Monday 16 July 2012

Soul Fire by Kate Harrison

Pages - 400
Published by Indigo in June 2012

Happiness is simple. All you need are the people you love.
After Meggie died, I thought I'd never be happy again. Yet here I am on the Beach, where life is absolute heaven. I can hear my sister humming softly as she draws patterns in the sand. I feel the warmth of the sun on my skin, and the touch of Danny's body against mine, and the sway of the hammock as the sea breeze rocks us. 

Goodreads Summary
Alice Forster talks to her dead sister, Meggie, in the virtual world of Soul Beach – an online paradise for the young, the beautiful and the dead – but paradise can be stifling and the Beach’s guests want to move on.
If Alice can solve the mystery of her sister’s murder then Meggie will be free.
But passions are running high, the temperature’s rising and as Alice gets closer to finding the killer, the killer is getting closer to Alice . . .
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The thing I really love about the Soul Beach books is how easily I can consume them. Seriously! With short sharp chapters, I could easily read this book in one day, which just adds to the intensity of the already gripping story. 
Nearly a year has passed since Meggie's murder and Alice's parents finally realise that Alice is spending far too much time online. They have no idea that she is wiling away her time on Soul Beach in the arms of the gorgeous but dead Danny. By setting down rules, Alice has to find another way to get to Soul Beach. On top of that, a newcomer to Soul beach has changed everything about Meggie's murder. Alice embarks on a rather dangerous mission to discover who really killed her sister.
 Poor Alice, she is really struggling to appear to move on in the way her parents want. Luckily her friend Cara, comes to the rescue and helps to rekindle the relationship. Alice is finally getting out of the house and spending time with people who are alive.
I really do love Soul Beach. The concept behind it really calls to me and I honestly hope that a part of Heaven resembles something like this. It is just gorgeous. Everyone is just beautiful,on the inside and out and  you long for a dip in the sparkling blue ocean.Not content with just one gorgeous setting in this book, the author takes us to another as we embark on a thrilling adventure in Barcelona.  I came away with a yearning for the exotic. Barcelona has definitely been added to my list of future holiday destinations. 
It is impossible to warm to any of the other characters outside of Soul Beach, as you don't want to be lulled into a false sense of security and be ridiculed when you discover they are the murderers. 
 My only niggle with this book, is that I would have liked to have seen us move forward in finding Meggie's killer. Instead I felt we gained more possible killers instead of losing them.  I have a theory about who might have actually done it and I am really hoping am I am wrong.  I also came away with more questions unanswered. I want to know the truth!
 So we may not have discovered how Meggie died, but we do find out how another character died, which was lovely to discover. Alice really saves the day in this book. 
Alice is a bit like a supernatural crime solver, bringing peace to many as she searches eternally for the truth. I really do like Alice, yet I can't help but wonder how she will cope when her time at Soul Beach ends. I am not convinced that real life will be able to compete. 
Another cliff hanger ending to leave us desperate for the next book. It was good to be back on Soul Beach with the beautiful people and I long for my next visit.  Well done Kate Harrison, you have definitely earned your YA stripes. 

3 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for the lovely review, Viv, much appreciated - you've been so supportive! Very relieved you enjoyed this one.

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  2. Great review! I really wanted to find out who done it too so I was a bit upset that we didnt but oh my, these books really are fantastic! I spent the day in Barcelona while I was in Spain and its such a beautiful city!

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