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Incarnate

(Newsoul #1)

Jodi Meadows (Goodreads Author)

3.73 · Rating details · 21,604 ratings · 2,598 reviews

New soul

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

No soul

Even Ana’s own mother thinks she’s a nosoul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclus ...more

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Hardcover, 374 pages

Published January 31st 2012 by Katherine Tegen Books

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Average rating 3.73 ·

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Dec 30, 2015 Khanh, first of her name, mother of bunnies rated it it was ok

"You should have left me there. Everyone would have been happier to forget about me.” I collapsed over myself and wept. “I hate you. I hate everyone.”

Good lord, would you like some cheese with your whine?

My quest to read all the popular books in the past few years continues. And I got yet another dud.

To be honest, I didn't have great expectations for this book. I was prejudiced against it from the beginning, why?

1. The cover is damned pretty. A pretty cover comes with a roughly 77.2% probabi ...more

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Jul 29, 2011 Steph Sinclair rated it it was ok

Recommends it for: I wouldn't

Shelves: ebook, disappointment, 2011-reads, poor-world-building, could-have-been-better, didn-t-care-for-it, why-the-hype, young-adult, that-cover-misled-me, netgalley

I am extremely disappointed with this book. It held so much promise with the story of souls being reincarnated, dragons, sylphs, and a utopian society! Doesn't that sound awesome? And that cover! It's simply gorgeous! Well, you know that age old rule, "Don't judge a book by its cover?" I should have listened to it. -_-

Ana, our protagonist, lives in a world where once you die you come back reincarnated in another body. Everyone always comes back, except on one night when the Temple flashes black ...more

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Jul 01, 2011 Lyndsey rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed-2011, worldbuilding-whimsy, my-top-dystopian-or-utopian, 1st-person, pov-primarily-female, about-dystopia-or-utopia, reviewed-4-stars, about-reincarnation

A gorgeous YA utopian tale! Nope, not dystopian. Do you know the difference?

This book blew me away with... a Masquerade Ball, reincarnation, slyph, dragons, music, souls, butterfly, slow burn romance, tension, laser pistols, massive library, war stories, dragon battles. Need I go on? I mean - Wow.

I read this in a flurry of addiction. I just couldn't get enough of the world and it's goings-ons. Completely entrancing.

The Rundown

Ana was born into a society of a million souls. A million souls wh ...more

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Nov 18, 2011 Emily May rated it it was ok

Shelves: young-adult, 2011, dystopia-utopia, arc, coverly-love

With a cover as pretty as that you'd think this book would be more dramatic, but unfortunately very little seems to happen for the majority of the novel. The story consists of Ana attempting to discover why she is a Newsoul and managing to fall in love along the way. You see, in this utopian world every soul is reincarnated into a new body once they die, this has continued on and on for thousands of years. Each time a baby is born, they search for a match in the soul database to find out which individual has returned... until Ana. Ana's soul didn't have a match, and at the time of her birth, the soul of another disappeared from the database. In a world where everyone has known everyone for thousands of years, being responsible for a soul disappearing leaves Ana an outcast, abandoned by her father and mistreated by her mother because of it. One day, she sets out to discover why.

As much as I like the change from the typical dystopian setting, a utopia is difficult because nothing particularly bad happens and the novel lacks excitement because of it. The story concentrates more on Ana's relationship with Sam. I found the focus on music and dancing - for which they both share a passion - to be very dull, this would probably not be the case if I was a big fan of playing instruments and ballroom dancing... as I am not, however, I almost fell asleep during these scenes. I would have also liked a better explanation as to why Sam's opinion of Ana differs so greatly from everyone else's even when he has only just met her. He constantly tells her that she deserves to live her life to the full and enjoy it, whereas everyone else seems to believe that her life is worthless because she is unlikely to be reborn. Isn't it too big a coincidence that she happens to run into a handsome young guy who also happens to be okay with who she is? It seems every young adult heroine must meet that one guy that is completely different from all the rest.

I also have some problems with this whole reincarnation thing. I'm guessing that their must be some incest going on if they've been reborn so many times, isn't it also possible to give birth to your grandparents? Weird. And if you are with someone in one life (e.g. married) are you just supposed to find someone else even though you retain all your memories of your past lives? That doesn't seem right, and yet you would be a completely different person biologically, there's even a chance you could end up being siblings. Imagine your husband or wife being reborn as your brother or sister... too strange. And perhaps I missed the answer but it wasn't clear if I did: if people remember their past lives, are babies born intelligent?

On top of that, the changing genders issue also seemed kind of weird to me. Now, you have to be careful with the subject of gender, I mean, what is gender after all? Isn't it just the effect of primary socialisation on our behaviour? It could be. And I suppose having souls that are genderless is one way of getting rid of inequalities, I quite like reading books that explore the idea of one gender or being genderless. But, here's what's weird, and it's all to do with the reincarnation thing again: at one point in the novel, Ana looks at a photograph of Sam when he was a woman in a past life, and she is jealous because he fills out a dress better than her. I'm trying to wrap my head around what it would be like to be jealous of your boyfriend because his curves look good in a dress. Bizarre.

Incarnate really could have been good. It could have explored interesting ideas like the possibility of reincarnation and the nature of the soul. It could have served as an important reminder that we have one life to live and that we need to make the most of it. It could have, but it didn't.
...more

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Nov 23, 2011 Kat Kennedy rated it it was ok

Shelves: the-great-shelf-of-meh, kat-s-book-reviews

Incarnate had such an interesting premise that I rushed to request the ARC. The concept of a society of people constantly reincarnating and being reborn to each other was too good to pass up. Blue Bloods had a poor crack at it and I hoped Incarnate would fare better. Alas, no. What Incarnate had the opportunity of doing was taking philosophy by the horns and riding that bull like a cowboy at a rodeo. Instead, incarnate chose Philosophy!Bull's friend, Philosophy Show Pony and skipped along very s Incarnate had such an interesting premise that I rushed to request the ARC. The concept of a society of people constantly reincarnating and being reborn to each other was too good to pass up. Blue Bloods had a poor crack at it and I hoped Incarnate would fare better. Alas, no. What Incarnate had the opportunity of doing was taking philosophy by the horns and riding that bull like a cowboy at a rodeo. Instead, incarnate chose Philosophy!Bull's friend, Philosophy Show Pony and skipped along very slowly and sweetly to Romance Ranch. There it stayed, refusing to budge from it's very comfortable stall until the last thirty pages where it promptly collapsed in a fit of seizures and died. I can only hope Meadow's next book in the series won't be beating a dead horse.

One could reasonably argue that this is just YA literature and perhaps I was expecting too much. However, I think that's not crediting teenagers with enough. A book such as Incarnate has the opportunity to reflect on our society in so many ways, to do so much! How does possession change when no one really dies? How does parenting change when babies are really just miniature adults waiting to get back to their own lives? How does society change? Is there really murder and would it even be a big deal? What about debt? What happens if you can't die to escape that? What does it do to a psyche to die and be reborn constantly? Over time you will have probably given birth to, married, or been parented by almost everyone you know. How does that change the way you see people?

These questions are only very briefly looked at and none are truly answered in any satisfactory way. Instead, the world of Incarnate is eerily like our own with only a few minor changes to the facade.

This is not meant to imply that Meadows is a bad author. What she does do, she does well. The focus in the novel is heavily situated on the romance. It's a very sweet, endearing romance and the characters are lovely. Yet, if I'd wanted a cutsie romance then I have chicken soup for the soul for that.

No, Meadow can write well with lovely descriptions and sweet romantic talk and tense, dramatic, emotional scenes. If I were to sum up her writing style and JUST the romantic aspects of this book, I would say 'lovely'.

But this book looked to be more than just a YA romance and in that it failed. The mystery was flirted with occasionally but otherwise forgotten until the very end, there was almost no action or suspense to speak of outside the very beginning and very end. Some characters were contradictory and nonsensical, some plot elements just didn't fit, etc.

Mostly, where the book failed is that I have no interest in reading any more of this series. I've read my fill of chaste kisses, reluctant love, obstacles to affection, with a cursory nod at plot that only advances at a snails pace amid so much potential. That's all this book was and I currently don't see any potential for the series to be anything more than that. Thus I have no intention at the moment of reading this book's incarnate.

You can read this review on my blog:

blog link

...more

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Sep 25, 2016 Sana rated it liked it

Shelves: romance, young-adult, fantasy, bf

I'm lowering my rating down to 3 1/4

This book is so bad it's good.

Didn't make any sense right? My brain works in a weird way. If it was so horrible, THEN WHY DID I LIKE IT???

I liked it because the writing pulled me in. It's just a way Jodi Meadows wrote that sucked me in and made me forget how terrible everything else was. Everything else was shitty AND I LIKED IT. God damn it, I'm going to try to explain my weird ass thinking.

This book is about a world where, when someone dies their souls are ...more

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Oct 06, 2010 Krystle rated it did not like it

Can you say disappointment? I haven’t been this bummed by a book in ages. The cover was just too beautiful to resist and the premise was one of the most intriguing things I’ve seen all year. But, nope. It was all aesthetics and nothing else.

(On an aside note…) The cover totally reminds me of this:

And this:

ANYWAY. Let’s get on with the real review shall we?

By gods, this book was such a slow torturous read. I wanted some awesome worldbuilding with an astounding fresh twist on reincarnation and wha ...more

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Apr 19, 2019 Trina (Between Chapters) rated it did not like it

Shelves: 2019, dystopian, young-adult, audiobooks

Um. Yeah... I was rooting for the dragons to destroy everything by the end.

If you saw my status update or twitter thread, yes, there was one instance of unnecessary sizeism. But that was the only one I noticed. There were, however, a few knocks to Deafness, blindness, and mental illness. Things like "It was so loud even the Deaf could have heard it." It came across as ignorance about disabilities rather than intentional malice. But it was enough to notice.

The relationship between Ana and her ab Um. Yeah... I was rooting for the dragons to destroy everything by the end.

If you saw my status update or twitter thread, yes, there was one instance of unnecessary sizeism. But that was the only one I noticed. There were, however, a few knocks to Deafness, blindness, and mental illness. Things like "It was so loud even the Deaf could have heard it." It came across as ignorance about disabilities rather than intentional malice. But it was enough to notice.

The relationship between Ana and her abusive mother was extremely unpleasant. Ana's best alternative if she can't escape her mother is to die by suicide rather than tell anyone. While abuse can definitely lead to suicidal thoughts, the book didn't explore or unpack it in a way to make this feel representative. It felt more flippant. And the fact that none of the adults seemed to care about how the mother was abusing Ana was pretty infuriating.

Then there's the romance. It's the case of a 5,000 year old (reincarnated into the body of an 18 year old) in love with a(n actual) 18 year old. I'm not typically bothered by age differences in paranormal instances like that, but this on was pretty undesireable to me. There was a huuuuuuge gap in knowledge and power between them so it seemed very unbalanced. If this is a trope you don't like, maybe avoid this one because it's very strong here.

The end got weird with the whole temple thing and I ended up feeling like I didn't know anything about what had happened or where the story was going. I realized I had checked out during the last hour of the audiobook and upon finding out that the sequels aren't available to me on Overdrive, no tears were shed. I didn't have much desire to continue on anyway.

Audiobook review: One of the most dreadful audiobooks I've ever heard. The narrator has a pleasant voice to listen to and she enunciates very clearly. Her voice was very fitting for the main character, and the love interest's voice was fine too, but EVERY other character was read like the Wicked Witch of the West was doing a one woman play. They all had this very croaky, shrill voice that didn't fit any of them. I need to know the reason for this acting choice. Really, just listen to an audio sample somewhere because it opens with a quote that she reads in this way - though she pours it on thicker further into the book. ...more

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Jan 26, 2012 Mith rated it did not like it

Recommends it for: God forbid

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, post-apocalyptic, gave-up-on, never-again-ever, ugh

Gah. No no no no no NO!

What was this mess?

So there's this city, right? Every person in that city is a reincarnated soul, right? Except for this one girl, let's call her Bessie (I forget her name), who is a new soul - she was born in place of a to-be-reincarnated soul. So everybody hates her, including her own mother. So, the girl leaves home on her birthday to find out the truth behind her birth and what went wrong with the other soul, then runs into some shadow monster, then falls into a lake ...more

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Jul 31, 2010 Jodi Meadows added it · (Review from the author)

Shelves: books-i-wrote

Since I wrote this book, I admit my love of it is not an objective and unbiased love. I would feel weird giving it stars.

Since I did NOT make the cover, I have no qualms about telling you how much I adore it! *touches face* *looks dramatic*

People seem to really love the cover. (Yay!) If you were curious, I answered a few cover questions in an interview here. ...more

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Jul 19, 2010 Kathleen Peacock rated it it was amazing

Incarnate deserves to be placed alongside His Dark Materials and The Lord of the Rings as one of the most inventive examples of world-building ever set to paper. Not only has Meadows created a rich and detailed world for her characters to inhabit, she's brave enough to let them ask difficult questions of themselves, their world, and what it would really mean to live in a perpetual cycle of birth and rebirth.

Very rarely, five stars doesn't seem to go far enough. This is one of those times. ...more

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Oct 03, 2011 Haleema rated it it was ok

Shelves: meh, cheese, not-again, insta-love

Oh, premise of Incarnate, you seemed a bit promising. You were tolerable.

What happened?

I'll tell you what happened.

Ana, the protagonist, is seriously one of the most naive, childish, and annoying girls I've ever read about. I don't care what she's gone through. I don't care how she was brought up. I don't care that I am insensitive. Sam is so utterly boring. I don't know how he attracts Ana. The whole time he was with Ana, I felt like he was an old man explaining his stupid daughter about life ...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Laurel rated it it was ok

Recommends it for: Those who look for romance over plot

Recommended to Laurel by: Cover+Blurb

Shelves: um-what, ya, wish-it-were-better, that-cover-unf, look-something-original, smells-like-teen-angst, dragons

You know what I really hate about jokes with a story to them? They can be very hit or miss like Family Guy (except McFarlane has way more misses than hits IMO). There is so much buildup to some of the storyline jokes, that the punch line has to be pretty damn brilliant to make up for all the time spent by the receiver of said joke. I hate when they flop so hard that I regret ever listening in the first place. My dad has some pretty fantastic story jokes, and some that miss completely, but to my ...more

