Soul Bound: The Warrior

Soul Bound Series, Book 1

By: Jas T. Ward

Narrated by: Edward Mittelstedt

Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

Death May Be The End...But Love Doesn't Give A @&%#.Murderer...Jace Camden is haunted by his past. One that has many believing he got away with murder. He's run from it, trying to start a new life in a new town. But his past hasn't let him escape and it's determined that his future will not be a long one. Death will demand it's due. And his late wife will make sure that debt is paid.Kitt Thomas' life is in a rut but that changed when she looked into the sad, haunted eyes of Jace Camden. Something about his wounded soul called to her--like a flicker in a very dark cave she should have had the sense not to step into.But his past will make sure she is no more part of Jace's future than life is. Because he's soul bound. And that's a bind that can only be broken by death. His. It's not about the Happily Ever After...It's about surviving the read. *Warning - this book deals with the subject of death, grief and it's retelling in a graphically realistic and dark manner*

©2017 Jas T. Ward (P)2017 Jas T. Ward

I was expecting more

I jumped into this book expecting a horror tale (as indicted on Audible) and that’s probably one of the reasons it took me quite some time to get into this story. It’s really a romance first and foremost with a little bit of paranormal stuff thrown in. Romance really isn’t my cup of tea.

For the most part, I was bored. There’s lots of time spent on Jace and Kitt flirting and then, Bam!, they get smacked with a case of insta-love. So for the rest of the book there’s lots of long passages about eye contact and deep feelings and what not when they haven’t really experienced much together. Snooze.

Laura, Jace’s dead wife, is ghosting about, haunting Jace. She intrigued me because for much of the book we didn’t know for sure what occurred between Jace and Laura leading up to her death. Then there’s Olivia, Laura’s sister, who can also see Laura’s ghost. Olivia is hell bent on seeing ‘justice’ brought to Jace.

Sky (Kitt’s good friend) and Zane (Jace’s good friend) provide some comedic relief. We also have Dr. Alex Martinez who comes off a bit disorganized at first and yet I kept wondering if that was her way to set Jace off balance and get around his walls. Once the story writes itself into a corner, in walks Franklin who offers some much needed knowledge about the paranormal.

As you can see, the story has some promise, especially if you enjoy a strong romantic theme. For me, there was too little paranormal stuff and too much soul bonding based on insta-love. Also, the story often built drama around some insubstantial things. For instance, Jace doesn’t like cold drinks and his best friends have never asked him why. Pause for a deep long moment as the tension builds…. and Jace says he has sensitive teeth. Totally plausible yet some of the characters treat the answer with suspicion. Now, us readers know from early on Jace’s true reason for disliking cold things but I don’t see why it should be such a big deal with this friends. All told, it’s 3.5/5 stars.

The Narration: Edward Mittelstedt did a really good job narrating this book. Each character was distinct and his female voices were feminine. Now, the story does describe Jace as a more rugged Gerald Butler so I was expecting a deeper voice for Jace. That could just be me. Mittelstedt went the extra mile and did neat things like have multiple voices when more than one person answered a question at the same time. That was great! 5/5 stars.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Edward Mittelstedt. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Flatliners Meets Buffy

I really enjoyed this story a lot. It started off kind of slow and took a long time to explain some things, but by the second half it moved swiftly and explained everything....up to a confusing cliffhanger ending. Since this is Book 1, I'm sure it will be explained in Book 2, which I will definitely have on my TBR!

Jace's wife, Laura, killed herself 5 years ago. Naturally, Jace was arrested for murder and it was so horrific that he could not speak to defend himself, but the jury was hung and he was freed. But after a failed suicide attempt and a car wreck that was deemed to be another attempt (although it wasn't), he has been on court ordered psychiatric care and medication. The problem is, he isn't crazy. His dead wife has just been showing up and kicking his ass constantly for the last 5 years and she won't let up.

Jace's friend Skyler introduces him to her friend Kit and Jace is smitten. Kit is too. Then Laura shows up and strangles Kit, who luckily gets away. Laura's vindictive sister has sent thugs to beat him up as she continues her attempts to get him convicted for murder or make him kill himself. Then Jace's psychiatrist signs papers to commit him.

With all this going on, you'd think the man would go crazy, but his friends learn the truth and try to help him find a way to stop Laura and keep him from being committed before things go too far. They learn that since he was a child, he travels between worlds in his sleep and is a warrior, deadly to the soulless demons that have Laura under their control. But how can they stop these demons?

A very complex story, pretty well written and filled with mystery and romance. However, my review knocks this down a star due to the extremely dull performance by Edward Mittelstedt. Apple's Siri has more emotion in her voice. Actually the voice from the 1982 movie War Games had more emotion than this guy! I will admit that he was better with the voices, although a couple of the females went from no accent to thick southern accents as the book went along. Other characters would break into a southern accent for one sentence, then go back to their normal voices. But the narration was so lifeless, if the story had not been so good, I might have given up on it. I hope for a better narrator for Book 2.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review

Not Bad, But Not the Best Paranormal Thriller

I found this book to be only okay plot wise. It started out very slowly and I only stuck in there because I agreed to listen to this book in exchange for an unbiased review - if I had bought the book with no commitment to listen, I would have stopped. There was quite a bit of romance in this thriller, which would have been fine with me if it had been balanced out with much more horror/paranormal/thriller aspects that weren't directly tied to the romance.

The best part of this listen was the narrator - Mittelstedt does a fantastic job with the voice acting. The characters were distinct in tone and accent, allowing the listener to understand who was speaking without the character being named.

Finally, the ending was quite a cliff hanger - an obvious attempt to get the reader to keep listening to the series. I understand the desire to do this, but all it's done is cement the fact that I'm not listening to another whole book to get the answers I wanted to get in this first book.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

Dark and intense

Unique story. Very intense and dark paranormal listen with unexpected spots of humor. I loved the story and the characters, Jace especially was a very complex and intriguing character. Does end on a bit of a cliffhanger. Will definitely be looking for further books in the series, can’t wait to see where it goes. The narrator gave an amazing performance and made the listening experience. I received a free review copy of this audiobook at my request and I have voluntarily left this review.

Oh my!

Wow, what a unique, twisted story! Totally out of the norm, what you think you’re about to read is the complete opposite!

Starting out a relationship in the not best ways, Jas and Kit find themselves not just fighting for them to be together but to stay alive! So many factors are against them but one that is really not helping is Jas’s dead wife.

I could go on and say to much more but you really need to get into this story and find out for yourself how twisted this authors imagination really is!

Good Listen

Jace and Kitt are made to go on a date by mutual friends. They are instantly attracted to each other but Jace is being hunted by his dead wife. She terrorizes him and hurts him in his sleep. She has now moved on to Kitt. They must fight the dead in order to have a relationship. Great Narration.

Speechless

This book was amazing and nothing like I expected with so many twists and turns. The author did such a great job with the characters and bringing them to life with such incredible dimension. And the narrator did a great job with this story too. I found the many roles he spoke to be easy to follow and become one with.

Wow just wow and I am not sure what to do now that I have finished book one. It truly was a ride

Amazing Story!

I read this book and it haunted me for a long time. I absolutely loved it. Now, listening to it, I want to replay it over and over!! Edward does a fantastic job, and, those creepy laughs send shivers down my spine!! I highly recommend this one!

Soul Wrenching

An amazing story beautifully narrated! My heart shattered and my soul aches for what is to come for Jace and Kitt whom I have come to love. The narration helped to send me to Texas and made me believe I was actually sitting there listening to each character speak.

Death may be final, but love doesn't give a shit.

*4 1/2 Roses*

Rated R

"Death may be final, but love doesn't give a shit."

What a way to open a story. From the first few minutes, it's obvious Jace's story isn't a happy one, and is most likely going to be a bit of a wild ride. Even with the synopsis and tour info, I wasn't prepared for this story. I don't mind unhappy endings, but this was so much more than that. The entire story has a level of suspense, and getting to see into the reality Jace hides from the world is incredible. He's living a nightmare only he can see.

I love the concept of bringing a more tangible after-life existence into a story, and having it meld with the living. I'm a sucker for these kinds of stories, and this one was exceptional. The hopelessness Jace deals with in simply being labeled with a mental disorder was tragically realistic. In a way, it forces you to ask the question of how "fiction" this kind of story is - are there people out there dealing with this sort of terror every day?

For any fan of paranormal tragedies, this one is a must read or listen. The book, I'm sure, is fantastic, and the audiobook was superb. Eddie did a fantastic job of expressing the life Jace was living, as well as all the other characters who ended up tangled in his sticky web. My only complaint was the few adult scenes, which I don't personally care for - the rest was fantastic. It's a story that will get your adrenaline pumping, make you want to fight alongside Jace, and give you another reason to wonder if things that go bump in the night, aren't just inside your head.

*I was given a complimentary audiobook copy of this story, from the author, to listen to in exchange for an honest review.

~Rose
@Desert Rose Reviews