Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Half a Soul

What a fun, entertaining Regency romance! Romance, magic, and intriguing characters—what more could you need? Dora, an outspoken noble missing half her soul, travels to London with her cousin for the season; where she expects to find mild amusement, she instead finds love and a purpose in life. Elias was such a wonderful love interest, and I adored how Dora’s unique nature—her condition of having half a soul made her head such an interesting place to be!—brought out a new side of his character. The inditement on England’s treatment of its poor was a fantastic plot line, and its inclusion felt natural rather than contrived. All of the side characters had clearly defined roles, yet were not flat or uninteresting. My only gripe with this book was the rushed ending; another few pages to explore Dora’s decision and the enormity around it would have made more sense. But all in all I loved this sweet, one-of-a-kind Regency tale!

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rachierooroo's review against another edition

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challenging funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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clarabooksit's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

It’s really more of a 3.5 stars but I’ve rounded up for how much I enjoyed it.

What prevents this book from being stellar is what so many other historical fantasies lack: any semblance of or even honest attempts at world-building. Too often authors rely on their historical setting to automatically generate a world in the reader’s mind but that’s not only lazy, it also results in their story having no internal logic, no explanation for the fantasy elements or how they work, and ultimately a less substantial story.

I’m afraid that’s the case here. I have no idea how the magic works in this story, who can or cannot be a magician—this story only has one and I have no idea why—or how magic fits into this world. Which is such a shame because I really liked Dora, Elias and Albert, and the concept of only having half a soul.

I also loved the themes of what constitutes evil and how everyday people can combat it, even in small ways, and that even when something feels missing, a person can be and still is a whole person. And what happens to Dora and her missing half at the end was lovely.

Overall, I wish this had been more fleshed out in nearly every possible way, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it, especially the characters. It’s an easy, engaging, heartwarming read and I’m looking forward to reading more from the author.

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howl's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

*Mr. Darcy voice* This is a charming book. Described as “Pride and Prejudice meets Howl’s Moving Castle” with “the spirit of Susanna Clarke or Erin Morgenstern but with less commitment,” this little novel perfectly embodies a fantastical Regency setting and throughly cheered me while reading. It takes no time in getting started, immediately introducing the reader to the confines of Regency England and to the wild and unpredictable fantasy element, opposing forces which produce an intriguing setting that still seems fresh despite the fair amount of Regency fantasy stories I’ve previously encountered. The novel follows a young woman named Dora, whose childhood encounter with an evil fairy (from whom she was saved by her close friend and cousin Vanessa, brandishing a pair of steel scissors; insert Bernie Sanders meme here) has changed the course of her life. When the two travel to London in search of a cure for the fairy’s curse, they encounter a difficult but highly skilled young sorcerer named Elias who might be persuaded to help. The plot is admittedly rather thin, as you might expect from a novel under 250 pages, but I couldn’t bring myself to care much given the interesting and unique heroine and a romance that really ended up getting its hooks in me. There was one scene in particular near the end that nearly made me sigh dreamily; if the sequel manages to be as good then I’m in danger of turning into a cartoon character. Note: If you’ve only been exposed to the movie version of Howl’s Moving Castle, be warned that the love interest in this starts off much more like book Howl, i.e. a bitchier and more arrogant version of the beloved wizard. He gets better the more you read, as you would expect given the Pride and Prejudice comparison :3

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