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Aug 01, 2010 Jillian -always aspiring- rated it liked it

Recommends it for: Readers who value characters and their journeys over world-building and grand overarching plots

Shelves: covers-i-love, heroines-i-love-and-or-admire, dystopian-worlds-hells-and-cesspits, 2011-reads, couldn-t-stop-reading-it, left-me-with-mixed-feelings

(Actual Rating: 3.5 stars)

In the growing world of young adult dystopian literature, Incarnate is an odd beast, blending elements of dystopia, utopia, fantasy, and even science fiction. Instead of reading like a seamless story, however, Jodi Meadows's debut novel sends many mixed vibes, to the point that the whole package feels like a mish-mash of concepts where some could have been cut as "excess." The novel actually reminded me of The Host by Stephenie Meyer: I mean that in both good and bad wa ...more

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Jul 18, 2011 Arlene rated it liked it

Recommended to Arlene by: Street Corner Booker - ARC Tour Lyndsey

Shelves: read-2011, young-adult, arc

Overall, I have mixed feelings about Incarnate by Jodi Meadows. There were definitely aspects of the story I found creative and the narrative flowed quite well, but I think Meadows’s take on reincarnation was difficult for me to embrace. Putting it frankly, it goes against my belief system and at times I did feel Meadows was pushing some sort of agenda that I wasn’t quite willing to accept.

Now, I don’t know if I would classify this story as YA Utopian . To me, there were elements of the story t Overall, I have mixed feelings about Incarnate by Jodi Meadows. There were definitely aspects of the story I found creative and the narrative flowed quite well, but I think Meadows’s take on reincarnation was difficult for me to embrace. Putting it frankly, it goes against my belief system and at times I did feel Meadows was pushing some sort of agenda that I wasn’t quite willing to accept.

Now, I don’t know if I would classify this story as YA Utopian . To me, there were elements of the story that made it feel like YA Fantasy, where the people are perpetually incarnated into a world where dragons, centaurs, griffins, and sylph fire are trying to kill them. Once those creatures are introduced, it feels like Fantasy to me. But, then you have the whole concept of reincarnation and a society of souls that have been recycled hundreds of times over, which in the end just left me a bit baffled. So, it’s a hybrid in my mind and I’m not tying it to any particular genre for now.

Now, about the story. In this book, we meet Ana who is a new-soul, or as her mother would describe her, a no-soul. Prior to her birth, there were a million souls that have been reincarnated, but in the year of the Song, the temple goes dark, a soul is lost and Ana is born with a new-soul. Ana is cast out at the age of eighteen and meets Sam, who is willing to accept her for what she is. However, Ana’s journey to discover why she is not a reincarnate is not without its trials as the people of Heart can’t seem to let go of the fact that Ana might just be the first of a new generation of new-souls and they are seeing the end of their perpetual existence..

So here’s what I had a difficult time grasping. First, if humans, as intelligent life forms that have reincarnated for the past millennium, are able to fall back on their knowledge of their previous lives, why have they not been able to dominate over the creatures that are trying to destroy them. For example, there is the case of Sam who has seen his demise at the dragon’s hand thirty times over. I didn’t quite understand how the people of Heart have not been able to somehow defend themselves against these creatures and protect their domain.

Then there was the concept of how the people of Heart reincarnate. Again, let’s take Sam for example. In one life he can come into existence as a male, but maybe for the next three or four lives, he will reincarnate as a female. So I had to wonder, what his is dominant gender? If he loves Ana in this lifetime and reincarnate as a woman in the next, how will that love translate? To me it made the relationship between Ana and Sam confusing and awkward, especially since Ana was grappling with this confusion as well and I don’t feel it was ever really properly addressed.

What bothered me the most though was the relationship been Ana and Li.. Now, I’ve read enough fiction to have come across some pretty shitty parents, but it never gets easier for me. In this book though, I couldn’t fathom how a mother would treat her daughter so poorly because she was not a reincarnate of her previous friend. There was no motherly instinct what-so-ever and frankly it bothered me that Li along with several other reincarnates exhibited this entitlement to another life, thus making me feel they didn’t fully appreciate the here and now because heck they’ll get a re-do card, so what’s the point? Overall, I felt no connection or compassion for any of the characters in this book, including Ana to some degree for other reasons I won't go into.

Lastly, I felt the ending was a bit rushed and not much was offered to hook me into the series. But in the end, I’ll give it three stars for an ambitious attempt that did have me slightly entertained and constantly grappling with the concepts that were introduced.

