Shadow Falls

by Amy Kathleen Ryan

In her Grandfather’s bright Wyoming valley surrounded by the mighty Tetons, 15-year-old Annie McGraw wanders a forest of shadows. She and her older brother, Cody, always spent the summers here—Cody scaling the cliff walls with Grandpa, Annie tracking Yellowstone moose with her camera. But after the phone call, the valley, like the rest of Annie’s world, feels drained of color.

Annie wishes the summer could pass like a night of dreamless sleep—until a grizzly bear finds her on the riverbank. The bear spares her life, but it has a message for her. Suddenly Annie isn’t sure how she feels about anything. Like signs in a dark forest, strangers emerge along her path—a handsome guy with a dangerous smile, a little boy wise beyond his years, the man in the Teepee Tree. Even Grandpa, always so solid and distant, seems to hold secrets behind his icy blue eyes. Struggling under the weight of her grief, Annie begins to follow the signs, and to hear the grizzly’s message.


From the Hardcover edition.

224 pages, Library Binding

First published June 14, 2005

About the author

Amy Kathleen Ryan earned her MA from the University of Vermont, and her MFA from The New School in New York City.

Amy only reviews books she thinks are excellent.

Proud to be included in this list of classic science fiction titles: https://media.bookbub.com/blog/2015/0...

Follow her on TWITTER!!
https://twitter.com/AmyKathleenRyan

Website:
http://www.amykathleenryan.com

Reviews

[Mikayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow Falls was written by Amy Kathleen Ryan. In this book, Annie McGraw is a girl struggling to cope with the recent death of her older brother. She returns to place that they went to every summer and visits with her grandpa. Annie and her Grandfather are both having a rough time getting over his death, so they bottle up there emotions. Amy Kathleen Ryan creates an interesting tale as two families try to deal with very important issues that can either make them stronger or pull them apart until nothing is left. Annie slowly came out of her grief and started to accept that Cody was gone. I found this book very interesting.
I found this book interesting because as Annie starts accepted Cody was gone she encounters unusual things that are interesting. For example;"Finally i could turn to look. It was a gargantuan, gnarled grizzly bear." I found this interesting because, in real life a bear would immediately attack you, but the bear spared her life, which is unusual. Another example is;" I smell the grizzly in the air and know i have to follow. I have to find him quickly." I found this interesting because, Annie is have illusions in the forest and this illusion is of her chasing the grizzly bear because he knows something she wants to know. Finally another thing i found interesting was;" Cody smiles at me, his stiff lips stretching over yellowed teeth. His voice becomes the stale wind moving like a razor through the forest, carrying the smell of smoke and death." I found this interesting because Annie is seeing Cody in her head, i find it interesting because Cody is dead and she says he smells like death and smoke. Therefore, i find a lot of things interesting through-out this book.
Thus, overall this was a great book with a lot of conflict going on that makes yu wanna just keep reading.

[Lena Nielsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a slow read, took ages before I got interested in the story. But it was okay.

[Conan Tigard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow Falls is an interesting tale about a girl struggling to cope with the recent death of her older brother. She returns to place that they went to every summer and visits with her grandpa. But she isn't dealing well with her loss, and either is he, and neither are talking, keeping their emotions bottled up inside.

Amy Kathleen Ryan creates an interesting tale of strife and healing, as two families try to deal with the highly charged issues that can either make them stronger or pull them apart until nothing is left. I found myself quite enjoying the story as Annie slowly came out of her funk and started to accept that Cody was gone. There are other people that need her now, and she has to learn how to reach out.

Overall, I think Shadow Falls by Amy Kathleen Ryan is a great read and should not be passed by.

I rated this book an 8 out of 10.

[joy *the clean-reader extraordinaire* · Rating 4 out of 5]

went looking for more by Amy Kathleen Ryan after reading the final book in her series Glow.

this stand-alone contemporary YA is beautiful, simple, and compelling

pg13 for some real-life adult problems and perils, plus a little profanity

[Catherine Stine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breathtaking Wyoming setting, suspenseful action, heartfelt portrayal of sibling love and a certain brand of rivalry.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading Amy Kathleen Ryan's other book, Vibes, I searched out her other books. This is another well written book but with a much different setting in the Wyoming wilderness.

[laaaaames]

This is just too slow for me, and maybe it's Deb Caletti's fault, but as much as I love me a good family drama, I don't read YA to deal so much with middle-aged and older people.

[Tom Mueller]

not finished.