Shadowshaper: Chapters 1–7

by Daniel José Older
When her Brooklyn neighborhood is threatened, Sierra must master and protect an ancestral form of magic called shadowshaping.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–7, Chapters 8–14, Chapters 15–21, Chapters 22–32, Chapters 33–Epilogue

Here is a link to our lists for Dactyl Hill Squad by Daniel José Older.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. blatant
    without any attempt at concealment; completely obvious
    “Sierra? What are you staring at?”
    “Nothing, Manny.”
    Blatant lie.
  2. scaffold
    a temporary arrangement erected around a building
    Sierra glanced down from the scaffolding to where Manny the Domino King stood with his arms crossed over his chest.
  3. facade
    the front of a building
    She turned back to her own painting, on a much newer concrete facade adjacent to the old brick building from which Papa Acevedo’s face stared out.
  4. monstrosity
    something hideous or frightful
    The Tower had shown up just over a year ago, totally unannounced: a five-story concrete monstrosity on a block otherwise full of brownstones.
  5. jowl
    a looseness of the flesh of the lower cheek and jaw
    He regarded her with a concerned shake of his head, the jowly folds under his chin waving back and forth, his clawlike hands clutching the sheets.
  6. immaculate
    without error or flaw
    Her graying black hair was pulled back into a sharp bun and her makeup was immaculate, even at the end of a long day.
  7. dapper
    marked by up-to-dateness in dress and manners
    “Y’all seen my baby shred that tiny dapper kid?”
  8. perverse
    deviating from what is considered moral or right or proper
    She had been entertaining everyone with her perverse rhymes since the fourth grade.
  9. chide
    scold or reprimand severely or angrily
    “How she gonna know, Iz?” Tee chided. “You came up with that this morning!”
  10. meticulously
    in a manner marked by extreme care of details
    Izzy was a wisp of a girl, both skinny and short, but she sported a meticulously groomed mane of black hair that added a couple of inches in all directions.
  11. succumb
    be fatally overwhelmed
    Sierra whirled around, but it was just Big Jerome, finally succumbing to the team of ninth graders that Little Jerome had rallied.
  12. endearing
    lovable especially in a childlike or naive way
    In school, he just sat there sketching and smiling like he was in on some joke no one else got. Which would normally be annoying, but Sierra found it endearing.
  13. inevitably
    in such a manner as could not be otherwise
    Inevitably, Robbie would open his mouth and end up an idiot like the rest of them.
  14. hubbub
    loud confused noise from many sources
    A hubbub was rising from the party, some yelling and cursing—a fight perhaps.
  15. gait
    a person's manner of walking
    Through the forsythia and pumpkin vine, Sierra saw a middle-aged man stomping through the party with an even gait.
  16. dissonant
    lacking in harmony
    His hoarse whisper sounded somehow dissonant.
  17. solace
    comfort offered to one who is disappointed or miserable
    When she became a teenager, the quiet and beauty of the park was her solace when the rest of the world just seemed too overwhelming to handle.
  18. domicile
    housing that someone is living in
    No note was found at his domicile.
  19. precinct
    an administrative district of a city or town
    A spokesman for the NYPD’s 38th precinct said that if anyone has any information about Vernon’s whereabouts, they should contact the police or medical services.
  20. carafe
    a bottle with a stopper
    Dominic sat at the table and poured himself a cup of coffee from the carafe.
  21. din
    a loud, harsh, or strident noise
    Maria called over the din of clanking pots and sizzling butter.
  22. warily
    in a manner marked by keen caution and watchful prudence
    He looked warily around the room.
  23. jut
    extend out or project in space
    Now, his eyebrows arched and his jaw jutted out with a sharp frown as he glared into the distance.
  24. bile
    a digestive juice secreted by the liver
    “Public school is a cesspool of poisonous bile.”
  25. chortle
    laugh quietly or with restraint
    “If you take any longer,” Rutilio chortled, “Sierra here will be in the nursing home by the time you’re done. Anyway, your entire family tree is a sad weed that I pull from my garden and spit on before I feed it to the rats.”
  26. stonewall
    engage in delaying tactics or refuse to cooperate
    If no one would answer her questions, she would do what she’d always done when people she cared about stonewalled her: She’d lose herself in art.
  27. croon
    sing softly
    “Cuando la luna llena,” a voice crooned, “mata al anciano sol.”
  28. monotonous
    tediously repetitious or lacking in variety
    When she was done with the eye, she’d start filling in some of the scales along the neck. It was more monotonous work than the face details, but it had to get done.
  29. archaic
    so extremely old as seeming to belong to an earlier period
    “He has a paper trail. I know, seems so archaic, right? It’s at the Columbia anthropology archive.”
  30. breach
    a failure to perform some promised act or obligation
    Asking directly seemed like a breach of some unspoken protocol.
  31. imposing
    impressive in appearance
    They were standing in an imposing marble foyer, and Sierra felt tiny, a crumb in a giant, pristine oven.
  32. foyer
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    They were standing in an imposing marble foyer, and Sierra felt tiny, a crumb in a giant, pristine oven.
  33. pristine
    completely free from dirt or contamination
    They were standing in an imposing marble foyer, and Sierra felt tiny, a crumb in a giant, pristine oven.
  34. gab
    talk profusely
    He strutted off toward a grassy area where students were gabbing in small groups.
  35. stark
    complete or extreme
    His towering frame, slick suit, and dark skin put him in stark contrast to everyone else around.
Created on Fri Mar 30 11:08:19 EDT 2018 (updated Thu May 23 09:54:39 EDT 2019)

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