Caught in the Pages

Title: Incarnate (Newsoul, #1)
Author: Jodi Meadows
Pages: 384
Genre: Young Adult|Fantasy
Publication Date: 1/31/2012
Rating: ****

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 seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

Heart
Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies--human and creature alike--let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else's life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

The first sentence took my breath away completely:

What is a soul, but a consciousness born and born again?

Incarnate was an incredibly and beautifully written novel, set in a world where the same one million souls are reincarnated over and over -- that is until Ana is born. Ana is a newsoul who is unfortunately born to Li, who is a horrible mother. Ana, who has just turned eighteen, sets out to find out who she really is and why it is that she was born and along the way meets Sam.

I really thought the concept of reincarnation was creative in that it recycled the same souls, yet the conflict of Ana's birth brought about all different kinds of reactions. I loved how the writing flowed and how easy it was to be drawn into the world Ms. Meadows created. Her descriptions of the world of Range and Heart were amazing.

Ana is a great character and I feel that she is strong even with everything she has been through and continues to go through. She lives in a world where most hate her and accuse her of being a 'nosoul'. The only thing that really got to me about her was her constant defensiveness. I totally get why she was defensive, having grown up with the horrible Li for a mother, but after awhile, I felt she could have loosened up a bit, especially with Sam and Stef. Overall though, she was a great character.

Sam was amazing. He had the kindest of hearts, and even though sometimes was a bit broody, it wasn't overwhelmingly so. It was more in a subtle type of way, whereas Ana's defensiveness was abundantly clear. I really liked that even though he was Ana's love interest it wasn't in your face as a lot of romances are in YA. Don't get me wrong, I am a total sucker for romances, but it was a nice change.

Overall I found this to be fresh and exciting and ultimately nothing like I expected. I would definitely recommend this one!

Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister forces are massing beyond the kingdom's protective wall. To the south, the King's powers are failing, and his enemies are emerging from the shadows of the throne. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the frozen land they were born to. Now Lord Eddard Stark is reluctantly summoned to serve as the King's new Hand, an appointment that threatens to sunder not only his family but also the kingdom itself. A heroic fantasy of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and evildoers who come together in a time of grim omens. (Goodreads)

This. Was. Amazing.

There are so many characters, so much history, and so much just going on in this world period. This is a vivid world created by Mr. Martin. In A Game of Thrones, there are so many families, each with their own flaws and histories, as well as where they are going in the present. I have done nothing but obsess over this book and the show. Shame on me, I know, I hadn't heard of this before the show. I was watching the first episode with my husband and about halfway through I said to him I thought it would make a good book. He told it was actually a series! I about jumped up in excitement and got it as soon as I could.

One complaint I have, however, is that some points in the book are kind of slow, but I can be impatient. :)

Between the families feuding, the secrets, the twists, loyalties and liars, love and hate, this was one I could almost not put down.

What I give this book: