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Hunter Brown and The Secret Of The Shadow

Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow by Christopher and Allan Miller (Warner Press) is an adventure fantasy written primarily for boys ages  10 and up. It is, however, a delightful story filled with spiritual truth and consequently, I […]
on Mar 18, 2009 · No comments

Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow by Christopher and Allan Miller (Warner Press) is an adventure fantasy written primarily for boys ages  10 and up. It is, however, a delightful story filled with spiritual truth and consequently, I recommend it to both boys and girls who enjoy “portal fantasy.”

One of the CSFF Blog Tour participants writing about the book, Crista Richey, brought the issue of freshness. Some of the conventions felt too trite such as the black cape for the villain and the lispy voices of some of the evil creatures. I guess I noticed some of those issues, especially at first, but there were surprises in the plot that kept the story from feeling predictable, so I overlooked the familiar accoutrements.

But now I am wondering. Is it the unique that makes a character memorable?

As I confessed in one of my posts at A Christian Worldview of Fiction, I actually ended up reading Hunter Brown and the Secret of the Shadow twice because by the time the blog tour arrived, I’d forgotten the story. And for me as a writer, this is disturbing (which is why I keep bringing it up in various venues).

Upon my second read, I realized how spiritually deep this first installment of the Codebearer Series is. The Miller Brothers don’t back away from some of the hard questions. How did the world come about? Why does suffering exist if the One in charge is good and all powerful? What happens when you die? Is God sovereign?

The good thing is, none of these big issues is dealt with as adults would treat them. In other words, answers are  clear but not delivered. Instead, the main character must ferret out the truth, and he does.

But my question is, does it matter if the readers forget the story? Granted, the forgetting-the-story issue might just be my problem, but I know that there are other stories, ones outside my genre, that I remember long after I’ve read them. Oh, sure, I might forget details, but I remember characters.

One idea is that a character with a strong voice is memorable, but I thought Hunter Brown had a strong voice. He reminded me so much of junior high boys I’ve taught. But maybe that’s the problem. Is he too ordinary?

So I ask you—what makes a character, a story memorable? This inquiring mind wants to know, and I think it’s important, because I would want readers to remember a book if it has deep spiritual truths.

And please, do take time to stop by the blogs of these March CSFF Blog Tour participants (the checkmarks indicate posts, with their links, that I know are up).



Best known for her aspirations as an epic fantasy author, Becky is the sole remaining founding member of Speculative Faith. Besides contributing weekly articles here, she blogs Monday through Friday at A Christian Worldview of Fiction. She works as a freelance writer and editor and posts writing tips as well as information about her editing services at Rewrite, Reword, Rework.
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