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The Soul Retrieval
Winner of the 2015 Readers' Favorite Silver Medal for Inspirational Fiction.
Inspired by a true story, The Soul Retrieval is an award-winning suspenseful tale of love, loss and healing which follows traumatized southern beauty Henrietta Clayborn as she moves between her home in a small South Carolina town and the New Mexico Native American reservation whose spontaneous healings keep drawing her physician husband back. Tortured by her awful secrets, Henrietta struggles to thrive in either locale, but it is her unlikely friendship with Joe Loco--an eccentric Native American mystic with an Elvis fetish and a gift for healing--that shows her the way to be whole again.
Set in the late 1950s, The Soul Retrieval is richly woven with spiritual insights but also deadly secrets, forbidden healings, a murder mystery, stunning scenery and an unforgettable cast of characters.
A story of transcendent and inspiring power that is both entertaining and enlightening, readers will be cheering for the uptight woman from South Carolina to push through her fears of the forbidden as she searches for truth and healing, faces great obstacles on the frontier of self and ultimately becomes more than she ever thought possible.
Inspired by a true story, The Soul Retrieval is an award-winning suspenseful tale of love, loss and healing which follows traumatized southern beauty Henrietta Clayborn as she moves between her home in a small South Carolina town and the New Mexico Native American reservation whose spontaneous healings keep drawing her physician husband back. Tortured by her awful secrets, Henrietta struggles to thrive in either locale, but it is her unlikely friendship with Joe Loco--an eccentric Native American mystic with an Elvis fetish and a gift for healing--that shows her the way to be whole again.
Set in the late 1950s, The Soul Retrieval is richly woven with spiritual insights but also deadly secrets, forbidden healings, a murder mystery, stunning scenery and an unforgettable cast of characters.
A story of transcendent and inspiring power that is both entertaining and enlightening, readers will be cheering for the uptight woman from South Carolina to push through her fears of the forbidden as she searches for truth and healing, faces great obstacles on the frontier of self and ultimately becomes more than she ever thought possible.
434 pages, Paperback
First published March 22, 2015
18 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Ann W. Jarvie
2 books141 followersAnn W. Jarvie has a B.A. in journalism and more than twenty-five years’ experience as an award-winning writer in advertising and public relations agencies, both in South Carolina and Chicago. She now lives near Phoenix, Arizona, where she spends part of her time as a freelance copywriter and the rest writing fiction.
Jarvie's novel, The Soul Retrieval, was inspired by her maternal grandmother’s fascinating life on Native American reservations, where she lived with her physician husband until his mysterious and untimely death.
Jarvie's novel, The Soul Retrieval, was inspired by her maternal grandmother’s fascinating life on Native American reservations, where she lived with her physician husband until his mysterious and untimely death.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 10, 2015
Inspired by a true story, Henrietta Clayborn and her husband have come back to the New Mexico Native American Reservation where the spontaneous and miraculous healings have captured his interest. Henrietta is having a tough time adapting to her new surroundings and moving past the awful secrets she is hiding. When she meets the eccentric Native American Joe Loco they form a strange and strong bond. Joe and Henrietta work to move past her troubles and become whole again.
The Soul Retrieval is a story filled with mystery, miraculous healings, and a murder mystery. There is so much in this story that it is a readers dream. The novel is definitely spiritually uplifting and in my experience reading this a spiritual reaffirming. The Soul Retrieval is based on the story of Ann Jarvie's maternal grandmother and her experiences on a Native American Reservation and the mysterious death of her husband. Jarvie has created a master piece with the imagery of the people and the place they reside. This novel is powerful through word and the thoughts it provokes. I highly recommend this to any one who is looking for something to sink their teeth into. I look forward to much more from Ann W. Jarvie.
*Reviewer for Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock.
The Soul Retrieval is a story filled with mystery, miraculous healings, and a murder mystery. There is so much in this story that it is a readers dream. The novel is definitely spiritually uplifting and in my experience reading this a spiritual reaffirming. The Soul Retrieval is based on the story of Ann Jarvie's maternal grandmother and her experiences on a Native American Reservation and the mysterious death of her husband. Jarvie has created a master piece with the imagery of the people and the place they reside. This novel is powerful through word and the thoughts it provokes. I highly recommend this to any one who is looking for something to sink their teeth into. I look forward to much more from Ann W. Jarvie.
*Reviewer for Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock.
