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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
2.5 Stars rounded down.
I had a lot of mixed feelings about this book. In the first three chapters of the story, I saw Devin, the main character illicit some behaviour that set me against him. He came across preachy and dismissive of other peoples beliefs. He attacked a pack of wolves with little provocation and then once injured, decided not to administer any first aid to himself at all because he didn’t have far to go and what was the point? It seemed like his decisions were made to forward the story along.
So we didn’t get off to a good start.
Thankfully, as the story progressed I did grow to like Devin. While yes he is a bit preachy, he at least lives by his tenants. He showed kindness first to strange creatures and didn’t immediately assume they were there to kill him. I liked this about him, giving others a chance to show they weren’t dangerous.
I also have mixed feelings about other characters in the book. I thought Puffy was nearly forgotten about once he was introduced which I felt was an overbite. I thought he could have had a much more active role in the story. Tommy I liked, however he was a pretty stereotypical wizard type character and didn’t ass anything particularly new or different to the same old character we have seen around.
I was most intrigued by Adria and her life. I found it interesting that she uses her mask to essentially hide behind, and wish this had been explored to greater extent in the story overall. Even though I saw it coming, I liked how Janus changed her at the end and understand she will likely be a heavy feature in the next book.
Jacaranda I unfortunately could not connect with. I thought she was not handled particularly well. The author went to great extent to display her getting used to new emotions and dealing with the fallout of being a soulless who abused others and was abused herself. Unfortunately the romance between her and Devin felt heavy handed and not realistic and I feel it took away from the trauma she had experienced and the guilt she felt over being part of other peoples suffering. I felt this was ignored on the romantic front when it really shouldn’t have been. Devin also knows that she is essentially a child when it comes to understanding human emotion but that didn’t stop him either. I felt the two had no connection and no spark and the romance was only added in because the author felt though should. I think it was unnecessary to the overall story and nothing would have been missed if this had been removed entirely.
I give full credit to the world building here. There is a well thought out world and magic system as well as religion and that i thought was the strongest feature of the book. I wish the characters lived up to the same standards and the sometimes easy nature of the plot was flushed out and developed a little more. There were scenes in the book that were only there to give the characters the information they needed for further into the story. If the characters and plot had matched the world building, this book would have jumped from average to great.
I probably will read the next one if only to see the journey Adria will go on, but it will be a fair while before I pick it up.
I had a lot of mixed feelings about this book. In the first three chapters of the story, I saw Devin, the main character illicit some behaviour that set me against him. He came across preachy and dismissive of other peoples beliefs. He attacked a pack of wolves with little provocation and then once injured, decided not to administer any first aid to himself at all because he didn’t have far to go and what was the point? It seemed like his decisions were made to forward the story along.
So we didn’t get off to a good start.
Thankfully, as the story progressed I did grow to like Devin. While yes he is a bit preachy, he at least lives by his tenants. He showed kindness first to strange creatures and didn’t immediately assume they were there to kill him. I liked this about him, giving others a chance to show they weren’t dangerous.
I also have mixed feelings about other characters in the book. I thought Puffy was nearly forgotten about once he was introduced which I felt was an overbite. I thought he could have had a much more active role in the story. Tommy I liked, however he was a pretty stereotypical wizard type character and didn’t ass anything particularly new or different to the same old character we have seen around.
I was most intrigued by Adria and her life. I found it interesting that she uses her mask to essentially hide behind, and wish this had been explored to greater extent in the story overall. Even though I saw it coming, I liked how Janus changed her at the end and understand she will likely be a heavy feature in the next book.
Jacaranda I unfortunately could not connect with. I thought she was not handled particularly well. The author went to great extent to display her getting used to new emotions and dealing with the fallout of being a soulless who abused others and was abused herself. Unfortunately the romance between her and Devin felt heavy handed and not realistic and I feel it took away from the trauma she had experienced and the guilt she felt over being part of other peoples suffering. I felt this was ignored on the romantic front when it really shouldn’t have been. Devin also knows that she is essentially a child when it comes to understanding human emotion but that didn’t stop him either. I felt the two had no connection and no spark and the romance was only added in because the author felt though should. I think it was unnecessary to the overall story and nothing would have been missed if this had been removed entirely.
