Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.
NOSOUL
Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?
HEART
Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies—human and creature alike—let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?
Jodi Meadows expertly weaves soul-deep romance, fantasy, and danger into an extraordinary tale of new life. (GoodReads)
I picked this book up seriously anticipating a series I'd love. I mean, it pretty much has all the elements that attract me: reincarnation, romance, some awesome fantasy. And while I really enjoyed it, there just felt like something was missing. In thinking about it more, I realized that it was the world-building that felt a little flat. The concepts behind a society made up of people who have lived over and over together for so long is amazing, but the descriptions of things, and way things were ordered, well, I felt like there wasn't enough description or emphasis to understand it clearly. How I thought of it while reading was kind of like being in a fog: there's buildings and structures there, but they're not clear, nor is it possible to feel like they're fully formed to understand them well. Despite that, Ana was an interesting character and Sam was awesome. I'll probably pick up the next book to check out what happens, but this didn't quite make it to the top of my list.
Anyone else read this one? What did you think? Does the world-building effect you while reading?
I find world building extremely intimidating, LOL. I think that's why I stick to contemporary settings. I wish I had an all-encompassing mind like J.K. Rowling :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat I wouldn't give for JK's mind! :)
DeleteYeah, I'm always amazed at how authors come up with these worlds and you know they thought long and hard about it when you read all the complex rules and customs. It's one of the things I enjoy most about reading fantasy or dystopian
ReplyDeleteMe too! I love a good world to get lost in--it makes or breaks the world for me!
DeleteWorld-building, setting and atmosphere are key to how much I enjoy or respect a Fantasy (or SF). It takes a lot of time to come up with complex, believable world-building and some authors just skimp a bit. Or perhaps there are publishing pressures.
ReplyDeleteGreat review! :-)
Glad you liked the review :) I'm worried it was just me feeling like things were skimped on here, but that was certainly how I felt. Who knows, maybe the next book will flesh it out more!
DeleteI admit I sort of forgot this one. It got buried in my TBR pile. I need more time to read.
ReplyDeleteI hear you there!
DeleteI am pretty sure this one is on one of my shelves to be read- but I haven't had the chance to read it yet. World building is definitely a craft! Thanks for sharing your review!
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by! World building is definitely a craft!
DeleteGood review, Meradeth. I have not heard of this book.
ReplyDelete