Shadowland (The Mediator, Book 1)

But the very first day at her new school, Suze realizes it's not that easy. There's a ghost with revenge on her mind ... and Suze happens to be in the way.

This series is AWESOME! READ IT!!! Suze is hilarious...


Fun read, great characters   March 22, 2001
Tamora Pierce (New York, NY United States)
12 out of 12 found this review helpful

I enjoyed SHADOWLAND so much that I immediately ordered the second book and WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES, a non-Mediator book by Jenny Carroll. Susannah doesn't just see dead people: she touches them, talks to them, and occasionally deals with them much more firmly. She's a mediator, someone who can set things right between the dead and those people still living the dead want to communicate with. For some reason this makes her life a little more difficult than most. People call the cops on her when she enters their yards to pass on messages, or when she damages property in her efforts to send a really troublesome spirit on its way (did I mention that being dead means you can learn to move, and throw, heavy objects?). Sh's just left her beloved New York and her best (and only) friend for California, a stepdad and three step brothers, and the very handsome ghost who haunts her bedroom. Susannah is definitely a grrl for the new century, trying to fit into a new family, a new school, and a new culture. She's believable in her struggles with dating, school, her old-fashioned roommate, and the death of her dad. And a number of the secondary characters are interesting, funny, and their own people: intellectual CeeCee, hormone boy Adam, Susannah's step-brothers, her mother and step-dad, Jesse the ghost. My favorite at the moment is Father Dominic, the head of Susannah's new high school, a priest who's kind, clever and idealistic without being syrupy. He's trying to teach Susannah that sometimes a gentler approach with people works far more efficiently than a right hook to the gut . . . He's got his work cut out for him! Great fun, a great read--now I just have to be patient and wait for the third Mediator book!


A fantastic first instalment   June 24, 2002
Alaria (England)
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

Sixteen-year-old Susannah is a mediator, meaning that she can see and talk to ghosts who, for one reason or another, have not passed on to the next world. Having been plagued by these spirits for the past fourteen years, Suze had hoped that moving from New York City to a quiet town in Northern California would offer her a fresh start. However, the moment she steps into her new bedroom, Suze knows that that isn't going to happen, because she finds herself sharing her room with a 150-year-old ghost of a boy named Jesse. Not only that, but the first day of school brings more trouble: Susannah's locker comes accompanied by the ghost of a girl who killed herself and who is now out for revenge on her ex-boyfriend. Suze is determined to persuade the girl to pass on, but when it seems the usual methods aren't working, will more unconventional action be required?

Shadowland, the first book in the series, is one I really recommend as an ideal book for any teens into fiction with a supernatural theme. I found it impossible to put down and can't wait to get started on the next instalment in the series. Definitely worth five stars.

~Jenna~