Old Soul by Susan Barker is a beautifully crafted novel that explores themes of identity, memory, and reincarnation. The story follows Jess, a young woman who begins to experience memories from past lives, uncovering a deeper mystery about who she really is.

Barker’s writing is poetic and immersive, blending the past and present to create a story that is both haunting and introspective. Jess is a relatable protagonist, and her journey to understand her multiple identities across time is deeply engaging, even if the pace is slower than some readers might prefer. The novel is more about emotional depth and philosophical exploration than action, making it a thoughtful, character-driven read.

While the pacing can drag at times, the emotional resonance and rich prose make Old Soul a compelling read for those who enjoy reflective fiction with a touch of the mystical.

Actual Rating 3.5

This one is a tough one for me to rate. By about 20% through the book, I was sure this was going to be a 2-star read (at best) for me, but the deeper I got into the book the more I ended up enjoying it.

There were a few main things that kept me from loving this one. The first is that there are no dialogue tags or quotation marks (why??). This bothered me to no end at the beginning, but by about halfway through I realized it seemed to be working in the book's favor. It did something with the characters, making things feel detached and keeping the author from having to do in-depth dives of the characters and their feelings. Normally this would break a book for me, but I can't explain why it ended up working well with this book. I didn't really feel any connection to Jake's character or POV, though. Jake was the driving force behind the investigation and revealing of information, but something didn't click with me with the POV, never felt anywhere close to being alive or easy to connect to.

The other POVs consisted of interviews relating to past victims which were told in a narrative form, and chapters from the antagonist's POV. I generally quite liked these parts, and the way they began to come together in the second half of the book was satisfying. I loved the explanation of the antagonist, and felt that the information relating to it was revealed at an excellent pace throughout the story.

If you enjoy slow burn creepy/unsettling literary fiction with supernatural/magical realism elements, then you may love this one. My thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This book starts out with a very slow creepy feeling about something very wrong with this mysterious woman and what she is doing to people, leaving a trail of odd corpses and bewildered friends and family behind her. Going back and forth between the interviews that Jake is collecting to learn more about this mysterious woman, and her own story as she searches for her next victims really drew me in. Sadly, the lack of quotation marks for any of the speaking part kind of was confusing sometimes trying to figure out who was speaking and if it was a thought or said out loud. It made the middle drag a bit. But it picked back up when we got to the Sculpter's story with her interactions with E. and I sped through the rest of the book. The explanation for why E. was like how she was also was interesting...and creepy. And with that ending which shocked me and was unsettling for what it meant, it redeemed the middle part and made for a good story.

So, this was a slow horror and very unsettling good story. I would say just fix the speaking parts by adding the correct punctuation marks. Still good though.

This is a weird, unique and haunting book that I really enjoyed! The only thing was the ending didn't quite hit like I wanted it to (I wish it didn't end the way that it did as it felt a little rushed and all over the place.) I loved the writing style and the stories with each chapter or section.

I wasn't sure about this book, but I ended up enjoying it a lot! As the MCs try to find this mysterious woman, they travel across the world and meet other people who have come across her and you gradually figure out more. A literary-leaning thriller/horror for fans of more literary horror!

This is a slow build horror story that started out strong and got a little convoluted toward the middle and end. I don't mind a slow build, but this story lost me a couple times and I had a hard time caring about the characters. The chapters of the testimonies felt like a compilation of short stories and that format isn't my favorite. It was interesting enough to want to finish the story but by the time the ending came, I was ready to be done. It was creepy and tense which I appreciated.

"That's what happens in the higher place. You get flipped."

This tale of an evil shape-shifter through the centuries started out strong with many creepy moments, but it just dragged on too long. The momentum began to lag, and I lost interest in the narrative, forgetting characters who appeared again near the end of the book. The ending was decent, but by the time it finally arrived, I no longer cared.

Old Soul is definitely going to be in my top ten this year. I put the audio book on hold at my local library and there's a four month long waiting list. That's how good the story is. The book is amazing, and I'm curious if the audio book will be even better.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Publishing Group for the ARC

I really enjoy when literary fiction gets weird, and this kinda fits the bill. In dual perspectives, a man follows a trail of witnesses and records going back centuries, similar to him in that they all lost a loved one in mysterious accidents after they meet a vaguely European woman with a camera; once she takes their picture, their loved one feels possessed, like something's rooting around inside them, and after their death it's found that their insides switched sides, as if they were born that way (none were born that way). During the search for answers, we also follow the woman herself, as she lures a young wannabe influencer to the deserts for a photoshoot, where we see what the woman does to these victims. It is a slow start, but once you're locked in, it's a race to the finish as the past catches up to the present. It's a creeping horror, as the pieces come together on both sides. Not all the witnesses are innocent in their grief, and while the woman is bringing something truly evil into their lives, she is not a faceless entity for good to triumph against. I'm a little torn by the ending in how quickly it wrapped up, but it does fit into the overarching cosmic horror of it all, and I really liked it.

