Review: My Soul to Keep by Rachel Vincent

My Soul to Keep
(Soul Screamers #3)
Rachel Vincent
Release: June 1, 2010
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Kaylee has one addiction: her very hot, very popular boyfriend, Nash. A banshee like Kaylee, Nash understands her like no one else. Nothing can come between them. Until something does. Demon breath. No, not the toothpaste-challenged kind. The Netherworld kind. The kind that really can kill you. Somehow the super-addictive substance has made its way to the human world. But how? Kaylee and Nash have to cut off the source and protect their friends—one of whom is already hooked. And so is someone else…

Review:

My Soul to Keep is the third in the Soul Screamers series by author Rachel Vincent. Up until now, this series has been a fun read with an interesting paranormal element, likable characters, and emotional endings. But in this third book things take a darker turn that make me really glad I decided to read this series. My Soul to Keep shows us some different sides of our characters and complicates several relationships in the series. Since "dark and complicated" is one of my favorite descriptions of a book, this one is for sure my favorite Soul Screamers installment so far.

In My Soul to Keep, our main character and bean sidhe (banshee) Kaylee discovers that some of the more popular high school students have gotten ahold of Demon's Breath, which gives users a powerful high with eventual deadly consequences. Kaylee and Nash set off on a course to find out who is supplying the teens and how Demon's Breath is getting out of the Netherworld. As far as main plots go,  this one is as interesting and original as the plots of the first two books and, as always, I wondered how exactly the gang was going to pull this one off. When the culprit was revealed I wasn't surprised, as I'd had my suspicions all along, but I look forward to seeing this particular character again in future books in the series.

The most interesting part of this book, for me at least, was the change we begin to see in Nash, male bean sidhe and Kaylee's boyfriend. I've always been ho hum about Nash as a love interest. He is a great character but can sometimes be a very stereotypical YA high school guy. In My Soul to Keep, however, Nash finally gets the depth he deserves. To be frank, he acts like a bit of an ass sometimes in this book and its obvious something is going on with him. His relationship with Kaylee is occasionally strained due to whatever his problem is and the book ends with readers wondering if these two have a future together at all.

Tod is back again for my reading pleasure and, like I always do, I enjoy every scene he's in. I love his sarcastic quips, his moral gray area, and his willingness to protect those he cares about. I also enjoyed his reaction when the cause behind Nash's ass-i-ness is finally unveiled, as it shows his anger and surprise in true Tod fashion. I love to see his friendship with Kaylee and his protectiveness of her grow in each book, especially after he was willing to sacrifice her well-being for that of Addison's in the last book. I think he more than makes up for it here.

The Soul Screamers series grows on me more and more with each book and I look forward to where Vincent will take the next book! She has proven she is not afraid to let her characters grow and change and she doesn't shy away from complicated twists and turns!

Recommended for fans of: paranormal young adult series, bean sidhes (banshees), snarky dead blond guys, and character growth.

    

  4 / 5 stars

This book is part of the Soul Screamers Series Read-A-Long!

Check back here tomorrow on Monday, April 15th for the read along discussion!


My reviews of other books in this series:
My Soul to Take (Soul Screamers #1)
My Soul to Save (Soul Screamers #2)