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A review by thisnursereads
A Kingdom of Souls and Shadows by Leslie O'Sullivan
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Thank you to Netgalley for granting me an advance reader copy for free! I am writing an honest voluntary review:
⭐️2.0
His stare burns like an accidental glance at the sun. I swear tiny bursts of light swarm behind him in the trees.
Ella O'Dwyer is a young college professor of Celtic studies that lives in NYC close to the adoptive Irish grandmother that raised her. Her world is upended when her grandmother passes and she is left with unanswered questions and clues leading her on a spring break trip to Ireland in hopes of discovering her true identity aka Eala Duir.
Accompanied by her BFF Colleen, a handsome professor named Jeremy Olk, and an attractive Irishman named Sion with bright eyes swimming with secrets, Eala discovers not is all as it seems. She finds herself partnered with Sion on a century old quest immersed in the faerie stories she grew up listening to. Eala must decide if she can trust the man she just met and if her faith can overcome what she cannot see.
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O'Sullivan does a great job throughout the book of writing beautiful poetic imagery/descriptions and although the narrative was so interesting, the execution fell flat. I found the book slow and choppy. There is a bit of a love triangle and slow burn that had me rooting for neither party due to the back/forth between the characters being so off putting. Sion had extremely erratic behavior/dialogue that made him feel disingenuous and way too intense and Eala had zero grit.
There are other areas of the book I found problematic but will not share as it has not been published.
⭐️2.0
His stare burns like an accidental glance at the sun. I swear tiny bursts of light swarm behind him in the trees.
Ella O'Dwyer is a young college professor of Celtic studies that lives in NYC close to the adoptive Irish grandmother that raised her. Her world is upended when her grandmother passes and she is left with unanswered questions and clues leading her on a spring break trip to Ireland in hopes of discovering her true identity aka Eala Duir.
Accompanied by her BFF Colleen, a handsome professor named Jeremy Olk, and an attractive Irishman named Sion with bright eyes swimming with secrets, Eala discovers not is all as it seems. She finds herself partnered with Sion on a century old quest immersed in the faerie stories she grew up listening to. Eala must decide if she can trust the man she just met and if her faith can overcome what she cannot see.
-----------------
O'Sullivan does a great job throughout the book of writing beautiful poetic imagery/descriptions and although the narrative was so interesting, the execution fell flat. I found the book slow and choppy. There is a bit of a love triangle and slow burn that had me rooting for neither party due to the back/forth between the characters being so off putting. Sion had extremely erratic behavior/dialogue that made him feel disingenuous and way too intense and Eala had zero grit.
There are other areas of the book I found problematic but will not share as it has not been published.