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Liked It “Not as much tradgedy or drama or problems as I expected, but I still enjoyed it. It saved much of the high action stuff for the very end, so.... it's one of those books. Cliffhanger.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“Nice premise, but ultimately a bit disappointing. World building is thin. Too many contradictions such as the fact that Kaya has sparred with her father, but has no idea how to even hold a Katana. Or that the dangerous "outer rim" turns out to be merely a day's walk from the school. Sympathy for Kaya declines as she is blatantly disrespectful to those in authority, and at times, wears that disrespect as a badge of honor.”
Kelly R wrote this review 23 hours ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Not as much tradgedy or drama or problems as I expected, but I still enjoyed it. It saved much of the high action stuff for the very end, so.... it's one of those books. Cliffhanger. ”
JAMIE wrote this review Thursday, March 21, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“LOVED IT can not wait till soul broken comes out in August 20th ”
alexa warden wrote this review Tuesday, February 19, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A promising series! In this novel, there are "skilled" people -- barrons and healers, who use their powers together fight the evil king, and "unskilled" people - regular folk. Our protagonist, Kara, is a "healer," but she wants nothing to do with the rigid rules and system she has been forced into (her parents' lives are at stake). In true strong chick fashion, she refuses to conform, breaks rules, and of course, kicks butt.
Ms. Smith-Vaniz wrote this review Sunday, February 17, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I liked this novel -- not overdone magic or drama, romance but not to the icky point, and good action. The monsters, Graplars, remind me of the grievers in MAZE RUNNER.
I WILL be reading the next installment of this series.”
“I did guess the twist but it was still enjoyable to see how the main character found out. I can't wait to read the sequel.”
Sarah J wrote this review Monday, December 10, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Some cliche bits, but overall the story was entertaining as long as you're not examining the plot too closely”
Danielle I wrote this review Tuesday, December 11, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“4.5 A bit predictable and I had a challenge figuring out the time period but my rating is on the enjoyment of the book overall and I'd be lying if I said this book wasn't a blast for me. It wasn't action packed but the action was spaced well. I enjoyed the character development and the story. :)”
Anna N.~Where There Is Desire There Is Gonna Be A Flame wrote this review Sunday, September 9, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Predictable plot with cliffhanger ending.”
Laura @ Heart of Manga wrote this review Friday, September 7, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Dark Faerie Tales wrote this review Tuesday, August 28, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Quick and Dirty: A girl who lives in a world with a sort of caste system rebels against the rulers.
Opening Sentence: The sharp edge of the paper sliced into my thumb and I sat up with a jerk.
The Review:
Kaya has grown up in an Unskilled village (imagine normal life without technology) with her Barron parents, hiding from the Zettai Coucil and their tight hold on society. But then a legendary (but really common) Grappler attacks her peaceful town, killing many (including her best friend) in the process. So when the letter comes in the mail, threatening her “illegal” Barron parents, she is shipped off to Shadow Academy to train for the ongoing war against the Grappler King. After an encounter with a Grappler in the woods, Kaya reaches the foreboding Shadow Academy. She learns that she is to be Bound the next day to an incredibly handsome and unswervingly loyal Trayton. But there’s also the young man who saved her life from the Grappler–who seems to hate her guts. Both are asked to teach her how to wield a katana, but only one will. Kaya has to survive the increasing Grappler attacks, question every rule the Zettai Council has put in place and protect her parents from the society they tried to escape many years ago.
Soulbound is a suspense-driven book that is full of snarky remarks and sweet and mysterious boys that drive you crazy. The beginning was slow (more of a world building and setting up the background for the conflicts than action), but once Kaya starts training, the intrigue soared and the main character arc finally began.
If you think this is a star-crossed lovers romance, you think wrong. Okay, there might be a smidgeon of a hint of one at the end, but about 90% of the book focuses on Kaya and Trayton. Darius (the mysterious guy that saved Kaya) isn’t described in a romantic way, which isn’t a bad thing. It makes the book unpredictable. Well just a tad.
I saw the twist at the end coming a mile away. Brewer tried to hide it, but just one mention had me thinking. But the opposition in the book…I didn’t see that coming at all. Well, I guessed but sort of threw it out of my possibilities. Brewer doesn’t leave you hints in the details of the characters, but in their actions, which I think is a different and unique way of writing. It creates heavy suspense with no exact ending in mind.
I liked the plot–when it finally started. It took about half the book to get to the central conflict. The writing plot wise was great, but the details were mainly told and not shown. It was very direct and in some parts left no room to read inbetween the lines (something I think all authors should let the readers do).
Boy does this end in a cliffhanger. For some of you it might be an awful cliffhanger that leaves you throwing the book out the window then running outside grab it and read it again. For others (like me) you are left in suspense but are content to wait until the sequel. I will definitely put the sequel Soulbroken on my to-read list, but I’m content to wait another year to come back to the world of Tril.
Notable Scene:
Slowly, Mr. Groff approached my table and leaned on it with his palms. He leaned close to me, so close that I could count the pores on the tip of his nose, and growled, “You will find your loyalty to this cause, Miss Oshiro, if I have to beat it into your skull.”
I bit back. “Loyalty to any cause doesn’t have to be forced on people, Mister Grodd.”
The left corner of his lip twitched slightly. His eyes narrowed into slants. “You will report to the rose gardens for extra duties after class.”
I leaned forward, until we were almost nose to nose and I kept my voice low enough that my next words were for him and him alone, though Trayton was close enough that I knew that he could hear every syllable. “I’ll bee happy to. And every time I remove a prick from my skin, I’ll think of you.”
Mr. Groff’s face turned bright red, his words bellowing out of him as he pointed at the door. “Get out of my classroom, you insignificant Healer!”
Pushing back my chair, I stood and walked out of the room, letting the door slam behind me. I felt right. I felt justified. And as far as I was concerned, that moment was worth a hundred hours of extra duties, a million thorns, a thousand scrapes. Some pains were worth it.
FTC Advisory: Dial/Penguin Books provided me with a copy of Soulbound. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.”
“Think I added this to my wishlist before I knew what it was about. I'm not much for traditional/high/epic fantasy. Still, I gave this a crack.
Tez Miller wrote this review Saturday, August 25, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Soulbound is an easy read, a page-turner, but my word it gets on one's nerves. We meet the two potential love-interests early. Kaya Oshiro is Bound to Trayton, a good-looking, nice, friendly bloke with a smile. But then there's Darius, a good-looking guy who picks on Kaya, always angry at/with her. We've read enough fiction to know that of course the heroine will pick the douchebag over the nice guy. "Brian, do women like it when you treat them like crap?" asks Stewie Griffin in an episode of Family Guy. Well, Stewie, FICTIONAL women like it when you treat them like crap, but who knows about real-life chicks...
The summary blatantly says that one guy plays by the rules, and the other doesn't, and that one will train Kaya to fight, but there's no secret as to which one. Soulbound lacks subtlety and mystery. In the world of Tril, mean girls are just mean girls, though at least the story's big antag has some shades of grey. But mean girls aren't allowed to be complex in fiction. Authors tend to avoid fleshing them out.
In its favour, though, Soulbound is a breezy read, if you switch off your thoughts. Don't think about it, and you'll have a good time.”
