I received a free copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Soul Meaning, the first book in the new Seventeen series, starts of intriguing...
‘My name is Lucas Soul.
Today, I died again.
This is my fifteenth death in the last four hundred and fifty years.’
Sounds good. What follows is an action packed urban fantasy with some sightseeing in Europe on the side.
I quite enjoyed this debut, the writing is very fast and I was immediately pulled into the story. There were enough questions to keep me guessing for some time, and it was a nice read.
There is not too much world building in this book. There are two races of 'immortals' (they are not really immortal, but can survive up to sixteen deaths), but what the differences are between the two is never fully explained. Also, there is a lot of talking about the nobility of these races, but not once is a peasant named. What use is a title if we all have one? Exactly how much immortals are we talking about and how have they managed to keep their existence a secret from us plain humans? We never get to know the answers.
The main character, Lucas Soul, is your good, old, special snowflake. Born the child of a mixed-race love affair between the two immortal-races (though that apparently happens from time to time, no matter the war they're fighting with each other) he's blessed with some extra special skills, how convenient. He's also accompanied by his partner-in-crime Reid, a human ex-cop, who apparently has, although he's mortal, nine lives, as the bullets just keep missing him.
And there are a lot of bullets. And swords, for that matter. As Lucas is being hunted down by Hunters, I don't think there are twenty pages without a lot of gunfire, fighting and life endangering situations. This is something you have to like, but if you don't mind it, you'll most likely enjoy this book. You also get a trip to Europa, as in a murderous pace France, Swiss, Austria, the Czech republic and Germany are visited. It's like a tour trough mid-Europe.
So far, I was really enjoying this book, although it has some flaws. But the epilogue felt unnecessary to me, and weird in comparison to the rest of the novel. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book.