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Kingdom of Souls

(Kingdom of Souls #1)

Rena Barron (Goodreads Author)

3.82 · Rating details · 1,003 ratings · 450 reviews

Magic has a price—if you’re willing to pay.

Born into a family of powerful witchdoctors, Arrah yearns for magic of her own. But each year she fails to call forth her ancestral powers, while her ambitious mother watches with growing disapproval.

There’s only one thing Arrah hasn’t tried, a deadly last resort: trading years of her own life for scraps of magic. Until the ...more

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Hardcover, 496 pages

Published September 19th 2019 by HarperVoyager (first published September 3rd 2019)

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Average rating 3.82 ·

Rating details

· 1,003 ratings · 450 reviews

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Start your review of Kingdom of Souls (Kingdom of Souls, #1)

Sep 03, 2019 Riley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I am so impressed by this book. It was a lot darker than I anticipated and the world was so rich with mythology and magic. I loved that the main character was one of the only people in this world without magic. She comes from a very powerful family, both her parents have very strong magical lineages. Instead of being the special ~one~ she was completely unspecial and had everything working against her but despite that she had ambition and hope to become something greater. This also heavily ...more

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Sep 19, 2019 Umairah | Sereadipity rated it it was amazing

Plot: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Writing: 5/5

Kingdom of Souls was a tale of epic proportions set in a West African fantasy world full of magic and mystery. It was a captivating but also a very dark and heavy read that made me feel all of the emotions possible and it was so intense that at one point I just had to put the book down and process my turbulent feelings.

Arrah was born from two powerful witchdoctors but had no magic to call her own no matter how hard she tried or how much she wanted it. But when ...more

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Aug 21, 2019 C.G. Drews added it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, epic-fantasy, read-2019

This was a deeply complex, rich and dark fantasy that had me intrigued from the very first page. I do like my epic fantasy daaaark and this definitely delves into that side of magic, with witchdoctors gone rogue and demons breaking free and strings of murders. It's not without hope, though! As Arrah, even though she's magicless, will stop at nothing to defeat this darkness. We stan a Gryffindor heroine. Let's go

// West-African inspired mythology
I am so so here for more #ownvoices fantasy! It ...more

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Jun 24, 2018 Rena Barron rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author)

I'm bias, of course! This story is deeply personal to me and explores themes that have shaped my life. I hope readers enjoy it too!

Now that Kingdom of Souls is officially out in the world, I want to include content warnings for those interested in reading the book. The story includes blood magic, an intentional infliction of self-injury in a ritual, challenging familial relationship, death of a child, death in battle scenes, mention of animal sacrifice (not on page), animal possession, mind ...more

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Apr 14, 2018 Elise (TheBookishActress) marked it as releases-2019

So this book apparently has not been announced yet, but it's being pitched as Wonder Woman in a West-African inspired world. also, it's about a girl with no power trying to defeat her sister with power. sign me up.

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Mar 23, 2019 Jessy is currently reading it

Shelves: netgalley

I don't really like this cover (the US one) but whatever. Still gonna read this. The UK cover though isn't that bad so that's cool.

(The ARC is so much more beautiful)

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Nov 22, 2019 Lucy Langford rated it really liked it

4.5****

Magic has a price- if you’re willing to pay.

This book had great characters, great plot and explored African mythology. This book focuses on a girl called Arrah, the non-magic daughter of powerful witch doctors... much to Arrah’s disappointment. All Arrah wants is magic so that her mother will finally be proud of her for something, rather than just a disappointment.

When children begin to go missing from the poorer areas of the land, Arrah seeks to get magic in order to stop the ...more

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Oct 28, 2019 Amy Imogene Reads rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, read-in-2019, ya-fantasy

Loved loved LOVED this. It definitely was too much plot for one book—we slapped a lot of dense things together—but WOW. I can’t wait for the next one.

Writing:
World building:
Surprises:
Pacing: 1/2

Kingdom of Souls is the kind of book that I think will be made or broken by the reader's expectations.