April 10, 2015
Inspired by a true story, Henrietta Clayborn and her husband have come back to the New Mexico Native American Reservation where the spontaneous and miraculous healings have captured his interest. Henrietta is having a tough time adapting to her new surroundings and moving past the awful secrets she is hiding. When she meets the eccentric Native American Joe Loco they form a strange and strong bond. Joe and Henrietta work to move past her troubles and become whole again.
The Soul Retrieval is a story filled with mystery, miraculous healings, and a murder mystery. There is so much in this story that it is a readers dream. The novel is definitely spiritually uplifting and in my experience reading this a spiritual reaffirming. The Soul Retrieval is based on the story of Ann Jarvie's maternal grandmother and her experiences on a Native American Reservation and the mysterious death of her husband. Jarvie has created a master piece with the imagery of the people and the place they reside. This novel is powerful through word and the thoughts it provokes. I highly recommend this to any one who is looking for something to sink their teeth into. I look forward to much more from Ann W. Jarvie.
*Reviewer for Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock.
The Soul Retrieval is a story filled with mystery, miraculous healings, and a murder mystery. There is so much in this story that it is a readers dream. The novel is definitely spiritually uplifting and in my experience reading this a spiritual reaffirming. The Soul Retrieval is based on the story of Ann Jarvie's maternal grandmother and her experiences on a Native American Reservation and the mysterious death of her husband. Jarvie has created a master piece with the imagery of the people and the place they reside. This novel is powerful through word and the thoughts it provokes. I highly recommend this to any one who is looking for something to sink their teeth into. I look forward to much more from Ann W. Jarvie.
*Reviewer for Paranormal Romance & Authors That Rock.
June 7, 2015
This is a long book packed with heart, story, history and wonderful characters. The settings and topics in this book are marvelously handled. If you enjoy reading about the south, natural healing, Apache lore, medical research, the 1950s or how families meet tragedies, there is something here for you.
The writing is top notch with some charm thrown in. One of my favorite phrases was “His smile was as sweet as melted milk chocolate…” There is also fear, anger, heartache and evil contained in in some of the lives of the characters- just so you understand that you may have to endure some pain alongside the characters.
I was provided a copy to read and write an honest review.
The writing is top notch with some charm thrown in. One of my favorite phrases was “His smile was as sweet as melted milk chocolate…” There is also fear, anger, heartache and evil contained in in some of the lives of the characters- just so you understand that you may have to endure some pain alongside the characters.
I was provided a copy to read and write an honest review.
May 2, 2015
Beautifully written and reader friendly. The imagery will take you into a realm of beauty and peace that very few books achieve. I am so captivated by the writer and her ability to capture the essence of adventure, sacred Indian healing, and a woman's journey to spiritual freedom in such a page-turning way. I will read this book again because I was so mesmerized to know what happens next that another read will make it that more compelling!
May 25, 2015
An amazing book! This author will make you escape right into the story and characters before you even realize you're there! East to follow and hard to put down once you start! While reading you will find yourself searching within yourself as well... hard to explain, but easily figured out once you have read this book!
*Received for an honest review*
*Received for an honest review*
July 17, 2015
Good book, thought provoking.
This was a good book in a light-hearted sense compared to the thrillers I generally read. Every now and then I need to throw one of these in as a feel good story and now time to find a good old suspense gripper.
This was a good book in a light-hearted sense compared to the thrillers I generally read. Every now and then I need to throw one of these in as a feel good story and now time to find a good old suspense gripper.
March 30, 2015
New beginnings – A review of the novel ‘The Soul Retrieval’
“Words are a pretext. It is the inner bond that draws one person to another, not words.” – Rumi
Author Ann W. Jarvie’snovel ‘The Soul Retrieval’ tells the story of Henrietta Clayborn and her tryst with love, loss, healing and new beginnings. Set in the 1950’s between a small town in South Carolina and a Native American reservation in New Mexico, it follows the story of Henrietta and her physician husband Jeff who’s researching cases of spontaneous remission found among the locals on the reservation. While the good doctor tries to help the tribal community and research their spirit medicine in the process, there are dissenting groups within the white community as well as the tribe’s members who aren’t happy with the doctor’s meddling presence. Meanwhile Henrietta has a deep dark secret that has scarred her soul but in the company of a sage Apache woman Altie and her eccentric mystic husband Joe, she finds the courage to get over her past and the many hurdles she faces in her present.
This suspenseful, beautifully written novel focuses on the lives of an American family of the 50’s temporarily living on a Native American reservation. While most books with this premise tell stories of battles and bravado, very rarely do they focus on the personal lives of the participants, of the human drama involved, like this one. Here we get to know and care about a young family as they struggle to survive and exist within their own southern white culture and the vastly different traditions of Native Americans. The two cultures do not easily coexist, yet they come to rely on each other because of the medicinal knowledge and cures available to each side.
