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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Lyla Sage gave us a fun, ghosty, rom-com, and I'm not mad at it! Soul Searching follows Collins, a down on her luck photographer who has lost her ability to communicate with the dead, and Brady, a slightly shy and awkward upholsterer. The descriptions of those two characters alone had me SO excited to dive into this one, and I loved how Collins and Brady's relationship started with chaos (pepper spray is no joke) and develops into a relationship with humor, curiosity, and understanding. While Brady felt a little too one-dimensional at the start, he came around in the end, and I only wished for a little more time in his POV. I just love a dude who is down BAD for his crush, and Brady is that dude. Collins drove me a little insane, and I wish we would have seen more of her and her sister interacting.
However, as someone who grew up in a middle-of-nowhere town, I'd have to say my favorite part about this book was Sweetwater Peak. I could picture the town immediately, and it's clear through Sage's writing that she has an appreciation for an overlooked small town that holds so many stories. I loved getting to go along with Collins and Brady as they toured Collins's most favorite (and haunted) spots. The ghosty elements made it all the more fun, and I excited to come back to Sweetwater Peak for Clarke's story!
However, as someone who grew up in a middle-of-nowhere town, I'd have to say my favorite part about this book was Sweetwater Peak. I could picture the town immediately, and it's clear through Sage's writing that she has an appreciation for an overlooked small town that holds so many stories. I loved getting to go along with Collins and Brady as they toured Collins's most favorite (and haunted) spots. The ghosty elements made it all the more fun, and I excited to come back to Sweetwater Peak for Clarke's story!
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Unfortunately, I was highly disappointed in this title. I have previously enjoyed some of Lyla Sage's other writings & was really looking forward to reading this one; however, it just wasn't the story for me.
The premise was really cute and promising- I loved the introduction to our main characters, the story featured a creepy/haunted small town with some really interesting paranormal entities, but it quickly fell off. The concept had so much potential, but felt unfinished/underdeveloped. The storyline somehow had too many plots to it, and none at all. It felt disjointed throughout the story. I'd say there were two main conflicts for the leading ladythe loss of her ability to commune with ghosts and the threat to her family's properties . The second one was barely mentioned in the beginning of the book (and it was supposed to be a motivating reason for the character to be in Sweetwater), completely abandoned in the middle, and almost randomly brought back up in the end & resolved magically fast and with virtually no pushback. The majority of characters felt underdeveloped and kind of thrown in.
Overall, I expected more from this story. Maybe could still be a fun fall read for the right audience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House (via Dial Press Trad Paperback) for an eARC of this title in exchange for a fair and honest review.
The premise was really cute and promising- I loved the introduction to our main characters, the story featured a creepy/haunted small town with some really interesting paranormal entities, but it quickly fell off. The concept had so much potential, but felt unfinished/underdeveloped. The storyline somehow had too many plots to it, and none at all. It felt disjointed throughout the story. I'd say there were two main conflicts for the leading lady
Overall, I expected more from this story. Maybe could still be a fun fall read for the right audience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House (via Dial Press Trad Paperback) for an eARC of this title in exchange for a fair and honest review.
LOVED this, loved the cameos, loved the paranormal activity, loved the romance, loved the small town. š©·š and of course miss Lyla Sage leaves us with another cliff hanger. So excited for this series.
Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss for the ARC.
Thank you to the publisher and Edelweiss for the ARC.
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I struggled with the first 25% of the book. But after that got really into it. It was a Lil bit twisty as well.
Recommend for lovers of Gilmore girls
Recommend for lovers of Gilmore girls
Coming off the high of Wild and Wrangled and the end of the Rebel Blue series, Soul Searching was unfortunately a swing and a miss for me. Fun in concept, but boring in execution. It felt like we got half of a paranormal story, and half of a "saving the family business" drama between the FMC and her sister, and neither were very fulfilling. The small town vibes couldn't carry the absolute dearth of anything tangible to hold onto between Collins and Brady.
This one wasn't for me, but I'm still crossing my fingers that the next Lyla Sage title will.
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.
This one wasn't for me, but I'm still crossing my fingers that the next Lyla Sage title will.
