This was a great start to a series. I loved the Norse mythology woven into it. I connected with the main character, and loved her love interest

This gave me Good Girls guide to murder vibes but with Norse Mythology. I do not know much about Norse Mythology, and I do feel this was a great introduction to that! I am not a fan of 3rd person writing since I have trouble immersing myself in the story, I actually almost DNF it, I think around 12% but I said lets give it till 20% and decide then and then in walked Elias and boy am I glad I did not DNF it. I absolutely loved his character, and there was something about him that had me hooked as soon as he walked on the page. I loved the banter between him and Charlie (and Lou and Mason!) I really liked "Henry" also. I am very excited to see this story continue.

This was a truly fantastic story! There have been a lot of mythological retellings, but Norse mythology is an underutilized genre. Charlotte aka Charlie has been feeling down after her twin sister, Sophie, passed away. She meets a mysterious new boy in the woods, who turns out to be Elias, a nightmare. As they try and get to the bottom of the mysterious disappearance of children in their town, Elias and Charlie grow closer. Although Elias has been clear that he has his own agenda, Charlie tries to see the best in him, against her better judgment. Her friends and brother Mason are both excited that she's putting herself out there, although they might be more concerned if they realized she was seeing mythological creatures and trying to fight the Norse wolf Fenrir. The final battle is epic, and I thought the story highlighted some of the lesser known Norse myths in an entirely new way. The storytelling is excellent, the characters are likable, and the suspense will keep you eagerly flipping their pages. I thought this was a pretty fresh take in YA, and I'd very much recommend it to fans of fantasy and Norse mythology.

Book 1 of a new series. Love the cover, it is what caught my attention. Great characters and wonderful descriptions of their world. Lookjnv forward to the next book. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

I really enjoyed this book! It was different than what I was expecting, mostly because it was different than the books I normally read. But, I really liked it!

The Norse history/mythology was very interesting and woven in in a manner that intrigued me. I normally struggle to get into things with norse mythology, but this one mixed really well with the contemporary setting and kept me interested! Can't wait to see what book 2 brings, and I need to know what happens!

Soul of Shadow
By Emma Noyes

This is a young adult book. Charlie (Charlotte) is going into her junior year of high school. She used to be an outgoing, happy girl, but the death of her identical twin sister, Sophie, has left her withdrawn with no interest in any of the teenage things her friends are into. But when Elias Everhart shows up as the new kid in town and befriends her brother Mason, Charlie becomes very curious about him and suspicious about who – and what – he really is.

Then she finally discovers his true nature – he is a mare (as in night mare), a shadow being. He is trying to apprehend a being who is making young people disappear. He offers to NOT kill Charlie only if she helps him with his task. However she must partake of magical berries that change her reality forever. The choice is hers.

A young adult audience would probably really enjoy this book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

As I begun reading, this book felt like a breath of fresh air in the YA fantasy genre. I appreciated the Norse mythology and West Michigan setting.

Unfortunately, the genre tag feels confusing. YA but within the first few chapters drugs/alcohol, partying, and adult language are used very frequently. Beyond that, the characters are veryyyy young. I found myself not connecting with them. Not the book for me.

This book had potential, but unfortunately left me wanting for more. I really enjoyed the characters and their relationships throughout the book, but the pacing and plot were a little inconsistent.
It reminded me of a teen drama tv series, which isn’t a bad thing! I think many people will love this book, but it just wasn’t for me.

Soul of Shadow is a captivating blend of Norse mythology and modern-day mystery. Charlie Hudson, still grieving her twin sister’s death, gets drawn into a series of eerie disappearances in her small town. Enter Elias Everhart—a mysterious new student with secrets that pull Charlie into a hidden world of magic, gods, and monsters. Their chemistry is electric, and the world-building is rich and immersive. If you’re a fan of The Vampire Diaries or The Atlas Six, this darkly enchanting romantasy is a must-read.

the story u folded the pacing was inconsistent and the plot was disjointed and confusing. This book has a lot of potential but just left me disappointed and wanting more.

I love a retelling of a classic myth with a twist but this story fell flat for me. There was nothing wrong with the story but I couldn’t connect with the characters or the plot. I never cared about the romance which made the enemies to lovers to maybe enemies plotline not work for me. I think if other people will enjoy the story, but it just didn’t work for me.

Thank you to Negalley and Wednesday Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Soul Of Shadow was like reliving the early 2000's CW all over again.
I liked it, enjoyed it, but didn't LOVE it.
It starts out in the typical high school girl meets hot new kid-monster fashion.
I did really like that it took quite a turn away from the typical CW model into more of the Nordic lore.

I enjoyed the characters and their relationships and really was rooting for Elias.
However Henry definitely was the one who stole my heart.