And while we are talking about this book it would be a shame not to mention its wonderful cast of characters on whose shoulders this novel achieves its glory. Sure the story is original, suspenseful and one of a kind. The treatment of plot offers novelty and ingenuity, but it’s the characters that take it to a whole new level. Henrietta is the soul and star of this novel. She is traumatized and yet has the capacity to open herself to the forbidden and search for healing truths. She is vulnerable and yet resolutely strong when fate demands it of her. Henrietta behaves within the boundaries a 1950’s society has permitted for a woman but she isn’t afraid to break the same shackles when needed.
Going head to head with her and sometimes quite literally too is Dr. Colonel who’s Henrietta’s father-in-law. He is the quintessential patriarchal macho man who feels everyone else must bow down before him and serve his every whim and fancy. Now this was a character the author could have gone overboard with and made a caricature of but she puts in the right amount of menacing and evil and he appears as a highly dislikeable man but a real person nonetheless. Joe and Altie are her native friends and the ones who help her through her life transition. Joe speaks a lot through metaphors and parables, most of which contain hidden meaning and others just witty quips. He is a bit of everything, taking the good aspects of different cultures, traditions and institutions. Altie is another strong woman like Henrietta and the strong bond they share automatically transforms into a warm friendship.
Even though it’s a big book, coming to around 400+ pages, you will never be put off by its size. Especially the last 100-150 pages wiz by pretty quickly as the story picks up its intensity and important events start happening one after the other. A compelling storyline and a great cast of characters ensure this novel’s longevity in your mind long after you are done reading it.
“Words are a pretext. It is the inner bond that draws one person to another, not words.” – Rumi
Author Ann W. Jarvie’snovel ‘The Soul Retrieval’ tells the story of Henrietta Clayborn and her tryst with love, loss, healing and new beginnings. Set in the 1950’s between a small town in South Carolina and a Native American reservation in New Mexico, it follows the story of Henrietta and her physician husband Jeff who’s researching cases of spontaneous remission found among the locals on the reservation. While the good doctor tries to help the tribal community and research their spirit medicine in the process, there are dissenting groups within the white community as well as the tribe’s members who aren’t happy with the doctor’s meddling presence. Meanwhile Henrietta has a deep dark secret that has scarred her soul but in the company of a sage Apache woman Altie and her eccentric mystic husband Joe, she finds the courage to get over her past and the many hurdles she faces in her present.
This suspenseful, beautifully written novel focuses on the lives of an American family of the 50’s temporarily living on a Native American reservation. While most books with this premise tell stories of battles and bravado, very rarely do they focus on the personal lives of the participants, of the human drama involved, like this one. Here we get to know and care about a young family as they struggle to survive and exist within their own southern white culture and the vastly different traditions of Native Americans. The two cultures do not easily coexist, yet they come to rely on each other because of the medicinal knowledge and cures available to each side.
And while we are talking about this book it would be a shame not to mention its wonderful cast of characters on whose shoulders this novel achieves its glory. Sure the story is original, suspenseful and one of a kind. The treatment of plot offers novelty and ingenuity, but it’s the characters that take it to a whole new level. Henrietta is the soul and star of this novel. She is traumatized and yet has the capacity to open herself to the forbidden and search for healing truths. She is vulnerable and yet resolutely strong when fate demands it of her. Henrietta behaves within the boundaries a 1950’s society has permitted for a woman but she isn’t afraid to break the same shackles when needed.
Going head to head with her and sometimes quite literally too is Dr. Colonel who’s Henrietta’s father-in-law. He is the quintessential patriarchal macho man who feels everyone else must bow down before him and serve his every whim and fancy. Now this was a character the author could have gone overboard with and made a caricature of but she puts in the right amount of menacing and evil and he appears as a highly dislikeable man but a real person nonetheless. Joe and Altie are her native friends and the ones who help her through her life transition. Joe speaks a lot through metaphors and parables, most of which contain hidden meaning and others just witty quips. He is a bit of everything, taking the good aspects of different cultures, traditions and institutions. Altie is another strong woman like Henrietta and the strong bond they share automatically transforms into a warm friendship.
Even though it’s a big book, coming to around 400+ pages, you will never be put off by its size. Especially the last 100-150 pages wiz by pretty quickly as the story picks up its intensity and important events start happening one after the other. A compelling storyline and a great cast of characters ensure this novel’s longevity in your mind long after you are done reading it.
