Tom Pawlik
417 pages

Connor Hayden had a heart attack two months ago. His heart stopped beating and during that time he had a near-death experience. He spent time in a place called Interworld which is a place that is a passage between this life and the next. During his time in Interworld he encountered other people: Helen, Howard, Mitch, and Devon. Valley of the Shadow is primarily about Connor’s interactions with Howard, Mitch, and Devon.
Mitch is trapped in Interworld but he doesn’t know it . Devon was revived but he didn’t return alone. <insert spooky music here>

Seriously, Valley of the Shadow was a page-turner from the get-go. It was one of those books that I really  didn’t want to put down. Interworld is a really creepy place. The reader is presented with just enough mystery that you keep reading to find out that extra little tidbit. The only problem is that once that mystery is solved you’re immediately faced with another. It took great restraint to put the book down and go to sleep when I needed to.

I would love to go back and read Vanish by Tom Pawlik to see how this all started. Fortunately for me, I recently acquired a copy from PBS.

I highly recommend Valley of the Shadow. There’s a blurb on the front cover that says, “Fans of Dean Koontz and Ted Dekker will appreciate Pawlik’s debut novel, Vanish.“- Library Journal.

I can tell you that I am a big fan of one of these authors. The other, not so much. However, I am a fan of Tom Pawlik’s. If you love edge-of-your-seat fiction without gore, check out this series. (5/5)