For a YA story I think it's very fitting and fits the genre well.
I will want to read on to see where Charlie's adventures take her.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚Rating*ੈ✩‧₊˚
4.5/5 Stars

˗ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ˗Tropes˗ˏˋ ♡ ˎˊ˗
🍇 Fake Dating
🖤 Norse Mythology
🍇Shadow Daddy
🖤 Morally Black Love Interest
🍇 Mystery That Needs To Be Solved
🖤 Small Town


𓂃🖊Notes and Highlights-

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･” Her first thought: We did it. We made it out alive.
Her second: We will never be safe again.”°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

💭 Thoughts-
This book was so much fun to read! I am not one to love a whole lot of murder mystery or missing people or anything of the such, but I totally loved it in this book! This book had so many fun twists and turns throughout it that made it so much fun and made me not able to put it down, and I almost ended up reading the whole thing in one sitting. Not only that but the morally black love interest that I definitely should no t have probably loved but totally did even though he totally was like so so bad, but they say bad I say hot so… I may not be the best judge of character with this mmc 😅. The only real reason it doesn’t have a 5-star rating is that well I do like the mmc Elias now it took me some time to warm up to him with him being like a mass murder, threatening her family if she didn't do what he said and stuff like that but if we move past that small part of him I def like him now. All in all a great book that keeps you hooked the whole time and is super fun to read, would totally recommend!

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⊹ ࣪ ˖Boys Beware: By Mad Tsai˖࣪ ⊹
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(Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

3.5 rounded up — overall interesting, entertaining, and a different twist on fantasy due to the Norse mythology. I am really hoping for an Elias redemption arc in the future!

EMMA. EMMA. WHAT THE HECK. THAT ENDING. I NEED MORE STAT.

As a die-hard vampire diaries fan (I’ve re-watched it at least 20+ times) and damon girlie for life, I knew I was going to love this book and have been dying to read it ever since I saw the author’s first video about it over a year ago.

Was obviously immediately in love with Elias (and Charlie). I could picture every piece of this world so clearly and truly felt like I was immersed into a magical realm. I love the concept of magic hidden right in front of us, so I really enjoyed the way the magic system and world in Soul of Shadow worked.

I also really liked the Norse mythology, as this is something we don’t see a lot in fantasy books these days (although it seems to be making a resurgence). I appreciated that the author (and characters) made pop culture references, especially connecting the Nordic characters and gods to the ones most of us likely think of today - hellooooo tom hiddelston.

I absolutely did NOT see that ending coming. I had some theories around the sister’s “death” and Elias’s true motives, but was genuinely on the edge of my seat at “my children”.

I sped through this in less than 24 hours because I simply could not put it down. The ONLY thing I didn’t like was that we don’t get more about Elias or any inklings of redemption for him yet 😭 I need the sequel ASAP PLS AND THANKS!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest review!!

Charlie and Elias are the ultimate bad boy, good girl will they, won't they pairing! The folklore and magic in this story are unique and truly enhance the mystery and romance. A must read!

Look it's a DNF for me. It's just a little too ridiculous. I think it could be a little fun junk food or guilty pleasure kind of read but you lost me at referencing Marvel and the MCU that many times in a span of such a short time. Like, this could have been very neat, I loved the idea of bringing in Norse Mythology, but the way it was executed took away from the cool build up the author was laying out... because of that it just very silly. Though, take me with a grain of salt because it wasn't **bad** I just think I am not the right person for this.

Although I will say the narrator did an awesome job.

Thank you Netgalley, Wednesday Books, and Emma Noyes for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

2.5/5

3.75 stars

Soul Of Shadow has Twilight vibes steeped in Norse mythology instead of Vampire lore. Charlie is struggling with the loss of her twin sister and Junior year of High School. Kids are disappearing and Charlie wants to investigate. While researching the disappearances she meets Elias, a sexy new Senior at her school. There is interesting push and pull between the FMC and MMC. Really want to see where the Norse mythology aspects can take the story.

Thank you Emma Noyes and Wednesday Books for providing this ARC via NetGalley. Comments and opinions above are my own.

#SoulofShadow #NetGalley

Charlie Hudson just wants to make it through Junior year. Things haven't been easy since she lost her twin sister, Sophie, two years ago, and she feels like she's just going through the motions of life. But things take a mysterious turn when some of her classmates go missing, and strange symbols are found carved into the trees in the woods. Charlie knows she shouldn't get involved, but she can't resist the pull to investigate the disappearances. Her search ends up leading her to the new Senior, Elias Everhart, and Charlie discovers that there's magic, gods and monsters, and a world hidden in plain sight of her little town of Silver Shores.

I was definitely drawn to the premise of Norse mythology, mixed with modern day, in Soul of Shadow. The book really did give me a feel of The Vampire Diaries, with a small town having dangerous secrets. I actually felt like I could have been watching an episode of Legacies, while reading the book.

The book is a fun, easy read, and I enjoyed Charlie and her friends as the main characters. I loved the friend relationship between the three of them, and Lou and Abigail's constant bickering made me laugh. Elias was a great morally grey character, and he never seemed to do what I thought he would do.

There's a good bit of suspense with the missing students and how it ties into the Norse storyline. I really enjoyed the setting of a hidden world, and what it was like once Charlie had the ability to see it. The various creatures were a really great addition, and I just have to say that the Vatte that attaches itself to Charlie wins as one of my all-time favorite side characters!! The mythology of Odin and Loki really kept me interested in the conflict of the story, and I loved all of the Marvel movie references.

Soul of Shadow is definitely a fun, Young Adult fantasy read! The cliffhanger ending had me wanting more, and I can't wait to see where the story goes in the next book. If you enjoy shows/movies like TVD and Twilight, with high school drama, the supernatural, morally grey MMCs, secrets/lies, and small town vibes then I would highly recommend Soul of Shadow.

One part young adult murder mystery, one part norse mythos fantasy, and one part romance; Soul of Shadow is 110% the book I hoped it would be and I will certainly be snagging a book for my physical collection.