March 10, 2016
I received this book from Goddess Fish Promotions in return for a fair and honest review.
Inspired by a true event, this book tells the story of a young family from the South in the 1950s as they try to break some of the constraints that bind everyone to form a clearer and deeper understanding of each other.
Henrietta has been wounded soul deep and is trying to deal with it by herself but feels like she is slowly falling apart. She meets Joe, who has an Elvis quote for every occasion, and Altie, his wife. Together, this couple offer Henrietta way to move forward and to deal with her pain, to start healing and to enjoy her life again. You don't actually hear much from Henrietta's husband, Jeff, apart from in flashbacks but you learn enough to know about them, him and their marriage.
This book delves deeply into the Native American medicine but also manages to incorporate the Catholic church and Karma into it in a way that offends nobody. This book won't be for everyone, that I can tell you. And at 400 pages, it's longer than most books apart from Epic Fantasy! However, if you like reading about different spiritualities, a way of life gone by and something that stands out from the crowd, then I would highly recommend this.
Looking forward to seeing where this goes next.
Inspired by a true event, this book tells the story of a young family from the South in the 1950s as they try to break some of the constraints that bind everyone to form a clearer and deeper understanding of each other.
Henrietta has been wounded soul deep and is trying to deal with it by herself but feels like she is slowly falling apart. She meets Joe, who has an Elvis quote for every occasion, and Altie, his wife. Together, this couple offer Henrietta way to move forward and to deal with her pain, to start healing and to enjoy her life again. You don't actually hear much from Henrietta's husband, Jeff, apart from in flashbacks but you learn enough to know about them, him and their marriage.
This book delves deeply into the Native American medicine but also manages to incorporate the Catholic church and Karma into it in a way that offends nobody. This book won't be for everyone, that I can tell you. And at 400 pages, it's longer than most books apart from Epic Fantasy! However, if you like reading about different spiritualities, a way of life gone by and something that stands out from the crowd, then I would highly recommend this.
Looking forward to seeing where this goes next.
March 30, 2015
When young working class South Carolina girl Henrietta and Jeff, the son of a prominent citizen doctor fall in love and marry, the girl discovers that her father-in-law is a very different man when he is out of the public eye. She and Jeff, a doctor too, take up residence on a New Mexico Apache Indian reservation not only to escape the poisonous influence of Doctor Colonel, but to study the Indians’ spontaneous healing practices. There, under the watchful guidance of a mystic Apache healer, known as both Joe and Bears Repeating, Henrietta undertakes a “soul retrieval” to heal her wounded and fragmented spirit. She has tried to hide the profound ways her father-in-law has harmed her in order to protect her relationship with Jeff. As Henrietta begins to appreciate her new-found peace, two violent deaths threaten to shatter her tender soul once again. With each turned page, the reader becomes more deeply involved in the history of this young wife, mother, and writer and wishes fervently for a happy outcome. Read this page turner of a first novel to discover Henrietta’s destiny and learn the fascinating process of “The Soul Retrieval.”
August 12, 2015
The Soul Retrieval is a fabulous book. This novel incorporate many different ideas. Ann W. Jarvie writes about love, spiritual healing, South Carolina in the 50's, an Indian reservation in New Mexico, friendship, ansd so many different things. The characters are Ivery believable. This is a great murder mystery also. I can't wait until the next book comes out. There is something in this book for almost everyone to enjoy! I wish I could have given The Soul Retrieval another half star!
April 5, 2015
Hesling of a soul
Mostly, this book has to do with healing, of the body and, most importantly, inner healing. Dealing with traditional healing and metaphysical healing, took place in 1959, a woman must face her past, in order to reclaim her soul. Medical doctor and Apache medicine man, and their strong connection. Long book.
Mostly, this book has to do with healing, of the body and, most importantly, inner healing. Dealing with traditional healing and metaphysical healing, took place in 1959, a woman must face her past, in order to reclaim her soul. Medical doctor and Apache medicine man, and their strong connection. Long book.
July 26, 2015
An inspiring read
The Soul Retrieval appealed to me on many levels. It was set in two locations that I know and love, during. An era that appeals to me, and the spiritual theme running throughout never becomes stilted or preachy.
The Soul Retrieval appealed to me on many levels. It was set in two locations that I know and love, during. An era that appeals to me, and the spiritual theme running throughout never becomes stilted or preachy.
September 1, 2015
The plot is very predictable and convenient.
September 14, 2016
Although the information about Native American culture was interesting, the writing style was uninteresting and the story was almost to the point of ridiculous.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews