazon reviews on September 25, 2017 and Goodreads on the same date. **
