Shade of the Tree

This is not your average Piers Anthony book. Those who picked this up because they read the Xanth books or Apprentice Adept series might be confused and ultimately disappointed. I would liken this book more to Dean Koontz or Stephen King (the cover blurb even mentions the latter author, which was helpful for me knowing what I was getting into, but might not be present on other editions).
Recent widower Joshua Pinson inherits a house in rural Florida from an eccentric uncle. He moves his two children and various pets to this place for a change of pace and recovery from their mother’s death. However, almost immediately, very strange events begin to occur and it’s possible that there’s something sinister at work in the vicinity.
The show more cause of these events was pretty immediately obvious to this reader, so it was a bit frustrating that the characters were so obtuse about it. Joshua himself has no belief in anything that can’t be logically and scientifically explained, and even after he personally witnesses something for which Occam’s Razor would suggest the supernatural, he’s still trying to rationalize. Long-time residents of the area, even and especially ones who seem intelligent also fail to add up the obvious clues to the origins of the spectral happenings.
However, even with that criticism, I found I was unable to put the book down. Anthony creates such complex and relatable characters, even including brief paragraphs told from the minds of the pets (I was preoccupied for quite some time with the humans continual neglect of their fish, although I’m not sure it was intentional for me to be, it may be Anthony forgot to mention their being fed, or maybe we were supposed to assume..).
The writing was excellent for genre prose, with superlative vocabulary usage and sentence structure. The pacing was quite suspenseful and nothing unnecessary to moving the plot forward seemed to be included. I found that since I wasn’t much curious about the central “mystery” of the novel, I was more fascinated by guessing characters’ reactions, motivations, and ultimate fates. (I can tell you the eventual new romantic partner in Joshua’s life was not the one I expected!)
In other books I have read by this author, it seems Anthony displays a rather problematic view of women, and this is no different, but if one is aware of his particular failing, it can be overlooked for the enjoyment of the story.
Overall, a pretty worthwhile book to have read, but not one I would stridently recommend. show less

Definitely not what I expected out of my first encounter with this author...but not at all bad. Fun, in fact, and probably a keeper. A widower New York programmer goes to Florida with his family to live on property he inherited from his uncle. Events that unfold seem to indicate the land is haunted...but is it? The denouement comes in a bit of a rush, but it's not so sudden that it doesn't wrap well. All in all very satisfying and not the last I expect to read by Piers Anthony.

A father moves into a ramshackle house under the spreading arms of a tree with his children. Then odd things start happening.

Reading through this is like watching the father go through a journey of self discovery. He must protect his children, protect his own sanity, and the woman he is starting to fall in love with, all while dealing with the mystery growing around his home. But in the end it's the mystery that saves him.

The ending of this tale was beautiful. The best part of the whole book.

this book gave me the creeps, it is well written with a story line you simply fall into

I read this when I was eleven and I thought it was ridiculous but I really appreciated that it had sex scenes in it, so thanks, Piers Anthony!

After the death of Joshua Pinson's wife and the death of his uncle, Joshua decides to make a new start on the estate his uncle left him on the outskirts of a state park in Florida. He and his children and his two dogs move out to the land sight-unseen, and Joshua discovers that the estate has a sinister reputation. Too many deaths and terrible events are rumored to have occurred in the Shade of the Tree. Joshua is struck by the beauty of the tree, but, when strange things begin to occur, Joshua racks his brain in the attempt to explain them logically - until things begin to spiral out of control and even Joshua is unable to rationalize them away. This book is satisfying on many levels - it ranges from the despondence of loss and show more mourning to the bliss of love in a web of mystery that threatens to consume even Joshua's seven-year-old daughter. Will he recognize the threat and escape before it is too late? Only Piers Anthony can tell us. show less

A little hard to classify. SF with a bit of horror I guess would be closest, since it has elements of both, but the ending is classic SF (discovery) rather than horror (either the protagonist or antagonist dies).
Was tempted to down the rating by one for being a little week near the end, but considering originality and lack of big plot errors like most modern "thriller " SF, I'll give it four