I realize the last post on this was some two years ago, but I just started on a Hard Cover book buying spree because my wife is setting up a library in our den. I thought that I'd let the Star Wars novels take a prominent spot on the shelves, so I started with this book. In the last three weeks, I've gotten about 20 HC books off ebay for almost nothing (I paid $6 including shipping for this one and it's in mint condition).
Anyway, I really liked this book. The character development was really good and you get a better sense of what Maul is all about. This book combined with the Dark Horse comics series on him are a really good combination. My only regret in reading this book was that you can pretty much guess how it's going to end after the first 5-6 chapters.
Also, for anyone who has not read this book or Cloak of Deception by James Luceno, read that book first. I wish I would have read this thread prior to starting Shadow Hunter, because now I'm reading Cloak of Deception and a lot of the characters and situations from Cloak of Deception carryover into Shadow Hunter. I'm only about half way through CofD, but it is a really good read. It sets up the events from EP1 in a much better light. Luceno gives a lot of depth to the origins of the Trade Federation and the discontent in the Senate.
I highly recommend both of these books to anyone looking to bolster their pre-EP1 knowledge.