NEWSOUL
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 suspicious and 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?

A million souls exist in Range. Each year, these same souls are reborn into different bodies. Until the year Ana is born. No one knows Ana and she has never lived before. And her existence means someone has stopped existing: Ciana. The other souls resent Ana for taking the place of one of their friends, someone they’ve known for thousands of years, and they’re wary of Ana. Will she be reborn after this life? Is there any point in getting close to her without knowing for sure if she’ll remain a permanent fixture in their lives? Sam seems to think so, but in a world where every seems to hate her, Ana’s not sure she can trust Sam.

Incarnate is an incredibly interesting and unique idea. After reading it, I’m surprised reincarnation hasn’t been further explored. Meadows creates a fascinating world, but as fascinating as it is, I thought she could have taken it further. She raises so many questions throughout the novel and some of the big reveals feel kind of disappointing and rushed. Everything about Incarnate is so new and the entire world is especially new to Ana, making her a perfectly relatable protagonist. She’s insanely curious, which should be beneficial for the reader. But as Ana searches for answers she doesn’t find until the very end, the suspense and sense of mystery keep building and building, leading up to a huge revelation. While the revelation is unpredictable, I just expected more from it.

One thing I really appreciate about Incarnate is the way Meadows makes you question everything and everyone. Ana is a naturally distrustful character, for good reasons, so it takes a lot for her to open up to people. Sam and his friends work hard to really earn Ana’s and our trust. Then Meadows manages to sweep the carpet out from under all of us, making us doubt everything we learn about the characters. It’s so rare that I feel that unsure, that I have no idea where the plot is going, and I commend Meadows for being able to surprise me so much.

There’s a lot to like about Incarnate. Every aspect of the novel is refreshing. The world of Range, and specifically the city of Heart, is a breath of fresh air, with it’s new traditions, customs, and overall different way of life. The mystery surrounding sylph still plagues my mind and the small portion of science behind the reincarnation piques my curiosity. The story incorporates its own new religion and raises questions about faith and belief. Basically, its a book that really makes you think, even after you finish it. If you’re growing wearing of vampires, angels, and the typical paranormal romances, then don’t hesitate to pick up Incarnate, as it’ll offer something you probably haven’t seen before.

Pages: 384
Publication Date : January 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins
Challenge: Debut Author
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “I desperately wanted to be someone else for a while, and for no one to know who I was. What I was. Nosoul.”

For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought. Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

If you liked Unearthly, you’ll love Hallowed. At the end of Unearthly, Clara made he decision to save Tucker instead of Christian, leaving her purpose unfulfilled. Now, despite the fact that Tucker and Christian are both alive and well, Clara can’t help feeling guilty, confused, and lost. On top of all that, a Black Wing is still stalking her and she’s having more visions, this time of someone’s funeral.

I didn’t know what to expect from Hallowed. After finishing Unearthly, I thought of so many different directions Cynthia Hand could take the series, but I had no idea which she would choose. And still, she manages to surprise. Like Clara, I believed the issue of her purpose was now a moot point. She didn’t fulfill it, but everything turned out okay in the end, so no harm, no foul, right? Except maybe her purpose isn’t finished after all. Poor Clara — her mom continues to keep everything from her, despite how desperate Clara is for answers. But as frustrating as that is, at least Hallowed proves just how important it is for some of these secrets to remain secret. And Clara’s mom does finally give into Clara’s request for information, revealing a lot of shocking truths and interesting angel lore. Hallowed deftly explores the legend of the Nephilim and Hand puts her own spin on it so that the second book in the series is just as eye-opening and engaging as the first.

In addition, each character is much further developed in Hallowed. Jeffrey is insufferable and annoying and awful, but there’s a surprising motivation behind his actions. Christian is willing to just be Clara’s friends, though he is undeniably drawn to her. And while Clara loves Tucker with her entire being, she can’t deny that she and Christian seem to be destined for each other. Personally, it’s hard for me to pick favorites. I love each boy for entirely different reasons. In the first book, there wasn’t really any reason for Clara to like Christian other than the facts that he’s hot and she kept dreaming about him. Her slow-blooming relationship with Tucker was much more natural, the product of an adorable friendship formed over a long summer. But in Hallowed, it’s easy to see just how much Clara and Christian get along. They get each other and they have this one huge thing in common: they’re both angels. So how can she possibly decide between these two great guys? I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes.

Hallowed is one of those rare sequels that is just as good as, if not better than, the first book in the series. These characters are smart and lovable, more than willing to seek out the answers to all the questions the reader is just as eager for answers to. They’re easy to respect, the kind of characters you want to be best friends with. Cynthia Hand’s beautiful world is captivating, from the beautiful descriptions of rural Wyoming to the fascinating explanations behind angels and their purposes. If you were at all wary or suspicious of another angel series, like I was, cast your fears aside. You won’t want to miss Hand’s masterpiece.

Pages: 416
Publication Date : January 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins
Challenge: N/A
Rating :

Teaser Quote: “Warm fingers enclose mine. I look up at Christian. He squeezes my hand. I shouldn’t be letting him hold my hand, I think. I belong to Tucker.“

“These violent delights have violent ends
And in their triumph die, like fire and powder,
Which as they kiss consume.”
—Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare

Juliet Capulet didn’t take her own life. She was murdered by the person she trusted most, her new husband, Romeo Montague, a sacrifice made to ensure his own immortality. But what Romeo didn’t anticipate was that Juliet would be granted eternity, as well, and would become an agent for the Ambassadors of Light. For 700 years, she’s fought Romeo for the souls of true lovers, struggling to preserve romantic love and the lives of the innocent. Until the day she meets someone she’s forbidden to love, and Romeo, oh Romeo, will do everything in his power to destroy that love.

The world’s greatest love story ever told is a lie. Romeo and Juliet didn’t commit suicide and die for their love, Romeo murdered her. Her one true love, the one she trusted and wanted to be with more than anyone else in the whole world, betrayed her and took her life in an act of brutality Juliet isn’t able to escape. Not even now, in present day, and she jumps from body to body.

Seven hundred years on, Romeo is still working for the bad guys, and Juliet is still ambling through her existence, trying to save true love from the grips of hell. She hates her life, but after seven hundred years, she’s pretty used to it: invade a body, conquer and make love happen, escape and move on. But when Juliet invades Ariel’s body, she never ever expected that she might be the one to fall in love with her subject. It’s unheard of and absolutely forbidden. It feels like Juliet has met his soul before, encountered him in another life … but its impossible, right?

Meanwhile, Romeo will stop at nothing to get to his Juliet. His love is of the sadistic kind, and although he seems hell bent on destroying her life, in his sick way, he does love Juliet. And she’s slipping from his grasp. He’ll stop at nothing to prevent that from happening.

As a huge fan of Romeo and Juliet, I was deathly afraid that this story would butcher the classic for me. I was, however, pleasantly surprised. Yes, I struggled seeing Romeo in such an evil capacity, but it … worked. Juliet seems to hold some of that hopeless romance she carried in the original tale, but what I was happiest about was her strength. In the original classic, Juliet takes charge of her life, decides what she wants and finds a way to make it happen. Although Juliet in this story is a slave to her circumstances, she does find a way around her pitiful situation and goes after what she wants. I was happy to see that element of her character remained true.

Thus, Juliet Immortal  did not ruin the classic tale for me. It was a really enjoyable representation, actually. I think those that even hate the original tale will get a kick out of this one.

I take my hat off to the jacket designer. The cover is perfect, and was actually what made me pick it up in the first place. The red dress against the murky, restless ocean really struck a cord with me.

Pages: 306

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Publication date: 2011

Teaser Quote: Life is precious – his life especially – but there are worse things to lose. I turn back to Ben, brush his hair away from his ruined face, a part of me wishing he was conscious so I could say goodbye, the other part glad that he’s beyond feeling pain.