Thank you so much Lyndsey for touring this book! It’s off to the next Booker. :) ...more

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Sep 19, 2011 Giselle rated it really liked it

Shelves: ebook, arc

NEWSOUL
Incarnate gives us a fresh, new soul in YA. Originality at its core, Jodi Meadows has written an incredible world with dragons, sylphs, laser pistols, temple with heartbeats; really- how much more imaginative can it get? I was blown away with the imagery that formed in my mind while reading this book. It's a gorgeous, but notably frightening world. I did have a bit of difficulty swallowing the fact that, since everyone is always being reincarnated, they give birth to people they already k NEWSOUL
Incarnate gives us a fresh, new soul in YA. Originality at its core, Jodi Meadows has written an incredible world with dragons, sylphs, laser pistols, temple with heartbeats; really- how much more imaginative can it get? I was blown away with the imagery that formed in my mind while reading this book. It's a gorgeous, but notably frightening world. I did have a bit of difficulty swallowing the fact that, since everyone is always being reincarnated, they give birth to people they already know. It could even be your own father. However, it is a way of life for them, who am I to say what's unreasonable? I've heard of a mother who used her daughter's egg to get pregnant, which basically means she gave birth to a grandchild of sorts. Is this weird? Of course! But we're living in a world where you can have babies that are literally not your own, so it makes sense to think that living for thousands of years with reincarnation would desensitize people to things that presently blow our minds.

NOSOUL
Ana has had to live with her mother telling her she was a Nosoul for all of her 18 years. This turned her into a deeply defensive, cautious young woman who has difficulty putting her trust in others. Ana is a remarkably easy character to like with a realistic voice that stands out. She may have had a hard life, but this makes her loves and joys come from the heart. It's not fake or shallow when she feels something, it's with her whole heart and soul. Sam, the first person to show her kindness, has a heart of gold, but more importantly; the patience of a stone. They have a positively sweet romance that creeps up on you. You suddenly realize you've been longing for them to be together. I was delighted by how perfectly paced their relationship flourished.

HEART
We've got originality; we've got charming characters; but let's not forget the fascinating plot that surrounds it all. Mystery after mystery flows inside these pages. I was starved for more information as much as Ana. Why is she the only newsoul? Where did Ciana go? Why was the town of Heart just sitting there? A temple with a heartbeat? It's all so mystifying. We don't get all the answers in this novel, but we do get some, as well as one heck of a promise: that this is the start of an epic series!

--
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads ...more

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Aug 01, 2011 Ari rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-galley-or-author, 2012, dystopia, fantasy, cover-love

As beautiful as the cover!

“If I only get one life, I don’t want to waste it by hesitating”

These days I’m a bit out of sync when it comes to the books I read.. I like some books that others don’t, and I don’t like the books the others love, I feel like I’m missing something.

This books is one of the books I loved, while some of my book fellows didn’t.. I don’t know what’s the element that really made me like it so much, but I know that from the very beginning I was hooked and couldn’t put it d ...more

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Jul 19, 2011 shady boots rated it really liked it

Shelves: covergasm, 2012-faves, all-time-faves, read-more-than-once, oh-my-god-marry-me

I don't know what it is, you guys, but I just can't explain how much I click with this book. I love the concept, I love the world and how aesthetically pleasing it is for me personally, with its mix of fantasy and sci-fi. I love how the writing feels so yummy to me and only amps up the overall visualization of Range. Heck, I even have an intense love for not only the covers of this series but the overall design aesthetic. It's just. So. Me.

I don't know how else to explain it. xD I've read this ...more

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Jan 09, 2016 Sophia rated it really liked it

3.5 stars really but i'm feeling generous!

this book was so absorbing for me. despite the synopsis, this book is mainly a romance between the main characters, ana and sam, and i was 100% okay with that because i loved the pair together. they had great chemistry. their relationship developed slowly from a nice friendship with mutual offers of comfort.

ana was frustrating in the beginning. she lashed out so gratuitously, and although i admit it aligns with her childhood, it was still uncalled for i ...more

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Jan 28, 2018 Alaina rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romance, sci-fi, kindle-unlimited, dystopia, fantasy, favorites, fiction, young-adult, paranormal, supernatural

This cover is freaking amazing!

I read this book so freaking quickly that I really want to get the next book from my library, right now. Even though it isn't even open until 10am tomorrow. I want to go all mission impossible on my library and find all of the books within this series and walk out of there like a boss. Yup, that's what I really want to do right now. Or just call out of work "sick" tomorrow and spend my day at the library or at barnes and noble and just READ. All day. In my happy pl ...more

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Sep 06, 2013 Neil (or bleed) rated it it was ok

With a spectacular concept and a beautiful cover, Incarnate fell short for my taste and interest.

In my opinion, the story became less and less interesting as story progresses since the main plot or goal became blurry along the way. Yes, there are revelations and sometimes twists in the plot but they didn't help to redeem the lost attention.

The story was too focused on building the romance and friendship between the two main characters, Ana and Sam, that events about incarnation and finding out ...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Jasmine rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, parties-fesivals-and-circuses, cover-lust, stupid-insta-love, a-kissing-book, a-big-bunch-of-meh, boring, kill-me-please, my-eyes-they-burn

“Music overwhelmed me, soaked into my skin like water. I didn’t have words for the squiggles and dashes across the pages, or the way his fingers stretched across the keys to make my heart race. If I could hear only one thing for the rest of my life, this was what I wanted.”

