Review – Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle Muto

Posted May 28, 2022 by Carole in Reviews / 6 Comments

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Review – Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle MutoOf Shadow & Stone by Michelle Muto
Published by Skyskape on February 24, 2015
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Paranormal / General
Pages: 291
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon
four-stars

Gargoyles were created centuries ago to protect mankind, but something went horribly wrong. Now only the sentinel—a mortal chosen to control the stone beasts—stands between them and their human prey.

When the latest sentinel is killed, Kate Mercer is destined to take his place. But Kate has enough going on in her life—like a skyrocketing film career, a delusional ex-boyfriend, and a crazed stalker who will stop at nothing to get to her. But the powers that be have decided, and Kate is transported to Shadow Wood, a mysterious castle that serves as a sanctuary for the supernatural. Although beautiful, Shadow Wood is no safe place for a mere mortal. Yet Kate is drawn not only to the gargoyles but also to Ian McGuire, a charming novelist who might be in the greatest danger of all.

As Kate decides whether to accept the most perilous role of her life, she discovers there are more secrets than answers within the castle's walls. Her survival and Ian's depend on her ability to master the gargoyles before time runs out. Is fate really cast in stone?

I really enjoyed this book! I feel kind of bad that this book sat on my virtual shelves for years before I finally got around to picking it up. I am so glad that I finally bumped it up to the top of my tbr pile. I found the concept to be really interesting and the story was rather exciting. This book is a stand-alone but I really feel like it would be been a great series starter.

I liked the whole idea of the castle of Shadow Wood which is a sanctuary for those from the Netherworld. Declan is Lord of the Netherworld and created the gargoyles and is now looking for a new sentinel to take control of them. He has two candidates in mind. Kate is an actress at the top of her career but when she goes to sleep she is transported to Shadow Wood. Ian is a popular author who is about to learn that all of the stories Declan has told him are more real than he ever imagined.

I did have fun reading this book and was always eager to pick it back up after a day at work but I do think that the story tried to do too much and lacked focus. Not only is there a whole castle full of supernatural beings and the gargoyles to learn about, but Kate also has a crazy ex-boyfriend and a stalker that must be dealt with. On top of all that, there is a bit of a budding romance to keep things extra interesting. I really liked the characters and wanted to see things work out for them. Even though the story was very exciting there were times that I just wanted to get back to the things going on with the gargoyles and the castle.

I do think that a lot of other readers will enjoy this one. There was quite a bit of action that kept the story moving and a few surprises along the way. I would definitely read more of this author’s work in the future.

I received a digital review copy of this book from Skyscape via NetGalley.

6 responses to “Review – Of Shadow and Stone by Michelle Muto

  1. There does sound like there’s a lot going on in this one, but that whole gargoyle thing is always a draw for me. I might have to give this one a read this summer. 🙂