Cover Image: Someone Else's Soul

Someone Else's Soul

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I had high hopes for Someone Else's Soul. The story was good but felt stifling. It's like when you get in an elevator with too many people, and it's just too much at once in the tiny space. The plot is intriguing but much too much. A sparse narrative would have been better. I'm not a fan of overdone, so I had a hard time connecting with this story. Too much action and cliches and unnecessary jumble. Not enough development and characterization. I can't recommend this one unless you are looking for crammed and jammed. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

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If you're a fan of cover to cover action with no time taken out to develop the characters or the plot, then this is the book for you!

The characters are vapid.

The plot is devoid of depth.

The writing itself is not bad.

The unexceptional ending lends to there being a second book.

This book had a lot of potential based on the description but the execution was unimaginable and exhausting.



I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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THE GOOD: The premise of cloning people, and what would you do if you discovered you were, in fact, a clone? The MC, Diana, is seemingly off-the-charts OCD and on the spectrum as she catalogs EVERYTHING, but puts the information to good use in her position to take down bad guys. I loved this part of her since I'm also on the spectrum and sometimes can't shut down the flow of information. But to find out she's a clone and thought of as not even being human ... chilling.

The novel's pacing was excellent as it kept me turning pages and reading the book in one sitting. I loved how Diana didn't have everything figured out, but drew on her intelligence to make deductions and figure out how to get out of bad situations while on the run. She questions everything and rightly so, which heightens the tension and suspense. I even loved the ending, leaving it open for a sequel.

THE NOT-SO-GOOD:
1. At the beginning of the book, Diana's best friend, referred to (in different places) as Celine, Celina, and even Cecelia, which lowered my confidence in the author.

2. Any plausible explanation of how they split the soul, or theories postulated as to how the bad guys' "master plan" will work. The characters discussed the results of this aspect in depth, but I personally wanted more detail as to the process since this was the entire premise.

3. The betrayal of the character Faith. Yet no discussion ensued (internally or externally) after the betrayal, nor did Diana question her total misreading of Faith, because she questions everything else, even minutiae. This aspect felt absolutely inauthentic to the rest of the book given it led to a pivotal point. If the matter came down to word count, other areas could have been cut to give this subject its due.

4. The cliches. If the author (or editor) had edited for cliches alone, this simple change would have greatly enhanced the prose.

For me, the novel had a fantastic opportunity to rate a solid four or five stars. But given the above Not-So-Good, it's a solid three stars as stands. I'd definitely read a sequel, though, to see how the story progressed.

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Wow....just wow. I’m not very good at leaving reviews but I have to try with this book. It is glorious and VERY well written. The plot was perfect and had an amazing pace. It was easy to keep up, but you still had some surprises in there. The message you get from this book could honestly be called life changing.

The characters are very well explained and I think the whole book is just very put together.

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This book is very fast paced and has a lot going on, however I think that’s just shiny objects thrown at the reader to distract from the fact that the actual plot of this book has more holes in it than Swiss cheese! The action didn’t distract enough to see that this book had hype behind it, but failed to live up to any of it. You can read this book rather quickly, but come away with no real connections to any of the characters or the book itself bc it is so underdeveloped and feels incomplete in too many ways to name.

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I am not sure how to describe this book, is it scifi or a thriller? Perhaps the best description is dystopian… It surely is a strange world that Diana and David inhabit. Diana works in security but she has additional strengths in her capability to intuit information about those around her and absorb and analyse masses of data – almost like a super-power. When she meets David they have an instant rapport and it is soon apparent that they have similar powers. Long story short – David’s father informs them that they are clones and that he was involved in the science many years ago. Now they as third generation clones are being tracked down with a view to eliminating them, but also the other clones that are identical to them must be found and murdered.

I want to say that this is well-written, with great characterisation. It is certainly a roller-coaster ride with the trio outwitting and escaping only to be foiled again. What really jarred for me at the beginning of the book was Diana’s over-use of the term ‘cliché’ – it really did astound me. I cannot make up my mind whether or not I like Diana but hands down my favourite character was Sarah, she was adorable. Obviously I cannot reveal who I loathed because that would be a spoiler alert.

Whilst reading what struck me was how clever the whole plot is: a brilliant idea and the science bit is not overwhelming or incomprehensible. One final thing, I found the ending to be very abrupt, not really a resolution. Silly me, that does leave the opportunity to revisit Diana and David, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a follow-up.

Would I recommend reading this? I think so, as it is quite absorbing, well-written despite the ‘clichés’

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

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Thank you, NetGalley for the chance to have an ARC for kindle.
The novel is listed as Mystery & Thrillers. Yet, it was more sci-fi. There are 14 strangers who share her face, and one company is determined to erase them all.
It was not what I expected at all. I finally finished the novel. It just never caught. Very much confusing and just alright for me. That said if you enjoy Sci-fi you may enjoy the novel. I admit I should have read the blurb more carefully before jumping in. I will rate it a 4 for this and not the book.

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This is an excellent Sci fi novel action packed from the beginning, well developed characters and plenty of romance. Diana discovers she's a clone when she meets David at a coffee shop. This revelation leads to a high speed race to save the other clones and attempt to destroy the company that persecute them.
I loved how tough and bad ass Diane is. She doesn't hesitate to protect those she cares about and never gives up the fight. David is also an incredible partner who is also ruthless and fights right along her.
The story weaves around the moral question about whether clones are real humans and if they have souls. After reading the way Diana fights to save her sisters and their kids there is no question, she is just as human as anyone. Excellent novel! A definite must read.

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I got this book thanks to Netgalley, but, unfortunately, it didn’t hit the spot.

I felt like this book was a lot of action but no plot. Scenes happened in rapid succession but since I didn’t really care about the characters, the action didn’t mean a thing to me. But let’s back up. Diana kept mentioning “the Game”. Was that ever properly explained? No. What was up with her freaky observation skills? That wasn’t even explained once she met her root (which, let me say this, how did she pass herself off as her root when she made a huge deal about describing her as someone who looked old? There were SO many pieces like this that just didn’t quite make sense and stood out.)

I didn’t feel a real connection to the main character because I was so overwhelmed by all the craziness going on. I’m all for fast-paced books, but this was ahead of itself and tried to cram so much in that the characters and plot lacked significant depth. I’d compare it to a later Transformers movie—tons of explosions and gunshots but nothing is actually happening.

It definitely felt like a waste of time to read and I skimmed quite a few pages to just hurry up and finish.

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Thank you to net galley and the publisher for letting me have the chance to read this book first book I have read by this author I highly recommend it

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Fall foliage is beginning to transform into bare branches and blanketed snow, and the colder the weather gets, the more reason readers have for staying indoors with a cozy new read. Whether you're in the mood for a steamy romance, heart-pounding thriller, or riveting historical fiction, there's a book for everyone on this list. Check out our list of the best books winter 2018 has to offer, complete with publishers' descriptions.

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