You know, I read Incarnate by Jodi Meadows three years go. And to this day I still have no idea how I should rate this book. I keep on bouncing between two stars to four. Why? Because there are some things that I really do ...more

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Nov 07, 2011 Ceilidh rated it it was ok

For all the hype and publicity that publishers and bloggers have thrown behind the dystopian YA craze that I'm convinced never really happened, few books released during this period exceeded expectations, or even met them. Many had strong initial premises that quickly fell apart or began to rely on well worn tropes to keep momentum. With Jodi Meadows's debut, the first in a planned trilogy, we are given a glimpse into a slightly different world, a utopia, with another promising premise. Does she For all the hype and publicity that publishers and bloggers have thrown behind the dystopian YA craze that I'm convinced never really happened, few books released during this period exceeded expectations, or even met them. Many had strong initial premises that quickly fell apart or began to rely on well worn tropes to keep momentum. With Jodi Meadows's debut, the first in a planned trilogy, we are given a glimpse into a slightly different world, a utopia, with another promising premise. Does she beat the curse? Yes and no.

For much of the book, Meadows falls foul of the exposition-dump method of storytelling, especially in the beginning where we are given a quick soap-opera style recap of proceedings before being thrown into the action. Much of the information we receive about the world and the reincarnation element comes from this method, and the lack of solid development becomes grating very quickly. The intriguing premise is given several interesting moments but never enough to feel like a fully constructed concept that stands up to scrutiny. There is plenty of room given for further explanation in the sequels but this feels more frustrating than anything else. For example, since one million souls are reborn over and over again, and it's established very early on that the vast majority, if not all of the people Ana interacts with know each other from many lifetimes, yet issues of possible incest are never explained. What happens if your mother in one lifetime is your lover in another? Each soul can born male or female in different lifetimes but there is a moment where it is insinuated that they are always born heterosexual. One couple are revealed to have been lovers in each of their lifetimes but it is also mentioned that they couldn't bare it if they were born of the same gender and would kill themselves to be reborn the appropriate way. The couple in question are revealed to both be women but one of the characters said their love overcame this, which is all well and good but I found the idea that one million souls are continually born straight a little hard to believe. This may not be the case and may just be an awkwardly worded section that needs correcting, since this is from the ARC, but several points like this emphasised the occasionally sloppy world-building. Like many hyped books of the past few months, the world of “Incarnate” rests on a singular premise rather than a fully developed set of rules. While there are strengths to this world and attention is given to a few key areas, one never fully gauges why this world is governed in the way it is, or the impact a small pool of constant reincarnations has on a society, or how a sudden drastic change to this system – the birth of a new soul, Ana – impacts their beliefs. A god of this world is mentioned occasionally but once again, to no real impact.

The summary of the book promises something more akin to a journey of self-discovery, yet this is mostly shoved aside in favour of the romantic element. Although I appreciated the romance getting at least some level of development beyond instantaneous true love, it does follow a very stock pattern, with the romantic hero Sam serving as the typical super-sweet and understanding guy who somehow also manages to be a bit of a jerk, but in a way Ana can't resist. Ana herself would have been much more sympathetic if the book hadn't been told from her point-of-view. Since so much time is dedicated to her growing feelings for Sam, we never fully understand her beyond the brief questions over her origin that are repeated several times throughout the story. While I can understand her passivity to a point, it becomes tiring so quickly. There's also a serious lack of a strong antagonist, with Li, Ana's vindictive mother, never acting as a true threat, seeming more like a de-clawed Lady Tremaine from Cinderella. The supporting cast is equally weak, which makes the story's final few chapters a real disappointment that felt more like a rushed ending and cut-off for the sequel than a true ending.

There are enjoyable moments throughout the book but overall it feels like “Incarnate” has no idea what sort of book it wants to be. There's a swirling stew of romance, fantasy, utopia, mystery and a little science-fiction that becomes something of an indistinguishable mush. In many ways, it feels like a first draft, one with huge potential but also in dire need of some tightening up. If you're looking for a romance, you could do a lot worse than “Incarnate”, which at least seems to have genuine affection for its romantic pairing, but the lack of substance beyond the pairing and the resulting barrage of questions I had after finishing the book force me to knock a star off the rating.

2/5.

“Incarnate” will be released on 31st January 2012. I received my ARC from NetGalley.com. ...more

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Nov 15, 2011 Soumi rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-reviewed, arc-e-galley, young-adult, reincarnation

There's always the option of deciding for yourself who you are and what you'll become.
Do you believe in Reincarnation? I do. This is the first reason why I chose this book. Of course the cover is Epic, most beautiful cover I have ever seen. The complete theme of reincarnation of souls was innovative and refreshing. This book is definitely a page turner.