If you think that you're getting a blueprint YA fantasy with strong African inspiration (think Children of Blood and Bone), Kingdom of Souls will feel really odd. It doesn't have a standard A, B, C ...more

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Sep 10, 2019 Aaryn Flott rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, anticipated-reads

This book is definitely worth the freaking hype!!! This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year! I mean look at that cover! It’s delicious

Kingdom of Souls is the story of 16-year old Arrah. Despite stemming from a highly esteemed witch doctor of a father, and extremely powerful high priest of a mother, Arrah herself, possesses no inherited magical traits. Because of this, she is treated as a pariah in the magical tribal lands, and devoid of love from her own incredibly influential ...more

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Sep 05, 2019 Chad rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019, edelweiss

This was billed as a YA African inspired tale but I didn't pickup on either very much. Barron has established a rich, complex fantasy world that other than having witch doctors didn't scream Africa to me. That is by no means a bad thing. I've just read enough fantasy that elements like tribes and pantheons blended in to general fantasy world building more than anything else. This was very complex and dark for a YA book. Other than the main characters being 17 to 18, I wouldn't consider this a YA ...more

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Jul 10, 2019 Aly (In Wonderland) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, historical

Trigger Warning: Kingdom of Souls contains scenes of violence, sacrifice, blood magic and parental abuse. Proceed with caution.

"For she will rise from the ashes alit in flames.
For no water will ever quell her pain.
For no redemption will befall her.
For we will never speak her name.
-- Song of the Unnamed"

Nothing I will ever write will give you an idea of how truly wonderfully written and amazing Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron is. I was lucky enough to be part of the “traveling book Trigger Warning: Kingdom of Souls contains scenes of violence, sacrifice, blood magic and parental abuse. Proceed with caution.

"For she will rise from the ashes alit in flames.
For no water will ever quell her pain.
For no redemption will befall her.
For we will never speak her name.
-- Song of the Unnamed"

Nothing I will ever write will give you an idea of how truly wonderfully written and amazing Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron is. I was lucky enough to be part of the “traveling book initiative” in which a single ARC was sent from hand-to-hand in order for readers to join in on the KOS hype train before release.

If it hadn’t been for work and other daily annoyances, I would have finished this book a lot faster than the three days it took me. But when I did finish it, at 11 o’clock at night with The Big Bang Theory playing quietly in the background, I couldn’t help thinking I could never read another fantasy novel the same way again. I clutched this book to my chest for an hour, wanting to scream about it from the rooftops but not finding the words to describe how desperately you all need this novel in your lives.

Coming from a family of powerful witchdoctors, Arrah can’t wait for the day her own magic presents itself. But after failure after failure in calling for her own powers every year, Arrah is willing to try one last thing: trade her own life years for magic.

When the kingdom’s children begin to disappear, Arrah is desperate to find the culprit using her own powers. Alongside friends, she makes powerful sacrifices and takes a dangerous journey in discovering who she is and what she was born to do.

I’m gonna say this now: this book would not have been this fantastic if it had been written by a white woman. Barron threads her own experiences and history into the story, weaving a web that does not fail to capture its audience. Arrah is steadfast and headstrong, determined to make a difference in the world and I felt that right in the core of my being. Who doesn’t want to make a name for themselves? Who feels like they’re failing when they don’t seem to be moving forward? I know I do. Not only are the characters so well-developed that they leap off the page, but the kingdom itself is pure magic. The writing brims with power as Barron describes the city Arrah lives in; the marketplace she visits; the tight family bond she has with her father. It’s impossible to not fall in love with the world built upon the pages of Kingdom of Souls.

Make no mistake, though. Kingdom of Souls is not an easy book to read. There’s blood and violence (a lot of the magic relies heavily on blood magic) and a lot of dark topics are explored that may make you uneasy, so please proceed with caution.

Preorder this book. Rave about it. Buy it for your mum and your grandparents. Buy it for your dad and your uncles. Buy it for your colleagues, your new date, your best friend who doesn’t really read much. There’s a little something for everyone in Kingdom of Souls, and it should not (CANNOT) pass under the radar. ...more

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Sep 02, 2019 Schizanthus rated it really liked it

Shelves: kindle-food, content-warnings, netgalley

I don’t really know where to begin with this review. There was so much about Kingdom of Souls that I loved. I adored the world building, the rich mythology and learning how magic works in Arrah’s world, yet at the same time I was introduced to so many characters, tribes and gods that I found it difficult to keep track of them.

Enter my cheat guide. I had no idea who or what was going to be important later on and I was so overwhelmed in the beginning (up to about 20%) that I found myself ...more

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Aug 17, 2019 Michelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

16-year-old Arrah is the daughter of powerful Witchdoctors. But she doesn’t have the magic that her parents have, and she so desperately wants it and the approval of her mother. That she does everything she can to get it. She loves her dad dearly and closer that her mother. When children start to missing Arrah finds out that it’s her mother who is responsible, trying to summon a Demonic king. So Arrah performs a ritual to get magic so she can stop her mother. But it takes years off her.
Kingdom ...more

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Apr 29, 2019 Cortney rated it really liked it · review of another edition

4.25 Stars

“For her story begins at the end
Full of pain and sweet revenge.
For she shall not rest in this life,
For she must suffer for her sins.”

