Soulswift
Gelya is a Vessel, a girl who channels the word of the One True God through song. Cloistered with the other Vessels of her faith, she believes—as all Ovinists do—that a saint imprisoned Elath the Great Demon centuries ago, saving humanity from earthly temptation. When Gelya stumbles into a deadly cover-up by the Ovinists’ military, she reluctantly teams up with Tavik, an enemy soldier, to survive. Tavik believes that Elath is actually a mother goddess who must be set free, but while he succeeds in opening Her prison, he inadvertently turns Gelya into Elath’s unwilling human vessel. Now the church that raised Gelya considers her a threat. In a race against the clock, she and Tavik must find a way to exorcise Elath’s presence from her body. But will this release stop the countdown to the end of the world, or will it be the cause of the earth’s destruction? And as Tavik and Gelya grow closer, another question lingers between them: What will become of Gelya?
Bannen broke my heart with Soulswift. The further I got into the book, I knew the likelihood of a happy ending for Gelya and Tavik was less likely, but I held out hope until the bitter end. Through their sacrifice, peace was restored to Gelya and Tavik’s world. It made sense in the context of the story, and I like to imagine Gelya as a soulswift and Tavik’s spirit finding their own version of happily-ever-after in the afterlife. Thinking that was the reason I could close the book and not burst into tears!
The discussion around religion was well done. I liked the conversations Gelya and Tavik had as they debated their culture’s views of the One True God. Both had misconceptions about the other’s religion, yet Bannen made it clear that neither was entirely right or wrong. They had just grown up in different cultures, which had their own biases and skewed their outlook. Gelya and Tavik did find some common ground, which helped them ultimately save the world.
It was so sweet to read Gelya figure out her feelings for Tavik. As someone raised as a nun, she had no idea how to process her growing feelings, and how to recognize how Tavik felt about her. Of course, I would have liked them to have been able to grow old together, but at least they were able to admit their love for each other before their untimely ending.
Soulswift is a dark, epic fantasy that will leave readers eager for Bannen’s next novel.
Soulswift Rating: ★★★★★
Bannen broke my heart with Soulswift. The further I got into the book, I knew the likelihood of a happy ending for Gelya and Tavik was less likely, but I held out hope until the bitter end. Through their sacrifice, peace was restored to Gelya and Tavik’s world. It made sense in the context of the story, and I like to imagine Gelya as a soulswift and Tavik’s spirit finding their own version of happily-ever-after in the afterlife. Thinking that was the reason I could close the book and not burst into tears!
The discussion around religion was well done. I liked the conversations Gelya and Tavik had as they debated their culture’s views of the One True God. Both had misconceptions about the other’s religion, yet Bannen made it clear that neither was entirely right or wrong. They had just grown up in different cultures, which had their own biases and skewed their outlook. Gelya and Tavik did find some common ground, which helped them ultimately save the world.
It was so sweet to read Gelya figure out her feelings for Tavik. As someone raised as a nun, she had no idea how to process her growing feelings, and how to recognize how Tavik felt about her. Of course, I would have liked them to have been able to grow old together, but at least they were able to admit their love for each other before their untimely ending.
Soulswift is a dark, epic fantasy that will leave readers eager for Bannen’s next novel.
Soulswift Rating: ★★★★★