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Taylor's characters lack depth, however. How are the characters transformed by meeting evil head-on? How do they come to understand the power of God? We get only a glimpse of change in one character, Jacob Crane—who joins the band of rebels to overthrow Demurral because he's been cheated out of business by the vicar and wants revenge. He is a changed man, the book says, but beyond his willingness to rescue Thomas, Kate, and Raphah, we don't get much sense of that change.

Shadowmancer aims for young adult readers, and surely it should not be given to children younger than 12. My 10-year-old daughter soon became uncomfortable with scenes of attempted human sacrifice and spirits of the dead moving in and out of the living.

In one particularly gruesome scene, Thomas visits his sick mother; a spirit inhabits her and tries to bite his neck. My daughter, who is an avid reader of such complex books as Holes, stopped reading after 50 pages, saying "I didn't understand it."

Will Shadowmancer sweep the United States as did Harry Potter? Readers will determine that, but the tone is more serious, urgent, and cataclysmic than the first Potter books. It lacks humor and moments of reflection that make you feel more human and more able to identify with the characters. And it sometimes contains less than believable Bible-quoting in situations where I'm thinking, "Run, and pray on the way!"

But perhaps Shadowmancer shows something that some of the others do not—characters relentlessly calling on God to shine his light into the shadows.

Greg Taylor is managing editor of New Wineskins magazine. He is author of the newly released novel, High Places (Leafwood Publishers).

Copyright © 2004 Christianity Today.Click for reprint information.

An interview with author G.P.Taylor is also posted today.

Shadowmancer is available from Christianbook.com and other book retailers.

More information about the book is available from the Shadowmancerweb site, and from the publisher.

Other reviews include:

'Shadowmancer' Touted as 'Hotter than Potter' | Shadowmancer, an allegorical novel for teens about the battle between good and evil, has become a British bestseller, been translated into 20 languages and optioned for the movies. In the United States, the book's publisher is declaring it 'hotter than Potter,' but some critics say first-time author G.P. Taylor's writing is no match for J.K. Rowling. Jeff Lunden reports. (Morning Edition, NPR)

British fantasy author not wild about Harry | Taylor says 'Shadowmancer' isn't a 'Christian' book (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Vicar copes with literary blessing | Life has taken a surreal turn for Taylor, 44, the vicar of Ravenscar, a small parish on England's Yorkshire coast. Two years ago, he sold his beloved motorcycle to self-publish the book he wrote on his days off. He expected to sell a few hundred copies. (Miami Herald)

Potter rival is US best seller | A Yorkshire vicar who was challenged by a parishioner to write an alternative to Harry Potter now has seen his book reach the top of the best seller list in America. (The Church of England)

Fantasy novel catches attention of 'Potter,' Tolkien fans | Action-packed fantasy, "Shadowmancer," by G.P. Taylor, set in the 1700s Yorkshire coast, is a best seller in the U.K. and poised to capture the imaginations of America's youth. (MSNBC)

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June 2004, Vol. 48, No. 6