Arrah doesn’t have magic like her parents and so you know she may be tempted to do something she shouldn’t just to get a little taste of what it’s like to have that kind of power. She’s just trying to help out a friend. What could possibly go wrong?

Political intrigue. Check. Revenge. Check. Epic battle scenes. Check. Scheming unreliable gods. Check. ...more

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Mar 10, 2018 Sana marked it as to-read-so-bad-it-hurts

Aaand the comparisons to Black Panther begins

No, but for real this actually sounds great and I don't know how I didn't know about this before today like

'Set in a West African-inspired fantasy kingdom and having a tone comparable to Wonder Woman, Last Witchdoctor centers on a young woman who fails at magic, fails to call upon the ancestors and can't even cast the simplest curse. In fact, she fails so much that her witchdoctor mother conjures a better daughter, one whose power soon threatens to ...more

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Apr 26, 2019 destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries] marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: owned-digital, unread-review-copies, owned-tbr

I just wanna stare at this cover forever. Look how powerful she looks. DAMN. ...more

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Sep 25, 2019 Zoe Stewart (yerabooknerdzoe) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: default

I'm thinking this is more of a 3.5 for me. I listened to the audiobook for quite a bit of it, but I much preferred the physical copy. One of the main reasons this isn't a higher rating for me is the romance. At first, it seemed like it wouldn't be such a huge part of the book. However, unfortunately, it really took over. I understood why when I finished, but still, the endless descriptions of his eyes, his lips, the deep timbre of his voice, etc. could've really been done less frequently. (view ...more

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Sep 15, 2019 Bookishrealm rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: books-read-in-2019, ownvoices, ya-fantasy

This book was crazy. I mean beyond crazy. From the beginning of the book I had no idea what direction the book was taking and I definitely can say that it had twists and turns that no one could possibly see coming. The complexity of the world and the relationships between those with magic, regular humans, the Orishas, and the demon kind is something that takes time to understand. I wouldn’t go into this novel attempting to give definitive titles of “good and evil” to anyone. Most of, if not all, This book was crazy. I mean beyond crazy. From the beginning of the book I had no idea what direction the book was taking and I definitely can say that it had twists and turns that no one could possibly see coming. The complexity of the world and the relationships between those with magic, regular humans, the Orishas, and the demon kind is something that takes time to understand. I wouldn’t go into this novel attempting to give definitive titles of “good and evil” to anyone. Most of, if not all, the characters are morally grey which makes for a very compelling story. In terms of plot, I was extremely surprised at how complex the author attempted to be in world-building. At times, it felt as though there was too much information packed into this nearly 500 page novel that could be shared over what I am going to assume is book 2 and 3. And because of the overload of information, there were some parts of the book (namely the middle) that seemed to drag on. The plot didn’t really pick up speed again until the last 100-150 pages of the book. With such a interesting magic system and world, I felt as though this initial book could have been shorter. The character development was also interesting and I found that the main character Arrah was weaker than I wanted. My heart was searching for this kick ass female lead that could take on anything and yet most of the time I felt like she was relying on everyone and everything around her. I also feel as though her love interest was irrelevant to the core of the story. They didn’t need to be together and honestly after the crap that he pulled at the end of the book, they shouldn’t be together at all. I just want a YA fantasy book that has nothing to do with romance. Is that too much to ask for? Overall, I did enjoy the book and annotated the crap out of my copy. I wanted to give it 5 but I couldn’t justify it with the issues that I took note of. I definitely will be picking up the next book in the series because that ending was MIND BLOWING. If there is one thing I love about a book, it’s the authors ability to write a twist that no one sees coming. ...more

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Jul 23, 2019 Meaghan rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2019

Arrah has been desperate for a whisper of magic all her life, as she was born to two of the most powerful witchdoctors of their generation. When her loved ones and city are put in danger, and magic still refuses to answer her call, Arrah must seek out other ways to make the magic do her bidding. But is she willing to pay the price?

I was lucky enough to be chosen for the cross-country travelling ARC initiative, and even though the book wasn’t for me I absolutely support the idea! This one ARC is Arrah has been desperate for a whisper of magic all her life, as she was born to two of the most powerful witchdoctors of their generation. When her loved ones and city are put in danger, and magic still refuses to answer her call, Arrah must seek out other ways to make the magic do her bidding. But is she willing to pay the price?

I was lucky enough to be chosen for the cross-country travelling ARC initiative, and even though the book wasn’t for me I absolutely support the idea! This one ARC is giving so many teen and POC reviewers the chance to read and review the ARC early without requiring a large following or hundreds of ARC copies. I was only 4th in this chain of readers, but I’m happy so many people are getting the chance to read this single copy of the book!

This book is a difficult one to discuss for me, mainly because I really wanted to enjoy it and I need for there to be more POC written fantasy with POC characters in YA and fantasy in general. Unfortunately, while I loved many of the background aspects of this book, I just couldn’t click with the characters or the way this story was told.

This book’s main issue was that it was way too ambitious for both a debut and a first book in a series. There was just so much in this book to digest, and I still don’t think I’ve fully finished understanding and thinking through all of it. It’s not only thick, but dense as well, and chock-full of just too much plot, action, and death. This book alone could have served as an entire series on its own with its plotline, as the book seems to follow the chain of exposition -> rising action -> climax -> falling action quite a few times. It was just too much for me as a reader alongside understanding the world and the lore woven into the novel as well.

However, my biggest personal issue was the hopelessness of most of the novel. This novel gets really dark really fast, and I get that comes with demons, but the utter despair that this book emanates from 20%-90% with no hope of a true resolution put me off a whole lot. It seemed like the only way this could turn around was with a miracle, and instead of it reading as a struggle between the main cast and this evil, it seemed more like continuous beat down of the main cast as their loved ones were all slowly killed off. (Seriously, almost every single character you’re introduced to in the first 10-20% of the novel is dead by the end). Don’t get me wrong, I like dark books and dark magic and dark villains, but I need some balance. It needs to be a battle/war that the main character seems to have some feasible chance of winning for me to stay invested.

Even with all those issues, I have to commend the author on the world and lore she created for the story and the way morality is played with in this book. The world seems to be incredibly diverse naturally, it doesn’t seem forced at all. Additionally, I absolutely loved the lore/religion of the world and how it factored into the plot itself, especially all the reveals made at the end. You also have no sense of good and evil in this book as almost everyone seems to walk the line between the two, with Arrah trying desperately to figure out which side to stake her life on. It was fascinating to analyze and read from that mindset alone.

I am extremely tempted to continue the series when the rest of the books come out, even with my disappointing experience with the first book, as I did really enjoy what the author was trying to do. Hopefully there’s a little more balance in book 2, and I don’t get the same strong feelings of despair and hopelessness.
...more

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Mar 29, 2019 The Artisan Geek rated it really liked it

Shelves: bookcase

22/7/19
Loved it! Review to come! :)

30/4/19
I AM HOLDING IT. I AM HOLDING IT. I AM HOLDING IT.
Oh my gosh, a thousand times thank you and more to the amazing Rena for sending this book over!! I feel the mother continent calling for me you guys!!! AAAAAH :D

29/3/19
I have been hyped up about this books for days! This story line sounds so good oof! This is definitely in my top 5 most anticipated books for the rest of the year!!

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Apr 27, 2019 ˗ˏˋliaˎˊ˗ marked it as to-read

Shelves: tbr-ebooks, 2019-releases

so the cover gods are really trying their hardest to kill me this year, aren't they?

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Aug 16, 2019 K.S. Marsden rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

The tribes are blessed with magic, some stronger than others. Arrah has to deal with being the dud of the family. She yearns to use magic like everybody else, but she should be careful what she wishes for.

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Set in a West-African inspired world, where magic is a necessary part of life, Arrah is the daughter of two of the most powerful people in the tribes, and her grandmother is edam - another powerful witch-doctor and tribal The tribes are blessed with magic, some stronger than others. Arrah has to deal with being the dud of the family. She yearns to use magic like everybody else, but she should be careful what she wishes for.

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Set in a West-African inspired world, where magic is a necessary part of life, Arrah is the daughter of two of the most powerful people in the tribes, and her grandmother is edam - another powerful witch-doctor and tribal leader.
Everyone expects amazing things from Arrah, but... the years go by and are filled with disappointment, as magic fails to connect with her.

I really liked Arrah, and can really sympathise with her. She has to grow up with the weight of all the expectations, made worse by the fact her family is very prominent and she can't hide from the judging eyes of the tribes.
All Arrah wants is to be accepted and loved for who she is. Her father and her best friend/love-interest are both very supportive; but they don't make up for the fact that her mother is cold and distant, not hiding her disappointment in her daughter.

The world that Barron has created is amazing. With gods, demons, a civilisation laced with magic and so much history behind it. I thought the story-telling was the perfect balance between conveying the depth of this world; but keeping it light and interesting.

The first half of the book was brilliant, and I was completely hooked as Arrah tries to uncover the mystery of the children being stolen from their homes. It is totally unforgiving and isn't afraid to hit hard.

The second half... I really wanted to keep loving this book, but it lost its pacing after what felt like a natural climax of the story. It could have stopped after the resolution of the kidnapping mystery, and the uncovering of the villain, and I would have been satisfied. Instead, it felt like a second book was being tacked on.
The second half spends a lot of time in a place where time doesn't exist, as it does in the real world. Unfortunately, as a reader, it also felt like that for me. Arrah mourns the life and friends that she's lost, and contemplates the darkness and danger to come. And round in circles we go.
The second half of the book is also a lot more cerebral, with a lot of stuff happening on different planes and within minds and memories.

Overall, this was a 3.5 out of 5 for me. I enjoyed this book, it had a lot of potiental, despite its debut flaws. I would read the rest of the series. ...more

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Apr 15, 2019 Nia •ShadesOfPaper• rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs, 2019-releases, 2019-arcs, young-adult, books-read-in-2019, series-to-finish, fantasy, high-fantasy, mythology, own-voices

You can find this review on my blog Shades of Paper.

“I once laughed at stories about demons, and now I know that one may walk in my shadows. She does not mean well.”

I was so excited to read this book because I’ve been hearing amazing things about it and a lot of people have been talking about Kingdom of Souls lately so I was super intrigued, not only by the cover but by the premise. And overall I have to say that there were some elements that I really enjoyed about it but there was some ...more

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Aug 30, 2019 Fadwa (Word Wonders) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, fantasy, 2019-reads, sent-for-review, 2019-releases, poc-indigenous-rep

I was sent an arc of this book from the publisher in exchange of an honest review

My feelings about this book are VERY complicated and jumbled in my brain but the gist of it while i work on getting my full review up is: I LOVED the plot and exploration of the cycle of abuse and trauma, as well as the gods are portrayed and the slew of other themes that were explored. But although I liked the writing overall, I had a few issues with it here and there and the pacing was very off and unbalanced.

...more

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Jan 21, 2019 Celia McMahon rated it it was amazing

Thank you to Edelweiss for the e-galley and Goodreads for the arc win.

I enjoyed this far more than I expected to. This is not to say because of the content, but more because I am burning myself off of fantasy. BUT this is the exception. This has renewed my hope in the genre.

This book was dark, and I love dark so you can imagine my glee. There are books out there that trick you into thinking it's creepier than it is, and those books always disappoint. I mean, there's magic, witchdoctors, demons, ...more

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Feb 19, 2019 Alexis Henderson rated it it was amazing

I was lucky enough to read an early draft of Kingdom of Souls and guys...I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS BOOK.

I don’t even know where to begin. The main character, Arrah is such a tenacious and compelling main character. Rena has a way with crafting amazing, sinister, infuriatingly complex villains that stick with you long after you finished reading.

Rena’s prose is poetic and haunting and the plot…THE PLOT YOU GUYS. There were several moments when I nearly threw my laptop across the room in sheer ...more

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Aug 04, 2019 Nigel rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc, fantasy, netgalley, best-2019-books, best-recent-ones, ya

WOW - maybe not perfect but still WOW :)

"so dark, so magical, so desperate"

What a good opening there is to this book - it had shivers running down my spine. Arrah's parents are witchdoctors however it seems as though she will never get magic herself. She is in her teens and magic has still not come to her. However something evil may be coming that will affect her, her family and her friends. Will she be able to deal with it without magic or will she have to take a darker path? The book follows WOW - maybe not perfect but still WOW :)

"so dark, so magical, so desperate"

What a good opening there is to this book - it had shivers running down my spine. Arrah's parents are witchdoctors however it seems as though she will never get magic herself. She is in her teens and magic has still not come to her. However something evil may be coming that will affect her, her family and her friends. Will she be able to deal with it without magic or will she have to take a darker path? The book follows Arrah and her family as the Kingdom's children start to disappear. There are also signs that the long imprisoned Demon King is stirring. I was hooked!

