Daniella

I must admit, it took me a VERY long time to read this book. Not for lack of interest, but rather, the contrary. From its very first words, I knew this masterpiece deserved my full attention. That it wasn't going to be a feel good, happily ever after puff piece adventure to read starting an hour or two before shuteye- which I admit, since 2020, has been my easy go-to.

No. This story, is a brew some tea (or cozy beverage of choice), get comfy under some blankets, drag your cat to purr next to/on you, set the mood with a playlist, light a candle or two, hot-date with yourself, me-time kind of story. And with my work schedule, alas, being able to carve that kind of time for myself was few and far between. But when I was able to, it was worth it.

If you are a consumer of high fantasy, women badassery, dragons, magic, lore – this is for you. I grew up on tales of fantasy, and honestly, I don't think I've ever read a tale quite like this. Sure, there has always been strong women in the fray, but they always seemed to be secondary characters. This, on the contrary – has women at the forefront. Be it in the main characters, and the lore and history of the origins of the tale itself. I wish stories like this existed when I was growing up. Oh and yeah, women loving women made me feel a little more seen, so that was a bonus. [gosh and a beautiful tale of love- that was NOT the main story, but fit in perfectly/made sense to the storytelling].

For the first time, in a very long time – after I finished this story, I felt a little empty. Like my friends are gone, and what do I do now? After the final scene between two of the main characters, I clutched the tome to my heart and walked out to find my wife to even try and explain the feelings I had no words for. Also, during the final fight scene, apparently, I was being a bit vocal with the events that were happening on the page. Shannon just has a way of making everything feel so feel. Her writing is magic. She takes you on the grand adventure to a land far, far, away, and it doesn't even feel like it's a strange place. It feels like home.

A home I can't wait to return to when A Day of Fallen Night is released in a couple months.

Also, as a librarian, Shannon's acknowledgement about the importance of libraries means so much. As gatekeepers of knowledge, I can only hope author's like Shannon continue to use these sacred sanctuaries to find what they need to help create their masterpieces for the rest of us to enjoy.

If your like fairy tales on the darker side, this is for you. The story is a bit twisted, in a good way, and brought me back to movies I watched as a child in the ‘80s (we were witness to a lot of weird films!). The writing is beautiful, and I know I'm going to have to re-read it because it was a bit of a whirlwind and I wasn't prepared for the ending.

I received an advance review copy of Old Soul from the publisher through NetGalley.

Considering the holidays are long over, and this has been sitting in my dashboard for a very long time, I finally made myself finish the book. It was, okay. I think it would have worked better if the MC's were older. Still, it was very sweet, though I didn't exactly feel the connection between the main characters. It just not for me. Typically I like to read holiday stories during the last quarter of the year, but I only could make it through a few chapters before putting it down... and only now coming back to it.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I've been struggling finding books with vamps, that aren't...cheezy. This was eerie dashed with some horror, and rather satisfying. The ending did not let me down. Keep your mind open in regards to who the villain of the story is - I found my feelings shifting the deeper I got into the story.

I received an advance review copy of Old Soul from the publisher through NetGalley.

As a librarian, of course I had to read this. A fun thriller that I read on vacation. A little slow in the beginning, but definitely worth pushing through. The story kept my attention with the protagonists just being nuts. I laughed a lot even though it's a dark tale. But us librarians tend to be a little odd to begin with ;)

3.5 stars