Sinisa isn’t your typical assassin. She doesn’t hide in the shadows and leap like some kind of a stealthy ninja cat all clad in black from building to building, throwing poison needles and daggers at people’s throats. The only weapon she carries is her own hands because a simple touch from her will result in your death. In fact, she’s a Reaper. She walks down the street in broad daylight to take the life she is contracted to claim.
Acari also isn’t your typical power hungry prince who’s goal in life is to overthrow the neighboring kingdoms and take over the world. He’s a compassionate man who would love nothing more than to abandon his destiny and give his sister, who is locked away and kept secret simply because a deformity of her lip, a chance at a normal life. When his father takes out a contract to kill his sister, he breaks all the rules in a desperate attempt to find the one person, a Guardian, who can save her form her fate.
Perhaps the most fascinating part of Soul of the Crow was the world that was created. Anyone who is accused of murder is sent to the underrealm to serve Veltuur as a Reaper, or an assassin. But it’s not just human murder – any death counts as taking a life. Whether you accidentally squash a bug or purposely attack your next door neighbor, any life taken without permission is considered murder. That means while you have some bad people, not all of then are “evil murderers.” Many good people are condemned to a lifetime of serving Veltuur even though their actions may not have really warranted it. While these Reapers are understandably feared, they are not necessarily the bad guys, at least that is Sinisa’s opinion. Their jobs are to keep the balance of life and death in the world. They take the lives of those who are suffering and in pain, and kill animals so they can be eaten for their meat.
As the story continues to unfold, it definitely becomes an emotional one. Sinisa was claimed as a Reaper at a young age, for a very heart-breaking reason, so serving Veltuur is what she’s known most of her life. She’s the type of character you want to feel bad for, but she is happy with who she is. She doesn’t complain, but instead strives to be the best Reaper she can be. But after meeting Acari she begins to feel emotions like the living girl she once was, and starts to question the right thing to do. As a Reaper, she is forced to claim lives. But what would happen if she decided not to? Acari’s love for his sister helps her realize that she can change, and in order to cancel the contract on his sister she is forced to carry out, she has to make a decision on whether she wants to.
Soul of the Crow is Book 1 in the Reapers of Veltuur series. The story was a very thoughtfully written with some very emotional dialogue and intense character transformation. If I had one complaint, it would be that I wished there was little more action, but since the dialogue was so well written, I didn’t miss it as much as I would have with other stories. Although it didn’t bother me, the story does leave you on a bit of a cliff-hanger with a lot of questions about what’s going to happen next. Thankfully, you can dive right into the next book in the series, Heart of the Sungem, to pick up right where the first book left off.
Check out Amazon to start reading Soul of the Crow by Jessaca Willis. The book is free to read for Kindle Unlimited subscribers and available to purchase for $2.99