Initially Arrah seems to be a fairly ordinary teenager. She loves her father dearly but finds her mother rather cold. She likes being with her friends some of whom already have magic powers. There is a boy who she likes too. Other than the opening this started to feel like something a little more ordinary if fairly colourful. The settings, customs and life generally are wonderfully described and gave me a feeling of being there. There is quite a bit to understand in this book - magic and magical creatures are not generally the sort of ones I've met before but I found the discovery interesting.

BANG - then the book starts to get more magically and the roller coaster starts. You really do need to hang on - your very being is at risk. I found this became a book that was increasingly hard to put down. It also becomes very very intense and even a somewhat upsetting read at times.

There is an unmistakeable African feel to this which I really enjoyed. Reading around a little I realise that some of the magic in this book is normal in African based tales. This book definitely makes me want to read more of this kind of writing so my thanks to the author for that.

There is a real feeling of evil here which you don't come across all that often; this indicates a very high quality of writing. I guess because I'd not read anything African based this felt genuinely fresh to me. Coming from a European perspective I felt the end (really unputdownable) had some element of Norse like mythology by the end. I do see some criticisms of this and maybe it isn't perfect. For me though it was a book I simply loved so a possible 4.5 star is very happily rounded up and I would love to read this author's next book.

Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review

https://viewson.org.uk/fantasy/kingdo...
...more

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Oct 09, 2019 MariaWitBook rated it really liked it

Not an easy read, definitely not easy to immerse yourself into the story. But nevertheless an amazing ending! Looking forward to the sequel.

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Jun 15, 2019 Kelsea rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc, reviewed

If I could rate the parts of this book separately, I would give the first half five stars! It was everything I wish that the intensely-hyped Children of Blood and Bone would have been: West-African inspired young adult fantasy featuring Orisha magic promising a bold female protagonist and the disappearance or failure of magic.

I felt for Arrah as she hoped desperately that her magic would finally show up, cementing her position as the daughter of a powerful witchdoctor. I loved her friendship If I could rate the parts of this book separately, I would give the first half five stars! It was everything I wish that the intensely-hyped Children of Blood and Bone would have been: West-African inspired young adult fantasy featuring Orisha magic promising a bold female protagonist and the disappearance or failure of magic.

I felt for Arrah as she hoped desperately that her magic would finally show up, cementing her position as the daughter of a powerful witchdoctor. I loved her friendship (and the hints of something more) with Rudjek, her relationship with her kind and caring father, and her protectiveness over a street kid she considers akin to a little brother. I was riveted by the mystery and curious about the world. I loved finding out the backstories behind many of the people in Arrah’s life. I enjoyed watching the plot unfold.

And then, halfway through the book, the story lost me. I do want to note here that I had to set the book down for a while, so that was likely part of it. It was hard to get back into the groove of the story when I picked it back up. Still, I ended up going back a few chapters to try to get myself back in. But it didn’t help. Most of the second half just… didn’t work for me. The story changed completely, in tone, in feel, and in pace. Everything escalated really, really quickly. And the time warp was too much for me. I can’t say much more as I’m trying to avoid spoilers, but I had a hard time with the direction the plot took. And there was one big plot point that felt skeevy and really had me raising my eyebrows.

But then the ending redeemed that plot point for me. I don’t know if I’ll still feel that way after reading the second book, but I feel like the ending to Kingdom of Souls gave the future of the story a lot of potential. And that’s ultimately how I decided to rate this book - by its potential. Because this could be the start to a truly phenomenal series and I would hate for a lower rating to deter anyone from trying this book. I enjoyed Rena Barron’s writing, characters, and world-building. And I’m really interested to see where this series goes.

I also want to mention that throughout the entire book, there were intriguing snippets of mythology that I absolutely adored. Reminiscences by the gods that had so much personality - I loved each interlude and can’t wait to read more of them!

Free advanced copy provided by Harper Voyager through Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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May 25, 2019 Tucker marked it as not-released-tbr

Shelves: reviewed

well, this cover just claimed my soul

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About Rena Barron

Rena Barron

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Rena Barron grew up in small-town Alabama where stories of magic and adventure sparked her imagination. After penning her first awful poem in middle school, she graduated to writing short stories and novels by high school. Rena loves all things science fiction, ghosts, and superheroes. She’s a self-proclaimed space nerd. When she’s not writing, she can be found reading or brushing up on her ...more