I give full credit to the world building here. There is a well thought out world and magic system as well as religion and that i thought was the strongest feature of the book. I wish the characters lived up to the same standards and the sometimes easy nature of the plot was flushed out and developed a little more. There were scenes in the book that were only there to give the characters the information they needed for further into the story. If the characters and plot had matched the world building, this book would have jumped from average to great.
I probably will read the next one if only to see the journey Adria will go on, but it will be a fair while before I pick it up.
First time reading a Dalglish novel and let me just say....GIVE ME MORE!! loved this Fantasy novel. Magic, sword fighting, dragons, zombies, fae, firekin, this book has it all.
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.4 / 5 stars
Originally reviewed on: https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/
Soulkeeper was my 9th Dalglish book, and honestly one of the better ones. I’m generally a fan of him—I mean, a lot of his books were good, yet few were solid, 5-star reads (mostly 3.5 – 4). Soulkeeper begins the Keepers’ series, one that feels a combination of new age and classic, with but a hint of dark fantasy. The Shadowdance series was definitely more in the vein of dark fantasy, though not enough that I’d call it grimdark. Soulkeeper is more what I’d call a realistic take on classic fantasy (there’s too much swearing and blood).
Devin Eveson is a Soulkeeper, a practitioner of the Sisters, the three goddesses of mankind. He, like the others, travels from the capital Londheim, to remote towns and villages, to conduct funerary rituals, heal and comfort the sick and dying, and usher souls into the afterlife. But upon visiting the mountain village of Dunwerth, something changes. For he is not only confronted by a mysterious plague that proves well beyond his ability to heal, but waking monsters that are all but beyond his ability to combat. To compound this, a powerful and generally pissed-off dragon has awakened, releasing a torrent of foul, black water that destroys everything in its path. In its wake, Devin is stranded in a barren and alien land, haunted by new and ancient terrors that he must fight his way through in order to make it back to the capital, if it indeed survives. Along the way, Devin gains a few friends and allies—Tomas, his brother-in-law and friend; CRKSSLFF (or Puffy), a firekin and remnant of a world long forgotten—en route to Londheim, though trailing in his wake is something much older, a mountain of stone that walks upon the earth like a crab.
Following Devin’s arrival at Londheim, quite a few more characters are introduced, including—Adria, Devin’s sister and a Mindkeeper (which is kinda like a nun or something; they care for the faithful and needy but don’t make speeches or hobnob with the rich and powerful); Janus, a supernatural being that butchers humans, turning them into his “art”; Tesmarie, a faerie; Jacaranda, a soulless slave that becomes something different entirely. All of these (plus a few more) got POV chapters, most of which I enjoyed. Despite the size of the cast, I never felt the story slow to try to fit them in. Instead one often took over where another left off, something that actually seemed to work well in this case. Sometimes, in fantasy, there are so many threads and story arcs going on that an approach like this won’t fly, and instead might completely wreck the pacing, particularly if some of the characters are uninteresting or slow. I never found this problem, however; the pacing was good, and I never found myself bogged down by a character arc I found uninteresting.
I quite liked the world-building of Soulkeeper; from the world itself, to the characters, to the creation myth and the church and the Awakened. Everything was well done, though I would like to see a bit more lore in the second installment. The dialogue was really the main aspect that bothered me. Ofttimes I felt it campy, or even lame, though this wasn’t altogether unexpected. Dalglish—which I know from his previous books—is a bit like Michael J. Sullivan with his speech and dialogue. By which I mean he favors a normal, or modern, approach, instead of trying to replicate the speech of the time period (like JRR or Miles Cameron) or make up something of his own (á la Sanderson and Robert Jordan and others). Most of the time this is fine, yet at others it can feel… off, or even ridiculous.
Soulkeeper is a fun, entertaining start of a new series, with lovely world-building and an interesting story that kept me intrigued throughout. I would’ve liked to see a bit more lore for the Awakened, the monsters and such, instead of quite so much of the same about the Goddesses. In addition, a little more polish on the dialogue wouldn’t hurt. Otherwise, I really have no complaints—and eagerly await the next one!
