Book Review: Soul Searching, by Lyla Sage

Here for the vibes, but a little bit bored. I rated this book 3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

*I was given an ARC of this book*

Firstly, I want to start by saying what I liked about this book: magical realism without any explanation, the spooky vibes that honestly I wound up wanting more of, and the Cartwright family whom I’m officially obsessed with. 

👻 Magical realism

If you like the vibes of Ashley Poston’s books where certain paranormal, magical, unexplainable events occur but no one really wonders too much or questions much of anything, then this is totally for you. Our main female character, Collins, and her twin sister, Clarke, can see and talk to ghosts. It’s obviously a main point in the book, but it’s also not discussed too much in the sense of how it’s possible. And to be honest, as someone who reads their fair share of fantasy books where the world building can be an entire college lecture, I find the simplicity of “it just is” to be really refreshing. Knowing how/why they can commune with ghosts is honestly not relevant to the story but the fact that they can adds such a fun emotional element. 

🪟 Spooky vibes

The entire book is set in a small town riddled with ghosts called Sweetwater Peak. There’s abandoned buildings, ghosts lurking everywhere, and a bunch of old history just waiting to be discovered. I’m a big vibe reader, and this totally fit the bill. But if I’m being honest, I wanted more. So while this was a pro of the book, the lack of depth could definitely be considered a con. I’m just hoping that we dive deeper into this town as the series continues to unfold. 

🧙🏻‍♀️ The Cartwright Family

My distaste for the characters (as you’ll read later), includes most characters of this book as a whole, but I truly see promise in the Cartwright family in general. There’s Dex, the truck driving dad, Jeanie, the free-spirit antique shop owning mom, and the twins—Collins and Clarke (love the names btw), the ghost whispering grown daughters. I think the set up for the family as a whole is immaculate. I wanted to know them more!!!!

So, now for where this book lacks. Three stars is by no means a bad rating in my books. I was here for a good time and got it, but am I going to remember these characters and plot points next week… probably not. 

🌊 The lack of depth

Let’s first start by saying these characters had none of it. Collins’ main character arc is her ability to see and hear ghosts, she’s a bit edgy, and she takes photos. But surface level details is all we got. I wanted to know her know her, and there were so many times when I felt like I was just reading words on a page. But worse than her is our main male character, Brady. He’s a recent transplant in Sweetwater Peak who’s opened the upholstery business. Can I say more about him though?… not really. That’s because there’s nothing to him. He has an ex-fiance we know nothing about, a soul sucking career doing some sort of logistical work in the past, but I don’t know anything else.

🎯 The Ending!

The gasp I gusped when the ending hit. Not as in it left in a second-book-necessary sort of cliff hanger, but more like “kay, that’s the end.” I could not believe we were just going to stop there. The plot line of the Cartwright’s getting their family business taken away from them wasn’t even remotely resolved. There was no third act break-up to make me think the drama was just stirring and resolving, there was just an end. And honestly, this was the worst part of the entire book. I couldn’t believe I’d just read hundreds of pages for it to stop like that.

In conclusion…

The books was mid for me, but nothing I’m going to rave about. I am excited to see what other things happen in the Sweetwater Peak world, so I will be picking up the next one. Lyla’s writing was lyrical and beautiful at times making me want to pull a pen out and underline some amazing things, but her lack of depth with these characters and the story line feel a bit flat for me. All-in-all, I would recommend this book with a disclaimer that you’re just getting a vibey surface level ghost book with steamy romance.