A Vague Indication

The story was set in a dystopian world where souls reincarnate million times, each time in a new body. The body may change bu ...more

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Sep 30, 2018 Luke Taylor rated it it was amazing

So what is Incarnate?

An unforgettable journey through the fabric of human space and time? A sweet and sensitive storybook romance dramatically altered by earth-shattering events? A fresh and creative young adult sci-fi with eternal themes at its core?

description

Yes! Incarnate, by Jodi Meadows, book one of the Newsouls series, is difficult to review in some ways, but still so easy to compliment. The world is a fascinating one, reminding me of the mountainous heart of America, complete with an ancient templ ...more

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Nov 26, 2011 Giselle rated it liked it

Shelves: unsolicited, genre-dystopia, age-young-adult, genre-romance, 2012, arc-physical, from-publishers, bought-online, signed, 3-star

An Advanced Reader Copy was provided by the publisher for review. Quotes have been pulled from an ARC and may be subject to change.

Range is full of souls being re-incarnated over and over and over again. How many souls are being re-incarnated? About a million. These souls live their lives as a man or even a woman. Imagine having the ability to learn all that you can again. The people write journals to document their life which is set in the library to keep safe where anyone can read it.

In comes An Advanced Reader Copy was provided by the publisher for review. Quotes have been pulled from an ARC and may be subject to change.

Range is full of souls being re-incarnated over and over and over again. How many souls are being re-incarnated? About a million. These souls live their lives as a man or even a woman. Imagine having the ability to learn all that you can again. The people write journals to document their life which is set in the library to keep safe where anyone can read it.

In comes Ana, an eighteen year old nosoul. She’s different because she wasn’t supposed to be born. Another soul named Ciana was supposed to be born instead but she dies, and Ana is born. No one knows why she is born, so on her eighteenth birthday she leaves her abusive mon’s Purple Rose Cottage to venture in the city of Heart. On her way to the city, she meets Sam (Dossam) who rescues her from drowning and from the clutches of a sylph.

Some people believe that the creator Janan has created all life. Including species such as: dragons, centaurs, phoenixes, unicorns, and giants.

The story started out really slow, Sam and Ana getting to know one another felt completely real. It didn’t feel rushed or fake like some novels do. Their relationship builds up and when they finally kiss..well let’s just say it was pretty steamy.

Can I just say how romantic it is having a re-dedication to your mate? After how many years of being together, one may still be in love? How pure and sweet love can be. I can’t help but wish that is real. I’m such a romantic at heart and in our modern times I’d like to think this is what we call “soulmates.” I wished Jodi added more of a plot in the beginning of the novel just because it felt broken in the middle considering Ana did not research more about her past as much as I would have liked to. She also turned a blind eye to who was trying to kill her. I mean if that was me, I’d be trying to figure out who was trying to kill me and what their motive was. I did love the ending though. The little twist wasn’t uprising but it was still very entertaining to read.

Needless to say, I loved this book for the endless romantic tone, action, and mystery. Jodi Meadows write beautifully and I can’t wait to read more. ...more

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Sep 16, 2011 A.G. Howard rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Anyone looking for a unique and clean YA romantic fantasy.

Why I gave Incarnate five stars:

1. Unique premise, deftly executed. There's no other story quite like this out there, at least none that I've found.

2. A heroine that actually has a character arc and a spine. Not only does she have to learn to trust and love (others and herself), but she has to find a way to forgive the very society who spurns her.

3. A sweet, realistic romance that blossoms and grows and takes a little work along the way.

...more

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Nov 15, 2011 Jude rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 01-favorites, 22-spring-books

*Updated review based on my April 2015 re-read: I STILL LOVE IT PEOPLE. LOVE IT!!!!

INTERVIEW WITH JODY MEADOW HERE!

*December 25, 2011 review:*
Incarnate blew me away. Seriously my favorite book in its genre so far. It was that good. And the cover is amazing! Now onto to the review:

I’m usually not a big fan of fantasy, since often times they tend to lack lack in depth, so the fact that Incarnate has the best female character I have read ever is astonishing. From the summary you know that Anna *Updated review based on my April 2015 re-read: I STILL LOVE IT PEOPLE. LOVE IT!!!!

INTERVIEW WITH JODY MEADOW HERE!

*December 25, 2011 review:*
Incarnate blew me away. Seriously my favorite book in its genre so far. It was that good. And the cover is amazing! Now onto to the review:

I’m usually not a big fan of fantasy, since often times they tend to lack lack in depth, so the fact that Incarnate has the best female character I have read ever is astonishing. From the summary you know that Anna is different. She’s a Nosoul, and as such she was raised to believe she was not worthy of loving things or being loved and that she should be punished, constantly and cruelly.