The series will continue with Ravencaller, which as of yet has no release date.
Originally reviewed on: https://arefugefromlife.wordpress.com/
Soulkeeper was my 9th Dalglish book, and honestly one of the better ones. I’m generally a fan of him—I mean, a lot of his books were good, yet few were solid, 5-star reads (mostly 3.5 – 4). Soulkeeper begins the Keepers’ series, one that feels a combination of new age and classic, with but a hint of dark fantasy. The Shadowdance series was definitely more in the vein of dark fantasy, though not enough that I’d call it grimdark. Soulkeeper is more what I’d call a realistic take on classic fantasy (there’s too much swearing and blood).
Devin Eveson is a Soulkeeper, a practitioner of the Sisters, the three goddesses of mankind. He, like the others, travels from the capital Londheim, to remote towns and villages, to conduct funerary rituals, heal and comfort the sick and dying, and usher souls into the afterlife. But upon visiting the mountain village of Dunwerth, something changes. For he is not only confronted by a mysterious plague that proves well beyond his ability to heal, but waking monsters that are all but beyond his ability to combat. To compound this, a powerful and generally pissed-off dragon has awakened, releasing a torrent of foul, black water that destroys everything in its path. In its wake, Devin is stranded in a barren and alien land, haunted by new and ancient terrors that he must fight his way through in order to make it back to the capital, if it indeed survives. Along the way, Devin gains a few friends and allies—Tomas, his brother-in-law and friend; CRKSSLFF (or Puffy), a firekin and remnant of a world long forgotten—en route to Londheim, though trailing in his wake is something much older, a mountain of stone that walks upon the earth like a crab.
Following Devin’s arrival at Londheim, quite a few more characters are introduced, including—Adria, Devin’s sister and a Mindkeeper (which is kinda like a nun or something; they care for the faithful and needy but don’t make speeches or hobnob with the rich and powerful); Janus, a supernatural being that butchers humans, turning them into his “art”; Tesmarie, a faerie; Jacaranda, a soulless slave that becomes something different entirely. All of these (plus a few more) got POV chapters, most of which I enjoyed. Despite the size of the cast, I never felt the story slow to try to fit them in. Instead one often took over where another left off, something that actually seemed to work well in this case. Sometimes, in fantasy, there are so many threads and story arcs going on that an approach like this won’t fly, and instead might completely wreck the pacing, particularly if some of the characters are uninteresting or slow. I never found this problem, however; the pacing was good, and I never found myself bogged down by a character arc I found uninteresting.
I quite liked the world-building of Soulkeeper; from the world itself, to the characters, to the creation myth and the church and the Awakened. Everything was well done, though I would like to see a bit more lore in the second installment. The dialogue was really the main aspect that bothered me. Ofttimes I felt it campy, or even lame, though this wasn’t altogether unexpected. Dalglish—which I know from his previous books—is a bit like Michael J. Sullivan with his speech and dialogue. By which I mean he favors a normal, or modern, approach, instead of trying to replicate the speech of the time period (like JRR or Miles Cameron) or make up something of his own (á la Sanderson and Robert Jordan and others). Most of the time this is fine, yet at others it can feel… off, or even ridiculous.
Soulkeeper is a fun, entertaining start of a new series, with lovely world-building and an interesting story that kept me intrigued throughout. I would’ve liked to see a bit more lore for the Awakened, the monsters and such, instead of quite so much of the same about the Goddesses. In addition, a little more polish on the dialogue wouldn’t hurt. Otherwise, I really have no complaints—and eagerly await the next one!
The series will continue with Ravencaller, which as of yet has no release date.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I was right on the edge of 3.75 or 4, and it hits 4 by virtue of feeling better than it is, if that makes sense. This is not a crazy amazing work of literature - the prose is a little basic at times, the dialogue can sound a little jarringly modern, and the last couple of chapters feel a bit rushed - but it's a pretty damn good burger, if you know what I mean. Entertaining, strong setup for a sequel, interesting world that's not been bogged down in too much exposition, characters a bit ropey at times but still strong and fun to read.
This is a really really fun world. A flavour not unlike De Castell in the blend of magic, musketeer-y vibes and a bit of bantering dialogue - not quite as strong, but good enough that Dalglish wouldn't be embarrassed by the comparison. The plot is connected strongly to the overarching mythology of the world, which allows for a lot of the mechanics and sociology of the world to be explained BY the plot - this is hugely helpful in not having everything grind to a halt to establish a setting. The villain(s) are enaging and interesting - Dalglish has managed to strike a good balance between immediate threat and long-term plan, again by weaving the plot and the mythology together very deftly. I like the characters too - they're not the most original bunch, but they're different enough that they can play off one another, have a solid reason to work together and communicate, but all have their distinct stories so they stay engaging and independent. The action is flashy and loose, very much blockbuster movie style - it's not going to be mistaken for Cameron de Castell or even Butcher, but it works with the style of book and it's got enough substance to avoid eye-rolling.
Now, there are downsides. This is not a tightly-crafted masterpiece. The pacing is a bit off, and while the midly slow start didn't bother me, the very rushed ending rather did. A lot of heavy scenes landed within the last, like, 40 pages - which doesn't sound too bad, but in a book that clocks in at over 600, it feels like Dalglish could have spaced things out just a touch, maybe stripped a little out elsewhere. The dialogue is a bit off too; it's mostly fine, but when characters are bantering back-and-forth it has a very distinctly modern tone that broke my immersion just a little. It feels very real and very human, but there's something that sounds very current about it. Again, compare to the Greatcoats series - similar very fluid conversations, but it FEELS older or more fantastical. Hard to describe what it is, but it's definitely there.
Overall, this could use a little polish, grind off some rough edges, and maybe tighten up a few bits and pieces. HOWEVER...this is a really really fun book to read. Dalglish seems to have had fun writing it, and I had fun reading it. There are aspects here that make me feel like I should be harsher and lower my rating, but honestly I enjoyed this book immensely and will be reading the sequel.
This is a really really fun world. A flavour not unlike De Castell in the blend of magic, musketeer-y vibes and a bit of bantering dialogue - not quite as strong, but good enough that Dalglish wouldn't be embarrassed by the comparison. The plot is connected strongly to the overarching mythology of the world, which allows for a lot of the mechanics and sociology of the world to be explained BY the plot - this is hugely helpful in not having everything grind to a halt to establish a setting. The villain(s) are enaging and interesting - Dalglish has managed to strike a good balance between immediate threat and long-term plan, again by weaving the plot and the mythology together very deftly. I like the characters too - they're not the most original bunch, but they're different enough that they can play off one another, have a solid reason to work together and communicate, but all have their distinct stories so they stay engaging and independent. The action is flashy and loose, very much blockbuster movie style - it's not going to be mistaken for Cameron de Castell or even Butcher, but it works with the style of book and it's got enough substance to avoid eye-rolling.
Now, there are downsides. This is not a tightly-crafted masterpiece. The pacing is a bit off, and while the midly slow start didn't bother me, the very rushed ending rather did. A lot of heavy scenes landed within the last, like, 40 pages - which doesn't sound too bad, but in a book that clocks in at over 600, it feels like Dalglish could have spaced things out just a touch, maybe stripped a little out elsewhere. The dialogue is a bit off too; it's mostly fine, but when characters are bantering back-and-forth it has a very distinctly modern tone that broke my immersion just a little. It feels very real and very human, but there's something that sounds very current about it. Again, compare to the Greatcoats series - similar very fluid conversations, but it FEELS older or more fantastical. Hard to describe what it is, but it's definitely there.
Overall, this could use a little polish, grind off some rough edges, and maybe tighten up a few bits and pieces. HOWEVER...this is a really really fun book to read. Dalglish seems to have had fun writing it, and I had fun reading it. There are aspects here that make me feel like I should be harsher and lower my rating, but honestly I enjoyed this book immensely and will be reading the sequel.
A bit convoluted, but really good world building and interesting storyline.
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated