Reading Level: Young AdultGenre: Fantasy
Size: 416 pages
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Release Date: January 29, 2013
ISBN: 978-0062060785
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Newsoul series
Source: Gift
Rating: 4/5 stars
This is the second book in the Newsoul series. The third book in this trilogy is not titled yet, but is expected to release in early 2014. I really enjoy the creative world this story is set in. The idea behind Ana being a Newsoul is also very creative.
Ana is still struggling with what it means to be a newsoul and she is determined to uncover the secrets she first found out about in the first book, Incarnate. Her and Sam leave on a journey to do some research to uncover these secrets. Then they get a notice that one of their friends is going to give birth, strangely when the baby is born it is also a newsoul. With more lives dependant on the Newsouls’ acceptance into Heart’s society Ana struggles harder than ever to unravel the mystery of the Newsouls. But things are getting tougher for Ana, the sylphs are responding differently to her and more and more of Heart’s population is turning against Ana in a very violent way.
This continues to be a fascinating series. Ana is the first new soul born into a society that is thousands of years old. No one knows why Ana was born and the soul she replaced was sent on. Feelings are bitter towards Ana, many see her as a waste of space since she doesn’t come to their society backed by thousands of years of knowledge. Many have told her she can’t love because her soul is too young.
Ana is a stubborn and caring character. I love how she stands up for herself and her friends. She is smart and determined to unravel the secrets that make the center of Heart’s existence.
Sam is a wonderful lead male. At times his love for Ana was a bit too all encompassing, but he is respectful and supportive of her. It is interesting how thoroughly he supports the addition of these Newsouls into the current society.
The whole idea behind this story is very interesting and very clever. It’s like nothing I’ve ever read before. The implications of a society where the people are reborn for thousands of years (the same people over and over again) is intriguing. The idea of someone new being thrust into this type of society continues to be fascinating.
The world itself is an interesting one. There are dragons and sylphs and other magical creatures. We learn a lot more about the sylphs and how they came to be in this book. The characters all live in the center of an active caldera, so that makes for very interesting terrain. You have hot springs and geysers, things like that.
The story was well done and had a number of twists and turns throughout that keep the reader guessing. A lot is revealed about the formation and history of Heart in this book. The book is well written, flows well, is paced well, and is easy to read.
Overall I really enjoyed the continuation of this series. I didn’t love it quite as much as the first book, mainly because this idea and world aren’t completely new and novel to me anymore. Still I think it is a very creative premise for a story and I love this world. I really enjoy Ana’s character and watching her unravel all of these crazy mysteries. I would recommend this series to those who love YA paranormal books but also enjoy fantasy. This book has a YA paranormal feel to it but is also very much a pure fantasy type story.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- YA/MG Fantasy Reading Challenge
- 150+ Reading Challenge
- Young Adult Reading Challenge
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