As soon as she’s free of her guardian, some really really bad stuff happens and she nearly dies. But do not fear, Sam is here! Oh Sam! I want him under the Christmas tree! Bringing me cake on my Birthday! He’s just…. *swoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooon* I mean, WOW, I don’t remember falling so hard for a character before x). ahem, back to the point. Sam takes care of her and he doesn’t mind that she’s a Nosoul, strange…

Sadly, not everyone agrees with Sam, and Ana is thrown into a world where people hate her and judge her for something she had no control over: her birth. I was so frustrated along with Ana, sad and angry. I understood everything, her bitterness and hurt, her want for love.

There’s also the lovely romance between Ana and Sam. Flawlessly Beautiful. As much as I would love to give some spoilers I’ll restrain myself. BUT I will give you this: I have read Chapter 21 and 22 at least 6 times today, and I just finished the book earlier.

Incarnate had the power to change my emotions in one line, incredible romance one minute and thrilling action the next.

Dragons, Burns, Dance, Music, Romance, Secrets and the constant uncertainty of whom to trust, along with the knowledge that the only way to survive is to believe in one’s self. Incarnate is a Book You Can’t Forget. Period.

I can’t wait to get my finished copy! Amazing with Major Capital A :D a HUGE Thanks to Netgally for the opportunity to read this!
...more

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Dec 10, 2015 Hannah rated it really liked it

Shelves: series-finished, 2015-oct-2016-oct, ya

MORE? MORE! @ P.S. I love that book!

THE WORLD: Okay so the world in this series in unique. Basically you have souls who have been around since day one and they just incarnate with every birth. Therefore, people are intelligent and have hundreds of years worth of memories. But one day one of these souls dies and does not incarnate anymore. Instead a new soul is born. And here the story takes off...

CHARACTERS: So the new soul is called Ana. A girl raised by one of old souls in isolation because of ...more

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Jun 09, 2011 tonya. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012, favorites, ya, dystopian-utopian-post-apocalyptic, swoons, music-centric, arcs, favorities-of-2012

It's rare for me to become sucked into a book immediately. Typically I need time to feel comfortable with the narrator's voice and get my bearings within the story's world--but not so with Incarnate. I was immersed from the very first page, intrigued with a storyline I'd only glimpsed on the very surface, and immediately sympathetic to Ana.

In a world populated only by Reincarnates--those who have died and been reborn since the beginning of time--Ana is a nosoul. A newsoul. From birth she has bee It's rare for me to become sucked into a book immediately. Typically I need time to feel comfortable with the narrator's voice and get my bearings within the story's world--but not so with Incarnate. I was immersed from the very first page, intrigued with a storyline I'd only glimpsed on the very surface, and immediately sympathetic to Ana.

In a world populated only by Reincarnates--those who have died and been reborn since the beginning of time--Ana is a nosoul. A newsoul. From birth she has been shunned by society, banished with her mother to a cottage on the outskirts of Heart. She is abused, neglected and starved by her vindictive mother, who believes Ana's birth replaced another's--Ciana's--rebirth.

For eighteen years Ana lived under the iron first of her mother Li, before setting out on her own to find the truth of her origins in the great city of Heart. Along the way she meets Sam, who becomes her friend and ally as she navigates a society that resents and fears her, and an enemy that wants her dead.

Incarnate is a beautifully crafted and layered story. It has everything: fantasy elements (dragons, sylphs, gods who inhabit stones), futuristic elements (gadgets, guns, etc), action, adventure, romance (oh god. so good.), religious undertones (without becoming preachy), murder, mayhem, conspiracies... I could go on and on. It is exciting and engaging, heartrending and swoony, and everything at once without feeling like one of those cluttered, everything but the kitchen sink plots.

The world building is fantasic; smooth, organic, without the use of clunky infodumps or lengthy passages of exposition. It is well thought out, well-written and easy to understand. The societal structure is one I find myself still thinking about and questioning. I cannot wait to learn more in the sequel.

The love story. Sam. Holy swoon alert. It is not one of those love at first sight romances with electric shocks and long drawn out stares. No, this was a bond that developed through the course of the story. A friendship that blossomed gradually, realistically until... god. The first time they kiss, you guys? I can't. It might have been the hottest kissing scene I've ever read. And it gets better from there. I was a giddy, swoony, pearl clutching mess.

Sam as a character is as three dimensional as it gets. Meadows allowed him to be human, allowed him to be flawed and that made him infinitely more likable than many YA guys. He was scared in some instances, he was weak and depended on Ana to be strong. And she was. Ana is a kick ass heroine who doesn't take anyone's word for anything, who questions things and takes steps--even when they're dangerous, even when they're hard--to find the answers. And she does it alone in most instances.

A truly amazing story, one of the best I've read in a long while. I am almost kicking myself for reading it early as I know I'll be waiting that much longer for the sequel.

Incarnate is released January 31st and I'd encourage everyone to pick it up. ...more

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About Jodi Meadows

Jodi Meadows

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I write books. I snuggle cats. I drink coffee.

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