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Review: Seven Souls A Leaping by K. F. Zuzulo, Lisa Pietsch & Heather Long
Format Read: e-Book ARC provided by Author for review
Length: 271 Pages
Release Date: January 3rd, 2011
Publisher: Sapphire Blue Publishing
Formats Available: e-Book
Purchasing Info: K.F. Zuzulo’s Website, Lisa Pietsch’s Website, Heather Long’s Website, Goodreads, Amazon.com
Book Blurb:
Seven Souls A Leaping is an anthology of three interconnected tales of love, danger and a war against evil written by Lisa Pietsch, K.F. Zuzulo and Heather Long.At the New England New Age (NENA) Investigations, no case is too weird. The paranormal detective agency relies on the familial talents of siblings Duncan and Samantha MacDougal and their cousin Tara Conroy. While Duncan and Samantha tend to the field work, Tara mans the office tapping sources in both the physical and spirit world. Fate takes a hand when a killer named Jeffrey Wiles begins a death-dealing spree that puts the lives and loves of these investigators on the line.
Frozen Hell
Danyelle Roy is a private investigator feeling the pinch of the economy. When she begs her friend Murphy, a bail bondsman, to give her some work, he does so reluctantly. Jeffrey Wiles isn’t the kind of criminal you want to send a cute redhead after. He slaughtered a 13-year-old girl while her parents slept and then used her blood to paint Satanic graffiti on the walls. Duncan MacDougal is a specialist in paranormal investigations and he’s never seen anything like the Satanic spellcasting done by Jeffrey Wiles. When Duncan and Dani team up to capture Wiles, the magic is overpowering.Star Light, Blood Bright
Samantha MacDougal can see auras. Her gift usually helps her pursue rascals and wraiths for her family’s business, New England New Age Investigations. But when she begins to track Satanic serial murderer Jeffrey Wiles along icy Boston streets, her own life’s light is in danger of being extinguished. She is alone in her struggle until handsome Boston detective Ike Marshall mysteriously provides a supernatural shield of light that warms her as never before.13th Night:
Since the day she learned to put her ABCs together, Tara Conroy has been sharing a ghostly correspondence with the spirit world. One spirit, in particular, Darian, has been talking to her since she was twelve years old. His letters take a darker turn as she and her cousins hunt down killer Jeffrey Wiles.
Darian Barnes ran afoul of a witch in 1929 as the stock market crashed. She cursed him, and for nearly a century Darian has existed as a spirit, always seeing, never touching or experiencing, until one day he encountered Tara. For the first time in eighty years, someone could hear him. He watched over her, guiding, protecting and advising—always there when she needed a friend.
Now Darian and Tara must find a way to bring their love into the physical world and destroy Jeffrey Wiles once and for all…
In contrast to the first story I really enjoyed Star Light, Blood Bright. The writing was intriguing and the descriptions detailed. I loved how Zuzulo let through her story without info dumping us as a reader. The paranormal part of this book was better depicted and finally got more depth and believability. Her setting was solid and consistent and I really liked to follow Sam’s and Ike’s story. The characters themselves were vivid- I just wished Ike would have gotten a more centered role. He was on scene most of the time but his character always stayed a bit out of reach. The plot in Star Light, Blood Bright was also nicely done. It was a faced paced ride that didn’t leave much room to cool down. It kept me on the edge of my seat. The only other issue I had with this one was the sex scene. I’m probably too picky but the description was too allegorical for me. I couldn’t take it serious so it kind of stole the romantic development for me. An example:
Her fingers played over the muscles in the broad umbrella of his back as they twitched and flinched.
All in all Star Light, Blood Bright was a very good story I really enjoyed.
This story was by far my favorite in this anthology. It does everything right. The characterisation is deep and thoughtful. Tara and Darian are 3 dimensional and they really moved me. Their story is told in such a heartwarming and emotional way you just can’t NOT love them. I loved how both had this inner struggle and how Long showed us how their minds worked. I felt really connected to both characters and that’s something not every novel succeeds to achieve.
The plot was also masterly done. I loved the fast paced action and equally the quieter moments full of love and concern. I think I read this story in just a few hours because I couldn’t bring myself to put it down.
Before I started this anthology I wasn’t sure I would find an ability like auto writing so intriguing but the way Long describes and shows it makes you see the many facets of such a gift or better said curse.
This story makes everything right and this only makes buying this anthology worth every cent.
This anthology was something new to me. Never before have I read one where all stories were so tightly woven together. It gives you a whole new experience and it also shows how much the voice of an author affects your judgement. Good read I recommend to all the urban fantasy lovers who are open to try something new.
I give Sevens Souls A Leaping 3 1/2 out of 5 bookies.
One thing I noticed while reading this novel is that perhaps I got something wrong. In the first story it says:
“It was the shortest day of the year and a frigid beginning to a long winter.”
In Star Light, Blood Bright, which is clearly set directly after this day (give or take a day) , the author talks about the solistice coming up in two days. So now I ask myself isn’t that actually the same day? The book is set in December so that should be around the 21st? Just curious about that- perhaps I got it wrong. Can anyone enlight me?
***FTC Disclaimer: Most books reviewed on this site have been provided free of charge by the publisher, author or publicist. Some books we have purchased with our own money and will be noted as such. Any links to places to purchase books are provided as a convenience, and do not serve as an endorsement by this blog. All reviews are the true and honest opinion of the blogger reviewing the book. The method of acquiring the book does not have a bearing on the content of the review.
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| 5 Stars: Perfect! I Love It! | |||||||||
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| 3 Stars: I Liked It! | |||||||||
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Sounds like something very different.
Think I will give it a try.
@Estella es it was and really loved how different it was from what we usually get in this genre.