VOYA - Mary Ann Darby
In the Range, there are a million souls who are reincarnated again and again, creating a community where memories and experiences are shared and familiar. Into this community a new soul, Ana, is born. Not only that, but another soul, Ciana, disappears. Ana's mother, Li, who despises Ana, raises her isolated, away from the city of Heart where most people live. When she turns eighteen, Ana decides to trek to the city to see if she can find out more about why she is a new soul, but Li's treachery lands Ana in a fight for her life. When Ana is rescued by a young man named Sam, she is stunned that he seems to want to help her. The two of them find themselves in a series of perils as they work to uncover the secret behind Ana's birth in the strange city of Heart. This is the first in a planned trilogy by Meadows, and teens who enjoy a good fantasy replete with romance, dragons, and intrigue will find themselves hooked on book one. Ana is an engaging protagonist, made suspicious by her early years with Li, and now trying to learn trust with Sam. The ramifications of reincarnation are explored in an interesting manner, and the story moves at a good pace. This is a terrific addition to junior and senior high libraries and can be handed to fans of Robin McKinley or Tamora Pierce or anyone looking for an absorbing fantasy. Reviewer: Mary Ann Darby
School Library Journal
Gr 8 Up—In Range, the same souls have been reincarnated as long as anyone can remember. They may have different bodies, but the wisdom and experience of the person remains, along with memories. One million souls have done this for thousands of years until the night a baby who is not the expected reincarnation is born. Is this child a nosoul? What happened to the other soul? When Ana turns 18, she leaves her home and her cruel mother to look for answers to her very existence in the city, Heart. On her way she meets Sam, who is about her age physically. He helps her get to Heart, where problems arise immediately. Many fear this nosoul. If one soul can vanish to be replaced by a new one, could it happen again? As she searches for answers, Ana finds herself drawn to Sam, but doubts his feelings for her. Meadows has created a complex world but keeps all of the pieces together. The romance is captivating, as are the questions raised by the reincarnations. Can two souls be perfect for each other? This is the first book in a planned trilogy, and many questions, issues, and problems need answers. Incarnate cannot stand alone, but rereading will surely take place while fans wait for the next installment. This would be a thought-provoking choice for anyone who is looking to move beyond vampires, werewolves, and angels.—Genevieve Gallagher, Charlottesville High School, VA
Kirkus Reviews
For thousands of years in Range, the same one million souls have been born, lived, died and been reborn. But when Ciana died, she wasn't reborn: Ana was born, for the first time. Now 18, Ana is leaving the mother who hated her behind. When an encounter with the terrifying sylph drives her to leap off a cliff into a lake, she is certain that her new, young soul will soon be an expired one. Kindly Sam rescues her and takes her to the city of Heart, where she hopes to find answers to the questions of her origin. There, she must battle both the ingrained sense of low worth instilled by her hostile mother and the suspicions of the oldsouls. Never fear: Debut novelist Meadows gives musical prodigy Ana a mentor that is the society's most noted musician, the preternaturally wise, good and--oh yes, sexy--Sam. The basic concept is a fascinating one, but it gets muddled in delivery. Worldbuilding is particularly weak: Range is populated by both creatures of European mythology and regular North American animals, but the former seem to have been thrown in largely to be set dressing and a convenient threat. Perhaps all will be explained in subsequent volumes, to which this effectively serves as a 374-page prologue. Moreover, Ana's characterization is notably uneven (the emotional scars from her upbringing emerge when the plot needs them), and 21st-century colloquialisms sound sour notes against the trying-to-be-otherworldly setting. Overall, a promising book that would have benefited from another draft or two. (Fantasy/romance. 13 & up)
