The Ghost of Shadow Vale

LoveReading4Kids Says

Perhaps best known for his brilliant Bartimaeus series (we also adored The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne), Jonathan Stroud’s The Ghost of Shadow Vale delivers a blast of myth-infused adventure. What’s more, being published by Barrington Stoke, this has been written and produced with the needs of struggling, reluctant and dyslexic readers in mind, with short chapters, off-white paper and a sensitively selected font.

Set in the vividly conjured depths of north Iceland, farmer Thorhall and his family live where few dare to venture. Namely, in Shadow Vale, a sunless spot that’s haunted by a monster, and so Thorhall employs Glam, a giant of a man, as a shepherd. After Glam’s ice-crusted body is found, the monster is never heard of again. But in its place a new threat runs rampant in the form of Glam’s ghost.

Enter Grettir, “the strongest man living in the country, and a very great hero”, who takes on the challenge of ridding Shadow Vale of Glam’s ghost, only to discover that this comes at a price…

Reviewed by Joanne Owen
Joanne Owen is a writer, reviewer and workshop presenter whose lifelong love of books began when she was growing up in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
More reviews by Joanne Owen

About The Ghost of Shadow Vale

A monstrous battle rages in this action-packed mythical adventure from Jonathan Stroud, re-edited and repackaged for struggling teen readers. In a land of ice and a vale of snow, the safety of a people rests of the shoulders of the warrior Grettir. Glam was a monster-slayer. He killed the monster in Shadow Vale. But now Glam's ghost roams the frozen wastes, killing anyone who crosses his path. Can Grettir face down the horror who was once a hero?

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