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A review by twistykris
A Soul to Keep by Opal Reyne
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
"To all the MonsterFuckers out there, This book is for you. Don’t pretend that you’ve never wanted to be railed by some human eating, dark entity that has a skull for a face – you saw the cover, you knew what you were getting yourself into, and you still chose to open this book and read it."
- A Soul to Keep Introduction
Take Beauty and the Beat but make it SPICY 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
I loved watching the relationship between Reia and Orpheus grow. There are some communication issues- mainly because he's literally a monster who doesn't have knowledge of human emotions, thoughts, customs, and basic anatomy- but there were multiple times that their conversations had me giddily kicking my feet. Orpheus just wants a companion, someone who won't leave him, and Reia wants her freedom. It clashes at first, as she tries to escape his cottage, but she eventually warms to him and appreciates the thoughtful things he does. He's a big old cinnamon roll that I just wanted to hug for so much of this book. He is dealing with loneliness and his own loss of someone close to him and it clearly weighs on his mind a lot.
Reia is a tough character who wants her independence and learns how to fight with a sword; she's also very kind-hearted and has empathy for Orpheus and another Duskwalker who makes a few appearances in this book. I actually liked reading about her thought process as she starts to grow fond of Orpheus. But BOY she got a little annoying at times and her not making a pretty easy connection towards the end of book had me rolling my eyes. Kind of reminiscent of Feyre taking forever to figure out the riddle in ACOTAR.
However, if you aren't into the "she's mine, don't touch her or I'll kill you/ you & your body belong to me" thing, this isn't for you. (Also calling a vagina a "cunt.") Orpheus is possessive and jealous in a sort of beast way; personally, I kinda like the "I will kill anyone who hurts you" vibe, especially if it's coming from a 7-foot tall monster don't judge me.
I listened to the DUAL-NARRATED audiobook and WOW, Wolfgang Milliken does a fantastic job as Orpheus (and other male characters), and Elise Hoffman is great as Reia (and other female characters). They portrayed their characters actions and emotions so well that I found myself easily absorbed into the world. I also downloaded the book through Kindle Unlimited, but found myself going back to the audiobook. For.. reasons.
I know the sequel, A Soul to Heal, features a plus-sized character (and a recurring character from this book) and I'm looking forward to probably relating to the FMC too much- I may wait for the release of the audiobook though, since I enjoyed this one so much. Looking at the covers of future books, it seems like we will also get some more POC characters, which will be much-needed in this universe.
Take Beauty and the Beat but make it SPICY 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
I loved watching the relationship between Reia and Orpheus grow. There are some communication issues- mainly because he's literally a monster who doesn't have knowledge of human emotions, thoughts, customs, and basic anatomy- but there were multiple times that their conversations had me giddily kicking my feet. Orpheus just wants a companion, someone who won't leave him, and Reia wants her freedom. It clashes at first, as she tries to escape his cottage, but she eventually warms to him and appreciates the thoughtful things he does. He's a big old cinnamon roll that I just wanted to hug for so much of this book. He is dealing with loneliness and his own loss of someone close to him and it clearly weighs on his mind a lot.
Reia is a tough character who wants her independence and learns how to fight with a sword; she's also very kind-hearted and has empathy for Orpheus and another Duskwalker who makes a few appearances in this book. I actually liked reading about her thought process as she starts to grow fond of Orpheus. But BOY she got a little annoying at times and her not making a pretty easy connection towards the end of book had me rolling my eyes. Kind of reminiscent of Feyre taking forever to figure out the riddle in ACOTAR.
However, if you aren't into the "she's mine, don't touch her or I'll kill you/ you & your body belong to me" thing, this isn't for you. (Also calling a vagina a "cunt.") Orpheus is possessive and jealous in a sort of beast way; personally, I kinda like the "I will kill anyone who hurts you" vibe, especially if it's coming from a 7-foot tall monster don't judge me.
I listened to the DUAL-NARRATED audiobook and WOW, Wolfgang Milliken does a fantastic job as Orpheus (and other male characters), and Elise Hoffman is great as Reia (and other female characters). They portrayed their characters actions and emotions so well that I found myself easily absorbed into the world. I also downloaded the book through Kindle Unlimited, but found myself going back to the audiobook. For.. reasons.
I know the sequel, A Soul to Heal, features a plus-sized character (and a recurring character from this book) and I'm looking forward to probably relating to the FMC too much- I may wait for the release of the audiobook though, since I enjoyed this one so much. Looking at the covers of future books, it seems like we will also get some more POC characters, which will be much-needed in this universe.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Gore and Grief
Minor: Animal death and Confinement