Synopsis:

One womb, one soul, two fates. One will rise. One will fall.

Shura and Jin are the last of a divine bloodline, operating at the bloodiest fringes of society where they wield might and magic against the demons they are sworn to destroy. For Shura, it’s the only way to restore honor to her lineage and claim her rightful place in the world. For Jin, it’s a matter of begrudging duty—and escaping the influence of the three kings vying for control of the continent.

In their pursuit of the sadistic cult behind the demons’ resurgence, the twins find themselves hunted by an ancient demon harboring a blood vendetta, and are forced to set aside past grudges and seek the kings’ alliance. When Shura discovers a chilling prophecy, she fears that even her newfound allies may not be enough to stem the rising tide of shadow.

Even the palest chance of victory will come at a brutal price. But the prophecy never foretold whose fate would settle the debt: Shura’s or her brother’s.

Review:

Cal Logan is a self-published grimdark/Dark Fantasy author with his DEBUT novel, “ShadowBane”, that was just released on September 17, 2024. As well as a writer, Cal Logan is a full-time personal trainer and competitive powerlifter. He started writing in 2017 in which he draws inspiration from history, time spent practicing mixed martial arts, and books. Cal lives in Chicago with his wife, Taylor, and his dachshund, Rizzo.

When it comes to Asian Mythology, nothing I have read has given me the experience “ShadowBane” by Cal Logan did and honestly, it may be a while before I experience it, again. Scrolling one night through social media, I saw a demon-covered, action-promised, and artistically excellent illustration. It was the cover of “ShadowBane”. Once I had reached out to Cal Logan, he had created something fresh and with the utmost quality in regards to his writing, the high-quality materials used for his hardcover/paperback, and the author’s research and passion Cal Logan has for Asian culture and Mythology.

I absolutely love a dark fantasy/grimdark story steeped in mythology, and in “ShadowBane”, there’s a deep sense of authenticity to this story in which Cal Logan so passionately brewed into each page.

“ShadowBane” by Cal Logan is an action-packed, roaring debut novel that brings readers deep into a fantastical Asian Mythology-inspired world that transported me into each scene. The mythological badassery of the author’s excellent world-building makes this aspect one of MOST solid parts of “ShadowBane”. Cal Logan has a writing style that is not only digestible but brings a number of positives like a rich yet not overly complex prose, the story has depth and maintains a great pace, and has larger-than-life monsters that are grotesque in detail that brought the “UGH!” factor I love so much in a dark fantasy story.

The story/plot is a “tug-of-war” between “good and evil” is intimately told and felt from within a close cast of demon hunters, “Skikoken”. Shura and Jin are brother and sister that are the MC’s, throughout. Fen is giant Tiger-like animal, and is a kick-ass animal companion that made the cast of characters we get to know in “ShadowBane”, complete. Wallace, the last character I will talk about, is the one guaranteed to mess up anything and everything, yet the other characters and myself, feel nothing but love for him.

Shura and Jin fight relentlessly but are loyal to each other, duty, their word, and the sword. Shura and with dignity to restore what is most important to her, the HONOR tied to her LINEAGE, even when relationships and prophecy give her more than she’d bargained for. Jin is a master of the sword and DUTY is most important to this honorable character I loved to get to know. There is no obstacle big enough to break his sense of dutiful honor and allegiance.

The negatives of “ShadowBane” are few. I do feel the story was slow in certain parts of the story. I also feel certain parts were too fast paced. There were a couple fight scenes I didn’t want to end, as well as a scene that was over before I knew exactly what was happening.

“ShadowBane” by Cal Logan is a roaring debut that has set a HUGE example for all self-published authors(especially DEBUT authors) in high standards of quality of writing, high quality physical book materials(HC & PB), and the talent to be an author in the self-publishing world of self-set standards while also maintaining the “Traditionally Published” standards in grammar, editing, sentence structure, cover art, formatting, typography, etc.

Cal Logan has written a grimdark masterpiece and would recommend it to ANY lover of fantasy, especially ones who love a mythology based story with twists, great animal companions, or action-packed novel with amazing characters and complex story! I am exited to see where Cal Logan’s publishing career goes from here and am looking forward to anything and everything he publishes from here on out!