FINN-tastic!

My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

My rating: 2 of 5 stars [**spoiler alert after the "more" link**]

This novel is HARLEQUIN TEEN’s first release. I can’t say I fell in love with this book, the story, or the characters right away. For me, the book kicked off kind of slow. It wasn’t so slow that I put the book down and waited a long time to pick it up again. It just didn’t start off with a BANG, and I guess, I was kind of expecting it.

I found the premise interesting enough to continue reading the book, and ultimately, I enjoyed it as a whole. The main character, Kaylee, is living with her annoying/petty cousin, pretty good-natured uncle and a rather odd aunt. Her best friend flits in and out of the pages and doesn’t seem to play as strong a role as her love interest Nash (which, I guess, I should have expected).

She’s been having so-called “panic attacks” her whole life and it becomes clear really quickly that there’s something MORE than just a “panic attack”. I liked how all three principal characters: the heroine, the best friend, the love interest are introduced early in the book.

I guess what I was looking for was escalating danger, a sense of urgency. I didn’t feel much of that going through much of the novel until I neared the climax of the book. Only then did I seem to care more intensely about the characters and what was happening to them. Up until then, I was basically kind of so-so in my commitment to the characters. The explanations for what’s happening, the backstory, and the looming danger that comes later in the novel aren’t particularly surprising, and in fact, I found much of it to be rather predictable. [spoilers revealed from this point. Click "more"to read on.]

For example: I knew from the moment Tod appeared that he was Nash’s brother. I knew the heroine’s mother had been the exchange rate in exchange for Kaylee’s life once I understood what the “exchange rate” was and that it was the primary reason her father had been so distant. None of that was surprising. I knew eventually her cousin would be endangered and I knew her cousin would blame her for her own mother’s death.

I did not anticipate Kaylee’s aunt to have been the one dealing with the Netherworld, but I wasn’t surprised. In fact, I thought it was almost too tidy and convenient. And I thought her reason for betraying everyone the way she did was superficial, almost unbelievable, and it was the easy answer (in my opinion).

Still — once I knew that she was the one responsible, I knew she’d offer up her own life in exchange for her daughters.

What redeemed the book in my estimation is that the ending picked up. I anticipated the climax, looked forward to it, and found myself anxious to reach the resolution. While I “cruised” through much of the novel instead of “tore through it voraciously,” I liked how the author raises questions by the novel’s end to keep me intrigued in the second release (coming 2010). I know it doesn’t sound like I liked the book, but that’s not really the case. What it comes down to is that I liked/enjoyed it, but I didn’t LOVE it. Will I read the sequel? Yes. Because I believe Rachel Vincent can build on the foundation she’s laid out in this novel. Her writing is strong, her voice is appropriate for YA, and I believe there’s more in store for Kaylee & Nash — and I’m interested enough to keep going. View all my reviews >>

Note: I don’t know if this is actually necessary, but so I don’t offend anyone at the FTC, let’s get one thing straight.  I bought this book from Borders.  No one gave me swag, money, or otherwise influenced me to review this book (except for the fact that I bought it, read it, and decided to share my thoughts on it).  Now please don’t sue me.  I’m broke already.