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The Serpent\u2019s Shadow Vintage Book Review<\/p>\n
“The Serpent\u2019s Shadow” is one of those books that I had on my shelf for ages without ever picking it up. This is particularly silly since I actually bought the book myself! When I finally did sit down to read it, the novel turned out to be one that I keep revisiting. Mercedes Lackey has a fantastic talent for world-building, and this book is no exception.<\/p>\n
The story is about Maya Witherspoon, a doctor who is of mixed Indian and British heritage. Living in Edwardian London, she\u2019s quite isolated, having left India after her parents were mysteriously murdered\u2014her father from a snake bite and her mother from an unknown illness. Not fully understanding what killed them, Maya honored her mother\u2019s dying wish for her to learn the magic her father practiced and headed to London.<\/p>\n
Maya possesses magical abilities but isn\u2019t fully trained. Once in London, she works at a hospital serving the poor, finding it more meaningful despite the challenges posed by chauvinistic doctors. She also starts a private practice out of her home, gaining clients through word-of-mouth.<\/p>\n
She catches the attention of a group of Elemental Masters, who send Peter Scott, a water master and sea captain, to assess her powers. Pretending to seek help for an old injury, Peter finds Maya clever and realizes she isn\u2019t involved with any dark forces. He decides to mentor her since his all-male group wouldn\u2019t accept a female member. Through Peter\u2019s lessons, Maya quickly masters the earth elements.<\/p>\n
Maya\u2019s trusted valet Gupta, who has been with her family for years, thinks Peter\u2019s training is a good idea. He reveals to Maya that her aunt Shivani, who possesses evil magic, is in London intending to kill Maya and wreak havoc.<\/p>\n
Shivani, a priestess of Kali Durga, is determined to destroy those who have ruled India and to steal Maya\u2019s power. As Maya deepens her magical training, she discovers that there\u2019s much more at stake than she realized, involving her aunt, magic, and the elite society.<\/p>\n
The novel is rich with historical elements, like Maya and her friend Amelia participating in a suffragette march. While Lackey takes some liberties with the history, it doesn\u2019t distract from the fantasy setting. The romance between Maya and Peter develops slowly and naturally, founded on mutual respect and friendship. Maya is no damsel in distress, and Peter sees her as an equal, often more skilled than himself, making them a great duo.<\/p>\n
I appreciated that although the story has hints of the Snow White fairy tale, it stands on its own. For those who enjoy this book, Lackey\u2019s Elemental Masters series offers more novels based on familiar fairy tales.<\/p>\n
Content Warning: There are some violent scenes, medical descriptions similar to what you\u2019d find in a health class, and mild language.<\/p>\n
Adaptation Recommendation:
\nThis story would make a fantastic film. The gloomy setting of Edwardian London contrasted with magical elements would captivate fans of shows like “Penny Dreadful” or films like “Crimson Peak.” I would cast Priyanka Chopra as Maya for her range and strength, and Scott Patterson as Peter to bring his rugged yet gentle nature to the role.<\/p>\n
Have you read “The Serpent\u2019s Shadow”? Share your thoughts in the comments!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Serpent\u2019s Shadow Vintage Book Review “The Serpent\u2019s Shadow” is one of those books that I had on my shelf for ages without ever picking it up. This is particularly…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":201,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-books"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2030,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202\/revisions\/2030"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesilverpetticoatreview.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}