Shadow Moon (Chronicles of the Shadow War, Book 1)

Rating:
Summary: Claremont at his very best
Review: Chris Claremont at his very best: very strong characterization, complex plot, action, and much more. Familiarity with "Willow" is not necessary; I never saw the movie and was enthralled with the book. This is not just action in a far away fantasy setting: this is a story that will drag you in, as you get to know the characters and learn how they make decisions. Small details are crucially important to the plot. I am a long-time Chris Claremont fan; this book and its sequel(s) are quite possibly his best works ever.

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Summary: More Lucas magic
Review: Set years after the movie "Willow," Shadow Moon chronicles the adventures of a darker version of the deminutive magician, now calling himself Thorn Drumheller, on his way to the ascention of Elora Danan, a female child who he saved in the movie and is destined for greatness. But she has become more of a spoilt brat than the saviour of the world, and before he can set her right, discovers the Deciever, a sinister entity which has taken form, and calls itself Willow. Grimer setting than the movie, but correct for the story being told and the atmosphere is perfectly presented by movie maker Lucas and comic author Claremont. A rare combination of masters and the results are fantastic!

Rating:
Summary: Stick at what you're good at!
Review: Well, to be blunt, I think that it would be wise of George Lucas and Chris Claremont to stick with what they are best at. George can direct movies with the greatest skill, but writing this continuation was a task better handled by the masters. Chris is great at writing tales for comic books, but his ability to tell an epic tale is very lacking.

Rating:
Summary: Dreadful in every sense
Review: This book is the most dire pile of ********* it has ever been my misffortune to lay out five pounds for. Forget the film link-in - it's largely irrelevent to the plot anyway. The key point is that SHADOW MOON is dreadful in and of itself. The style is so turgid and overblown that it's impossible to tell waht's going on most of the time, and the most exciting scenes are robbe dof their urgency. The plot itself is wafer-thin, and the book is padded out with pointless pontification. Lucas should stick to what he's good at ie FILMS.

Rating:
Summary: Ooops!
Review: George Lucas and Chris Claremont really know how to stop a great story in its tracks. Willow was a wonderful story. This "continuation" has very little to do with Willow. They couldn't even use the name Willow after the first chapter. They had to call him Thorn Drumheller. This story is difficult reading in that you can only read about a page at a time or else you run the risk of falling asleep. This says nothing about Fin Raziel, Cherlindrea, Kaiya, Mims, Ranon, Meegosh, Burglekutt, Vohnkar, or the High Aldwin. Sorsha and Madmartigan are only mentioned briefly and even that mention is really out of character with them. I am almost scared to read Shadow Dawn. If you haven't read this book yet, don't. You will only end up becoming disenchanted with Willow.

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Summary: A wonderfully well-written sequel that triples Willow
Review: After the defeat of the demon queen Bavmorda in Willow and the subsequent breaking of the world (not in the movie), Willow matures, scavenging the face of the world to recover what was lost, only to discover that his encounter with Bavmorda was only a scratch on the surface of the adventures to come. Wonderfully written and laid-out, in true Lucas fashion. A must for any fantasy fan, even one who disliked Willow.

Rating:
Summary: What a disappointment!
Review: I liked the movie _Willow_ (I have never *seen* a copy of the book, didn't know there was one, and I frequent sci-fi/fantasy shelves...), so I thought this would be fun. I also like Star Wars, etc, so I was thinking adventure, magic, hero, battles, etc. Nope. There is a very static sort of adventure (how much adventure can there be in squishing onesself magically through a surface of solid rock for a very long time?), the hero is busy being a philosopher or something, his magic is dark and, well, icky, and the battles only kill off people you like. Bummer. I thought Madmartigan was kind of a buffoon for most of _Willow_, but he was likable and you had to like Sorsha (Sorcia?) defying her heritage to take care of the baby who was destined to destroy her own mother, but of course both of them got killed off in the first section of the book. I plowed on, thinking surely there had to be some kind of major payoff for that later, but no. Willow changes his name and becomes this unlovable and I feel untrustworthy creature who still isn't very bright but now also isn't very good. There is a sort of backlash in the adventure genre, in which the hero never gets the girl (or the boy, whatever), and has to be lonely and ultra-responsible for the weight of the world. I don't know that I hate that trend overall (hey, it includes Luke Skywalker, for one thing), but this goes way past that into making the hero someone I want my kid to stay the hell away from. This book was horrible. I kept waiting for the payoff. No payoff. No even smidgin of hope. Ick.

Rating:
Summary: george lucas does not equal gold
Review: Star wars, indiana jones and, this? my only explanation is that george lucas only provided the ideas for this story and had no part in the actual novel. As i've indicated, shadow moon starts out well, with familiar characters from the willow movie, and goes down hill FAST. Chris claremont, who is on top of his game in the X-men comic books, made a terrible mistake jumping into fantasy novels. This is the first book in a long time that has truly been a chore to read. Weak characters, anticlimactic battles, and a truly pathetic supporting cast ( two words; Brownies suck!) are just a few of the flaws. If there were parts of the book that were good, I could say it was an unpolished gem, but as it is, the gem isn't only unpolished, but still embedded in a giant chunk of earth.

Rating:
Summary: Yuck!
Review: It's been popular in recent times to write in a style as vague and as confusing as to turn a reader's mind into goo. This book fits the mold! I thought the story line enigmatic and weak, Far less than what credit is given to the Authors who wrote it. When I wish to read fantasy, I wish for clear and easy flowing script (I do read for enjoyment!), Not the Ideas I had to sludge through in this book. As for Willow, this sequel bombs

Rating:
Summary: The most boring book I've ever read!
Review: This book was so boring it put me to sleep. I had to force myself to finish reading it. The book was confusing and hard to follow and parts of it were pointless. I see absolutely no connection between it and Willow. Don't waste your money on it