still 4 ★’s — i reread soul eater this year because i binged the rest of the series this past week. i had meant to get to the rest of the series last year and then… well… i got distracted by other shiney new books. but at least it gave me a great excuse for a reread!

not even a full year later and this is still a great book. i loved having the chance to go back and revisit danny and wyn and it was all the more special with the perspective of how their relationship progresses past this book. i think i almost forgot about wyn’s cheeky ‘lil dry humor because i was chuckling all the way through. this is such a great series!

original review

4 ★’s — intriguing start to a new series.

i’m not sure what i expected when i started this book. monster romance is still a relatively new subgenre for me so i’m still going into each book with nothing to compare it to. soul eater grabbed my attention from the very beginning, though.

i adored danny and his kind heart. he had joined the military young, hoping to make some money and get a roof over his head, but he had no idea what he was in for. it didn’t take him long to realize he was too soft to be a soldier but once you’re in you have to stay… unless of course a tall, dark, and handsome monster whisks you away.

wyn was the terrifying monster all humans had come to fear. they called him the “soul eater” because wherever he went, death followed. he was one of the oldest species of monster and preferred to spend most of his time alone. he was quite aloof and sometimes even cranky, but around danny he melted like ice cream in july. he was quite literally willing to tear the heads off of an entire army of men but when he saw danny that was it for him. he was a gonner.

their relationship was so warm and cozy despite the harsh and unforgiving post-apocalyptic world they were living in. however, there were times i wished i’d had more information in regards to this new world everyone was living in and i was hoping for a bit more depth into the characters. i wanted more of danny and wyn talking and bonding on-page. sometimes it felt like things were moving a bit too fast.

was an extremely fun book to read and a great take on the grumpy/sunshine trope. i just found out wyn and danny have another book so i’m off to indulge myself some more.

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palm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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hariboreads's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense slow-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

5.0

Fantastic book! The bleak background to this story was a little hard to take at first but the connection and chemistry between the 2mmcs was just mind blowing. Every interaction, every conversation just added more fuel to this smoking hot fire

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paper_aphid's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

this book was great and really fun to read! I appreciate that the book started with the action. I get impatient with books that take too long explaining the world building, so I def loved how this started with the interesting bits and had world building along the way. there was a very nice balance of explaining things/moving the plot forward. the author did a lovely job of exploring the world around the characters and introducing future characters and plot points. overall, this had a very nice flow and was pretty well rounded.

now for the characters,,, I loved everyone so much! I love Wyn and Danny both as separate people and as a couple. they were SO sweet to each other and I really felt their love and attachment for one another! reading their interactions were honestly so fun. I went into this not planning on reading any of the other books in the series, but the author did such a fantastic job drawing interest to the main character for the next book that I'm just gonna have to. I would describe this book as dark + lighthearted fluff. I def recommend to those who enjoy simple plots :)

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briochebun's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

3.75 out of 5 ☆’s.

“I’ve wanted you from the beginning, my sweet human. And I will want you until the end.”

ੈ✩‧₊˚

”Soul Eater“ was an overall enjoyable novel that I’m happy to have discovered! :)

The relationship between Wyn and Danny was precious — I loved that we got to see a good amount of sweet moments that were shared between them throughout their adventure. <3

ੈ✩‧₊˚

While reading ”Soul Stealer”, I did find myself longing for more of a solid plot line as the story progressed…

I was also hoping to learn a bit more about Wyn’s world — and potentially get a glimpse at the place that he called home while he rested there — but perhaps that moment will come in a future book later on in the series?

ੈ✩‧₊˚

I do think that this author does have a lot of potential, though, so I can’t wait to read more of their novels! ♡

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unsuccessfulbookclub's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book is like the perfect mix of Things Clare Likes: dystopian hellscape, road-trip, absolutely swoony love story, scorching hot spice, quirky idiots doing Real Stuff™️, HIGH STAKES outside the relationship, grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, hurt/comfort, realistic and emotionally charged conflict…ugh so good.

Dystopian monster romance? Yes this genre exists. I know, I was surprised too. The thing I enjoyed the most about Wyn and Danny’s story was that even though it was outrageous and totally fantastical, the situation they were in together allowed their relationship to develop slowly and realistically. I mean, there’s “forced proximity” and then there’s “a mass-murdering monster* saved me from the military and now we are on the run together through a deserted United States crawling with raiders, monsters and other dangers.” Like I said: STAKES ARE HIGH.

*there’s more than meets the eye here, but I’ll let you read it to find out.

👍🏻RECOMMENDED. Check the CW - this is a romance but there are a lot of horror elements in it that were familiar to me as a plague novel/dystopian horror enthusiast that might be hard to take if you’re not expecting them.

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r1vana's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

When I saw him, I recognised him straight away. Even if his face wasn't yet familiar to me.

He was mine.

He was everything.

A Monster X Human romance with apocalyptic subplot that I really enjoyed.

The story is set when monsters were unleashed in the human world and are causing chaos. Due to monsters invading many cities, villages, et cetera, human life has decreased dramatically and are only present in restricted crowded places.

In this story, Danny Sullivan is an “orphan” aged 23 that is part of the military. He has no where else to go and the only way he could ever survive in this hell-hole of a world is being in the military. But what he never expected is to be forced to kill monsters that are killing many humans. His first assignment is Wyn.

Wyn is also known as the Soul Eater. For the past few years, he has been going through many areas/territories and ruthlessly killing humans.

One day, Danny will become the sole survivor of a killing rampage by Wyn(killing his fellow soldiers-mates-that he is not close with).

The higher ups are curious on why Danny survived and will make him investigate Wyn and why he is killing people… et cetera…but something will happen that will make Danny want and need to be by Wyn’s side:

I was choosing a monster over the military. A monster who routinely murdered hundreds of humans and was generally terrifying and had a voice that sounded like a million screaming souls.

The attraction between them was there but barely noticeable: one had a cap that hides his face and the other was terrified of the monster… we get to see Wyn’s true reason for killin humans:

You spend your time ensuring humanity isn't destroyed by fucking.… monster parasites and you don't care that they all hate you?" // Wyn's head slowly turned back to face me. "They? Not you, then?" // I felt a flush creep up my neck, opening and closing my mouth wordlessly. "I mean n-no," I finally said. "I don't hate you. I don't hate anyone. But I especially couldn't hate you now.”

Their relationship will bloom real fast(depending on the reader) and I enjoy it a lot.

In a way, I relate to Danny a lot. His way of thinking, his solitude, his overthinking thoughts , his fear of loneliness… He is a ray of sunshine.

Whereas, Wyn was a total mystery through over half of the story, since the only from Danny’s pov. I love love love how protective Wyn is for Danny. He is so soft:

"I want you all the time, Danny Sullihan.

His nose nudged mine. "My sweet human," he murmured.

He is exactly the character that fits with “I hate everyone but you”. Or even “I would die for you. I would kill for you.” even though he is immortal…

Another thing I like is Edin. He is Wyn’s “brother”/friend? Maybe? Because thankfully because of him, I was able to see how much of a softy Wyn is for Danny.

And I love Danny’s and Edin interaction.

This story does have angst and severe descriptive torture scenes that may not be suitable for some. So beware.

TW: sexual content; confinement; homophobia; slurs uses; torture; violence; death of a parent; grief; panic attacks; use of knife for torture; terror nightmares

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jessie_h's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

4.5

I had a friend recommend this series to me but I wasn't sure if I would like it. Monster romance is pretty hit or miss for me. I loved this book one! The dystopian/post-apocalyptic world was intriguing and I quickly fell in love with the characters! I hope we see more of Wyn and Danny in the future books.

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