Friday, February 15, 2013

Soul Screamers Read-A-Long (1) - My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent


My review is spoiler-free, so readers new to the series can read freely!

The discussion questions and responses below the review will most likely be filled with spoilers, so read those at your own risk! Scroll down to find the discussion!

REVIEW:


My Soul To Take
(Soul Screamers #1)
Rachel Vincent
Release: December 29, 2009
Add to Goodreads   Buy at Amazon

She doesn't see dead people. She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.

Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next.

I originally reviewed My Soul to Take over a year ago, so I've updated the review a little and am reposting it below.


Prior to checking out My Soul to Take I had already read most of Rachel Vincent's adult series, Shifters. I really love that series, even though the characters sometimes made me furious, so I was expecting that her YA series would be fantastic as well.

This is definitely one of those books that gets better the further you get. When I started it, I liked the main character Kaylee, and I enjoyed learning about what she is and how her ability works. Vincent reveals her ability slowly and we learn what Kaylee is as Kaylee does. But, it wasn't until about halfway through the book that this became a "stay up late and read it no matter how early I have to wake up" book. And the last 50 pages or so were in the  "CAN'T PUT THIS DOWN!" category. When I was crying by the book's end (I got teary eyed, okay?) I knew this would be a series to continue.

Vincent has a knack for developing an urban fantasy element not commonly seen in the genre. In her Shifters series she created a complex world based on werecats and politics. In My Soul to TakeKaylee discovers that she is a bean sidhe (pronounced like 'banshee'). I've had only a small exposure to bean sidhe in the past, but in Vincent's world they are not women dressed in ragged dresses who walk around funerals and wail for the dead (which is a traditional legend). They are also not woman with broken hearts who turn into crazy screaming she-demons who kill men with their wail (thank you Charmed...).

Vincent's bean sidhe have the ability to sense when someone near them is just about to die. When they get this sensation, they are overcome with grief and the overpowering urge to scream at the top of their lungs. This unearthly wail holds souls to this plane for a little longer while the wail lasts. Of course, there is much more to being a bean sidhe, but I can't give it all away!

The romantic element to this story is the new relationship between Kaylee and Nash. I could have used a little more relationship build up between them. I understand that he is a popular guy and that's why Kaylee is immediately interested in him and excited when she runs into him outside of school, but it seemed like they were an item almost instantly. I would have liked some more tension and such before they decided they were practically in love. With that said, I did like their relationship and the sweet high school feel of it. I also enjoyed the way Vincent held out on us about Nash and why he knew so much about Kaylee. Perhaps she decided to use up all the tension and mystery on that instead of on Kaylee and Nash's relationship. 


And then there is Tod. A mysterious character who enters the story about halfway through, Tod shows an immediate interest in Kaylee and has some sort of secretive past with Nash. I loved all of the interactions between these three and can't wait to read more about Tod as the series goes on! I see a possible love triangle happening in the future, but I might be reading into that because of my experience with Shifters.

As I mentioned above, the end of this book will keep you reading until the last page. You will not want to put it down once you enter the final sequence of major events. Leave it to Rachel Vincent to throw in some curve balls!

I am SO excited to dive into the rest of this series! Everyone who is up to date with the Soul Screamers series sings its praises and I've heard each book is better than the last!


Recommended for fans of: books with surprises, emotional twists and turns, unusual paranormal elements, and enigmatic boys named Tod.

    
  4 / 5 stars

You can check out my co-host Little Read Riding Hood's review of My Soul to Take HERE!!!


DISCUSSION:



Let’s Discuss!
Soul Screamers Read-A-Long Discussion #1

My Soul to Lose (Soul Screamers #0.5)
My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers #1)

My Soul to Lose (Soul Screamers, #0.5) My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers, #1)

***SPOILER ZONE***

Leave your comments, questions, praise, fangirling, wails, and moans in the comments below!

Here are some questions you can discuss (but you don't have to):

Prequel questions:
1. How does the prequel novella compare to the first book for you?
2. Do you think Lydia (the girl in the hospital) will make an appearance in later books?

My Soul to Take questions:
3. When did you figure out what Kaylee is, or did the big reveal surprise you?
4. Who is your favorite character right now: Kaylee, Nash, Tod, etc. and why?
5. Where do you think the relationships between Kaylee, Nash, and Tod will go in the future?
6. What were some plot twists and reveals that surprised you?
7. What do you make of the creepy shadows? Do you think they will become a bigger problem?

Leave your answers to the discussion questions, or anything else you want to say, in the comments below! I can’t wait to read what you guys have to say!

And keep an eye out for our next discussion, on March 15!
MY SOUL TO SAVE (Soul Screamers #2)
My Soul to Save (Soul Screamers, #2)


8 comments:

  1. Great review! I love this series.
    I wish I can answer or talk about all your questions but I don't want to give anything away. I'm up to date with the books, just waiting for the last one!
    but those are all the right questions girl :-)

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  2. I really enjoyed the prequel. It gave me enough information to not feel lost and made me excited to read book 1!

    Kaylee is my favorite character, because she definitely connected with my high school self!

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  3. And I definitely think Lydia will show up. That whole interaction was just too weird to leave as a one-off.

    I knew what Kaylee was in the prequel, but it was fun to learn about the history & such. I had no clue about Nash though!

    I forsee a possible love triangle but I DON'T want one! Though I love Tod and want him to be happy ... maybe with Emma! That would be hilarious!

    I was floored by the reason the dad stayed away. how horrible!! And with who Tod was, I had theories, but was so very wrong.

    I bet creepy shadow guys make a big appearance in an upcoming book, as does Marg. I am super excited to read more!!!

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  4. I read this first book a long time ago so bear with me and my memory for these answers! I'm so excited to now read the rest of the series FINALLY!

    Okay, as far as the prequel, I thought it was pretty on par with book 1. Of course, Nash is a blip on the radar and Tod is nonexistent so it wasn't quite as enjoyable as the first real book.

    I kind of knew what Kaylee was before reading because I had read a lot of reviews for the first book already. I did really like learning more about how her abilities worked though!

    My favorite character is TOD. Love love love me some Tod. He's just so dark and sarcastic and...Tod. <3

    I think the relationship between these three is going to be complicated! Its obvious that Tod has a little thing for Kaylee already, but she's into Nash and OMG Nash and Tod are related......good grief its going to be a long, emotional ride!

    I was surprised by what Nash is and I was also surprised about Kaylee's aunt. That twist totally hit me unprepared! I was already predicting that Nash and Tod would be related or something so that wasn't as much of a shock.

    I think Kaylee will be dealing with the shadow things for a while. Hopefully we will learn more about them as the series goes on!

    *Can't wait to read more!*

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  5. Oh gosh yes the Aunt! I didn't see that one from any angle!

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  6. My Soul to Take questions:

    1. When did you figure out what Kaylee is, or did the big reveal surprise you?

    I was pretty sure of what we were getting into with Kaylee from the beginning. I've known "about" this series for quite a while and am just reading it now. But even without that, I likely would have suspected she is what she is since I have a pretty solid background in world mythologies.

    2. Who is your favorite character right now: Kaylee, Nash, Tod, etc. and why?

    I adore Tod. He's just my kinda guy and I love how we "hear" this distanced and kinda snarky guy, but we "see" something totally else--him bringing Kaylee the hot chocolate, for instance. I also really like Emma. She's our "normal" here and yet she tends to do a pretty good job at keeping it together despite this. I wonder how she will develop throughout the series?

    3. Where do you think the relationships between Kaylee, Nash, and Tod will go in the future?

    This really intrigues me. The relationship between Kaylee and Nash happened super fast and almost seemed like background noise in comparison to what Kaylee was learning about herself. The situation with Kaylee and Tod is moving much more slowly and is actually of much greater interest to me. Despite the fact that Kaylee is with Nash, one thing I noticed is that she is often doing stuff for him (driving him, getting him a burger, etc.) whereas Tod, who isn't suppose to even like her, does things for her.

    4. What were some plot twists and reveals that surprised you?

    Tod and Nash's history was something I didn't see coming, as was the culprit behind the souls being stolen. And yet when I found out about both of these things, I did not feel cheated in any way. They felt like they couldn't have been any other person / any other situation. That's very GOOD.

    5. What do you make of the creepy shadows? Do you think they will become a bigger problem?

    Considering how well constructed the rest of this book is, my money is on a big loud yes. Ms. Vincent does not seem to waste time on stuff that doesn't matter--everything seems to have a reason in My Soul To Take so I can't see the shadows being any different. What their role will be is something I don't know, but I'm pretty sure they're important.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love everything you said about Tod! I really love him. I don't know if this will turn into a serious love triangle or not, but I really love Tod and can't wait to see more of him.

      I also agree about Emma. She's a good balance for Kaylee with everything going on!

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  7. Prequel questions:
    1. How does the prequel novella compare to the first book for you?

    I personally really liked the prequel, which I read before the actual first full length novel. I thought it was an interesting way to jump into the series and I wanted to know more after reading it.

    2. Do you think Lydia (the girl in the hospital) will make an appearance in later books?

    I hope that we get to see more of her and what she has to do with the story.

    My Soul to Take questions:
    3. When did you figure out what Kaylee is, or did the big reveal surprise you?

    I already knew about it because this series has been out for a while so it wasn't a big secret for me. I more or less was waiting around for Nash to let her in on the secret.

    4. Who is your favorite character right now: Kaylee, Nash, Tod, etc. and why?

    I have to say I really like Tod because I feel like his personality is the most interesting. I hope he becomes a love interest because I really didn't like how Kaylee and Nash clicked right from the 10th page of the novel. Their love happened too quick whereas I really like Tod joking around with Kaylee and teasing her, feels like more of a relationship build up than what she had with Nash!

    5. Where do you think the relationships between Kaylee, Nash, and Tod will go in the future?

    Hopefully with more Tod (see my answer for #4 lol)

    6. What were some plot twists and reveals that surprised you?

    I suppose I was surprised by the ending. I thought it wrapped up too quickly though! There was just so much going on and to end the book like that felt a little abrupt.

    7. What do you make of the creepy shadows? Do you think they will become a bigger problem?
    Idk I wish we knew more about all of it. I guess I shall just have to read book 2! :)

    ReplyDelete

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