Holly‘s review of Soulbound (Lone Star Witch, Book 1) by Tessa Adams
As the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter—and a member of Ipswitch’s Royal family—Xandra Morgan should be a witch of incredible power. But things don’t always turn out like you expect…
While she hasn’t lived up to her family’s expectations, Xandra has come to terms with her latent magic and made a life for herself in Austin, Texas, running a coffee shop where she makes potions of a non-magical nature. While things aren’t perfect, Xandra is happy—until she runs into powerful warlock Declan Chumomisto.
Xandra hasn’t seen Declan in years, and though she’s still overwhelmed by his power, she doesn’t trust him. And when her own powers awaken one night and lead her to the body of a woman in the woods bearing the symbol of Isis—the same one that has marked Xandra since the day she met Declan—she’s filled with a terrible suspicion, soon confirmed: the woman is connected to him.
Xandra doesn’t want to believe that Declan is capable of murder, but as the body count mounts, and Xandra’s own powers spiral out of control, she’s not sure she can trust her own instincts…
I have to admit, I’m not really a fan of witches. I’m not sure why, exactly, but something about them always turns me off. I decided to give this one a go because the blurb intrigued me. Though I had some problems with the story, the fact that it featured witches didn’t really factor into that.
Xandra is a hard character to pin down. At times she seems strong and capable, but at others she was weak and wishy-washy. While I understand her past shaped who she eventually became, the woman featured in the first couple chapters was not the woman we saw through the rest of the book. Rather than demanding answers about the things going on in her life, she chose to ignore them or let them go. There are times to pick your battles, but when it comes to life and death matters that directly effect you, I believe that’s a battle worth fighting. Sadly that wasn’t the case with Xandra.
Declan really frustrated me in the beginning of the book. He comes off as pompous and a little smarmy. He’s constantly smirking at Xandra and withholding information from her. As the story developed, however, I came to understand him a bit better and felt he grew considerably. While he was secretive and quite smug in the beginning, it was almost like a mask he wore. The man underneath was intriguing. His treatment of Xandra in the beginning (and through the middle) of the book did affect my overall feelings for him, however. I couldn’t quite get past his early behavior.
I also struggled with Xandra’s family. Her mother in particular left me feeling confused and angry. At times she was a loving mother who cared for the well-being of her daughter, but mostly she was a crazed witch who wanted only for her daughter to have extreme power. The lengths she went to to bring Xandra’s powers out were completely over-the-top. Why Xandra didn’t completely wash her hands of her mother is a complete mystery to me.
Having said that, I can’t deny I was pulled in. Even though the characters frustrated me, I couldn’t wait for all the secrets to be unveiled. I think I’ll read the next book in the series before making a final judgement.
3 out of 5
This book is available from Signet. You can buy it here or here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher for an honest review.