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thatās not what I expected unfortunately but the vibes were fun ! Iām sure reading this during the fall would have made it even better.
I really enjoyed that the male main character wasnāt the stereotypical āperfect guyā like in so many other romances. He was blushing and unsure of himself, which was a refreshing change. I also appreciated how supportive he was of the female main character.
The romance element felt a little late to start, and once it did, it went from 0 to 100 really fast. The āI love youā came way too soon for my taste.
I also wish the ghost aspect had been more central to the plot. Like I mentioned, Ghost Whisperer was one of my favorite shows growing up, so I was hoping for more of that vibe. But I understand that she was struggling with her ability.
I donāt think Iām a big fan of the authorās writing. This is the fourth one Iām reading, and I think Iāve only ever given a maximum of three stars.
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House and Dial Press Trade Paperback for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
#soulsearching #netgalley
I really enjoyed that the male main character wasnāt the stereotypical āperfect guyā like in so many other romances. He was blushing and unsure of himself, which was a refreshing change. I also appreciated how supportive he was of the female main character.
The romance element felt a little late to start, and once it did, it went from 0 to 100 really fast. The āI love youā came way too soon for my taste.
I also wish the ghost aspect had been more central to the plot. Like I mentioned, Ghost Whisperer was one of my favorite shows growing up, so I was hoping for more of that vibe. But I understand that she was struggling with her ability.
I donāt think Iām a big fan of the authorās writing. This is the fourth one Iām reading, and I think Iāve only ever given a maximum of three stars.
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House and Dial Press Trade Paperback for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
#soulsearching #netgalley
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
I have loved the other books by this author...and this one is no exception.
Brady is perfect!!! From the moment he and Collins meet, it is evident he is going to change her life for the better. I love the special and unexpected appearances. Hoping for Clarke's book soon.
Brady is perfect!!! From the moment he and Collins meet, it is evident he is going to change her life for the better. I love the special and unexpected appearances. Hoping for Clarke's book soon.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
This was my first Lyla Sage book, I read a bit of the first book of her other series but ended up putting the book down halfway through as Iām not a big cowboy romance reader but this one intrigued me with the paranormal aspects of it.
Soul Searching is hard for me to rate, when I finished I had to sleep on it before I wrote my review and rating. There were so many aspects I really enjoyed but there were also some that I didnāt.
Letās start with what I liked:
I loved the paranormal aspect with the twins being able to see and communicate with ghosts. And I loved how those stories weaved it way into the plot and how it was such a big part of who Collins was as a person.
I enjoyed the romance between Collins and Brady. I thought it was well done.
Boone and his rag tag group of animals. Boone was by far my favorite character.
What I didnāt like:
The spicy scenes. Maybe Iām just vanilla but there was a certain thing that just completely grossed me out. Also, I didnāt feel like the Brady in those scenes matched up to the Brady we saw in the rest of the story. Especially with the way he was during their first encounter. It just didnāt match up in my head.
Thereās also a few things left unresolved at the end, which I guess it probably on purpose if this is the start of a series. But it felt like an abrupt end.
Overall, I would probably rate this 3.5, rounded up to 4 and I will probably pick up the next in the series.
Soul Searching is hard for me to rate, when I finished I had to sleep on it before I wrote my review and rating. There were so many aspects I really enjoyed but there were also some that I didnāt.
Letās start with what I liked:
I loved the paranormal aspect with the twins being able to see and communicate with ghosts. And I loved how those stories weaved it way into the plot and how it was such a big part of who Collins was as a person.
I enjoyed the romance between Collins and Brady. I thought it was well done.
Boone and his rag tag group of animals. Boone was by far my favorite character.
What I didnāt like:
The spicy scenes. Maybe Iām just vanilla but there was a certain thing that just completely grossed me out. Also, I didnāt feel like the Brady in those scenes matched up to the Brady we saw in the rest of the story. Especially with the way he was during their first encounter. It just didnāt match up in my head.
Thereās also a few things left unresolved at the end, which I guess it probably on purpose if this is the start of a series. But it felt like an abrupt end.
Overall, I would probably rate this 3.5, rounded up to 4 and I will probably pick up the next in the series.