Title: Soren: The Angel and The Prize Fighter
Author: Louise Nicks
Genre: YA paranormal
Book Blurb:
The world has never been an easy place for impoverished teen Beau Tolson, but from the moment her sick mother is given months to live, Beau’s life takes an extraordinary turn.
In order to buy the only drug that can now keep her beloved mother alive, 16 year old martial arts champion Beau resorts to illegal prize fighting at East London’s most notorious underworld lair.
But that’s only the beginning of her troubles.
When some of her closest friends start acting weird, and a mystifying new boy turns up outside the school gates, Beau is told a life changing secret... That not only are some of her friends angels, but that she is going to become an angel too.
It isn’t long before she finds herself torn between the divine and this world; between her responsibilities and the colossal destiny that awaits.
Little do any of them know that a sect of ex-angels have also come to Earth, planning on kidnapping Beau for the very same reasons the angels want her: to fulfill a prophecy that involves this world and theirs, and who will rule it all until the end of time.
Review:
Beau is such a kickass character! When I first saw the title, I assumed it was referring to 2 separate characters (one an angel and another one the fighter.) So I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered that the title referred to the main character, Beau.
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| this gif basically sums up Beau |
Okay, so I'm going to dedicate an entire paragraph because I simply fell in love with Beau's character. First of all, it's refreshing to have a female protagonist in
a YA paranormal novel that can actually fight for herself instead of needing a prince charming coming in to save her. I think weak female characters in 90% of the YA paranormal books I have read is the main reason I normally don't read that genre anymore. But the book description for Soren really caught my eye, so I decided to give it a go :) I love how Beau acts really mature (particularly compared to her friends) and truly cares for her mother (who, btw, is sick with cancer, hence why Beau is taking on some illegal jobs to earn money--read book blurb above for more details.)
a YA paranormal novel that can actually fight for herself instead of needing a prince charming coming in to save her. I think weak female characters in 90% of the YA paranormal books I have read is the main reason I normally don't read that genre anymore. But the book description for Soren really caught my eye, so I decided to give it a go :) I love how Beau acts really mature (particularly compared to her friends) and truly cares for her mother (who, btw, is sick with cancer, hence why Beau is taking on some illegal jobs to earn money--read book blurb above for more details.)
Speaking of characters...there was quite a large number of characters to keep track of in this book. Although each of them definitely had their own personality, I found a few of them to be "flat." So I guess that is probably my biggest quip with the book--a handful of the characters seemed 1 dimensional to me (particularly the school bullies.) Nevertheless, I enjoyed the diversity in personalities.
The romance was a little bit of an insta-love scenario, but it was still very sweet. The pacing was set at a decent clip--there might be one or two slower chapters sprinkled throughout to give readers time to catch their breath, but other than that, it was nonstop action. I also enjoyed how the author switched POV from the villain's to the protagonist's.
Over all, I would recommend this book if you enjoy YA paranormal. I don't think the writing style was exactly my cup of tea--but give it a whirl if you think you might enjoy Soren!
Rating:
And now...Join Louise Nicks for a Q and A session!
Author Bio
Louise Nicks is a UK based debut author writing paranormal fantasy romance with a strong adventure twist.
Writing primarily for the young adult / crossover audience, Soren: The Angel and The Prize Fighter (to be released June 16, 2014) is book one in a planned series.
Louise is also a short story writer and is currently working on a new collection of teen paranormal stories called The Crypt. The Crypt Vol 2 will be released in October, 2014. Vol 1 is available to read now via the SorenSagaBooks Wattpad profile.
When not writing fiction, Louise works (under a different name) as a freelance music journalist, features writer and online Editor. Since starting her own music fanzine in her teens, she has been lucky enough to interview artists such as Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance, Slash, Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath), Newton Faulkner, Biffy Clyro and many more.
Aside from hopefully one day being able to make a living full time from books, Louise's dream is to interview her favourite band AC/DC. An ardent charity supporter, Louise has taken part in many petitions and campaigns for human rights, animal welfare, and the preservation of the natural world, and continues to do so.
Louise Nicks: To be honest above all else. So many times I could have written Beau Tolson (Soren's main character) to be a total goody-goody; a vanilla, straight-up, head girl who loves kittens and never puts a foot wrong kind of female lead. But I would have been betraying Beau's true essence, her inner fire, her dreams, and her personal demons if I'd written her through such rose tinted glasses.
As painful as it was, I had to be honest to the story and that meant sitting back to let her make mistakes, get angry about stuff, and find her own way. Beau is a good person at heart but she's had a lot to deal with – an awol dad, a dying mum, poverty, bullying... Those kinds of trials stain the soul.”
TBL: If you could meet any character, who would it be?
LN: In all honesty, I would love to meet Beau. I think she's fascinating and loveable, even though she thinks she isn't. She's known loss and desperation yet she's still bursting with love and the potential to be a good person. I always find it inspirational when young people have to cope with heavy (and fearful) situations, yet they find a way to keep going. Beau is like that and I admire her for it.
TBL: What's the toughest part about writing?
LN: Writing makes my heart sing, but there are times when I find myself being led down the wrong path by scenes that add nothing to the story, or just confuse the issue entirely. Usually I cotton on pretty quickly when something isn't right because I feel as though I'm wading through treacle trying to write that scene or section of dialogue. That can be tough to swallow because I feel like I've wasted time and energy on the wrong thing. Thankfully, it doesn't happen too often.
TBL: The best part?
LN: When the story runs away from me. There have been many occasions where Soren has almost written itself, to the point where I'm pushing my fingers to type super fast just to keep up with her. Those moments are exciting because I know I'm tapping directly into the source of my imagination – the best Soren chapters have written themselves without any interference (as it were) from me.
TBL: What inspired you to write Soren: The Angel and The Prize Fighter?
LN: A horror film! Seriously, I was watching Omen III: Final Conflict, and there was a captivating scene where the stars aligned to signal the Nazarene's return to earth. The idea of stars aligning to signal the birth of someone important lit a fuse in my imagination. “An angel sent to Earth became 'someone important' and aligning stars turned into a comet that carried the angel's spirit (a comet crashing to Earth was the original opening scene to Soren). The story morphed from there, Beau was born, and Soren's journey back to East London began.
TBL: If you could have three wishes, what would they be?
LN: World peace. Inner peace. A lifetime's supply of M&M
TBL: What song describes your book the best?
LN: Ain't It Fun by Paramore. If you listen to the lyrics, they explore how tough the real world can be; that you can't go crying to your mother. It's a situation Beau finds herself in many times throughout Soren.
TBL: Do you think events that occur in your life affect what you write?
LN: When it comes to the fantasy aspect, it's a product of pure imagination – I've never seen anyone walking on thin air the way Bevan (an angel in Soren) does. When writing about realistic events, emotions and reactions, though, I think it's inevitable that my life experiences may colour them a bit.
As a general rule I don't write characters based upon any one person that I know. Sub-consciously, however, certain personality traits may find their way in to those of Soren's characters.
TBL: How do you beat the writer's block?
LN: Yoga! There's nothing like it for calming the mind, stretching tension from the body, and re-connecting with the imagination. I get writer's block whenever I feel as though I don't have enough time to write properly, which is strange because in my day job (in the land of music journalism) I'm used to insane writing and editing deadlines. Rolling out my 'Tree Of Life' yoga mat and stretching out in Warrior Pose helps melt away any blockages. I usually keep my phone handy when practising yoga just in case I need to jot down plot notes – they usually come thick and fast once yoga starts melting away writer's block.
Links:
Website – www.sorensaga.com
Facebook – www.facebook.com/SorenSagaBooks
Twitter – www.twitter.com/SorenSagaBooks
Wattpad - http://www.wattpad.com/user/SorenSagaBooks
Tumblr - http://sorensagabooks.tumblr.com/
Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8078513.Louise_Nicks
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