I received a galley of Old Soul thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, G.P. Putnam’s Sons.

This book was just published on January 28, 2025. When I saw the description, the cover, and some buzz about it on social media, I was excited to read it—despite the fact that this specific genre of literary horror fiction isn’t my usual type of read.

However, given my love of Victor LaValle’s Lone Women, Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House, Claire Fuller’s Bitter Orange, and even how much I enjoyed Kelly Link’s The Book of Love, I was invested.

And this story did not disappoint. I was pulled in from the premise and the very beginning as Jake and Mariko realize that people close to them have died in disturbing ways after encountering “The Woman.” From there, Jake becomes determined to investigate whether this has happened to others, and the book unfolds through testimonies with common links throughout.

I thought the structure worked really well. The voices of the victims and the “old soul,” the Woman—whose identity shifts as she travels through time and across the world—were distinct and immersive.

The novel balanced a gripping plot with truly chilling moments (I was scared for these characters and creeped out when alone at night!). At the same time, it raised thought-provoking questions: At what cost would you pursue immortality? What would it mean for both yourself and others?

In that sense, it reminded me of a darker, more twisted The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, and I loved it. I’m surprised this book isn’t receiving more buzz—it’s well deserved!

This was a compelling story with a fascinating character at its center and a great ending. The biggest of big bads. Literary horror you can’t put down!

Masterfully balancing poetic prose with horror tropes, Old Soul is equally unsettling and thought-provoking. Slow pace rewards patience, with rich characters and atmospheric tension offering a fresh perspective on horror fiction. Basically, it's that rarest of beasts - literary horror!

I want to start by thanking NetGalley and the publisher, Penguin Random, for the eARC.
Wowowowowow.
I am absolutely blown away by this book. I believe, sincerely, from the get go that it pulls you in. Within the first few chapters we are given a complex mystery in a fun past/present storytelling format.
Jake is a narrator on a mission and his cross continent journey for answers is chronicled by interesting characters. I enjoyed every word of every sentence of every paragraph of this book. It was such an interesting story told in a truly original way.
I will say there is a grammar bit that I think will irritate some readers. The entire novel doesn’t use quotation marks, I struggled with this at first but really got into the swing of it after the first few pages. If that would bother you as a reader I would say skip the book/ebook and listen on audio as this is a story worth experiencing.
Overall 4.5/5 stars. I will be returning to Susan Barker’s works.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book and it delivered! It's a dark and twisted mystery around the world to learn why people who interact with an elusive chameleon of a woman meet a dark date shortly after, finding themselves reversed from left to right. At times gory and grotesque, I still couldn't wait to pick it back up and see what happened.

Though Jake is presented as the detective in this book and we're supposed to follow him, I found that he got lost in the plot in the middle and for a while I forgot he was the guiding point.

<spoiler>I liked the "Luciferian" twist to the story, it was a different method than I expected to be what was driving the violence. It did seem like it had a few holes in the methodology. I really liked that the woman wasn't any sort of mythical creature or monster but a mortal human who instead struck a deal with the devil to get what she wanted. It illustrated that fallibility of man and the peristent and timeless desire to remain young.</spoiler>

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Publishing Group for the ARC.

A fascinating, paranormal horror that makes the reader think twice about the people in their lives. The book follows several testimonies of people who interacted with our “creature” spanning many, many years. With each testimony, the reader learns more and finds different humanities starting to surface. But ultimately lurking under that supposed humane exterior is a creature - an old soul.

Thank you PRH Audio for the gifted audiobook. The narrators have a wide array of qualities to give to the story. Each one allowing for the experience to bloom. They are also easily understood at faster speeds.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Publishing Group, and author Susan Barker for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. “Old Soul” was published January 28, 2025!

A well-written atmospheric novel about someone trying to track down the cause of a friend's odd behavior and demise. I like the characters and the time jumping as we track down past victims allows us to see different ways the evil wheedled its way into people's lives.

While this read took me a weirdly long time (probably a me thing?) I ended up really liking it. No major mystery here, but a fascinating structure, intriguing characters, and a surprisingly thrilling and gory end made this a high 4-star for me.

This was wonderful! I loved the writing style, the characters, the world-building…everything about it was top-notch. I will definitely be recommending this book!

A slow-build horror story about a mysterious woman that kept me guessing until its end. Immersive and original, this book is full of twists and will leave you feeling unsettled. Although the story kept me interested, I did feel it could have been substantially shorter and the ending fell flat. I would try reading another book by Susan Barker in the future but overall Old Soul did not work for me.

This felt like a old school ghost story. Creepy elements, and almost reads like a short story collection. Sometimes I felt a bit lost while reading, it is definitely different than the usual.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Publishing Group for a digital advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review
3 star