Shade's Children - Main Themes

Main Themes

The book is about survival at all costs against a seemingly invincible foe. Shade's increasing lack of humanity is a constant threat to the reader and characters in the book. Ninde and Gold-Eye's growing relationship throughout the story is a touching account of love against adversity. In contrast to this, Drum and Ella are more serious about the situation they are in. However, they are constantly supporting each other and provide comfort at the end of the novel. Ella is a strong leader, yet her respect for her teammates, especially Ninde, grows considerably during the book's events. One interesting literary device are the interludes between the chapters. They add to the book's depth, provide the readers with extra information and sometimes reveal events elsewhere. For instance, when the Sub is attacked by creatures, the interlude is part of the training session for creature attacks. All interludes are taken from Shade's computer archive.