Wayward Souls

Overall Rating: 5/5

In a beautiful addition to the Harker & Moriarty series, comes another lusciously atmospheric adventure. Wayward Souls is a perfect follow-up to Strange Beasts and continues the adventures of Sam & Hel.

To say that I was blown away by this book... that would be putting it way too simple. Susan J. Morris has done it again.

To begin, I love the way that Sam & Hel interact with each other. Being able to feel their emotions, their interactions and their relationship...to the way they open up... Morris has a way of making characters beautifully complex and being able to relate to even the smallest struggles that they feel as the story unfolds. Even if you have no prior knowledge of their full histories, Morris crafts her words in a way that makes what they struggle with feel real and relatable.

Mix that with a hearty dose of fantasy, beautiful spinoffs of classic tales such as Dracula, then weaving it in with additional tales of legends, and fantastical monsters. Morris has a way of allowing us to explore the good, the evil, and of leaving the past behind as you grow yourself. Of learning to accept oneself for who you are, and not for standards that people hold you to.

Wayward Souls was a fantastical tale I thoroughly enjoyed, and I am looking forward to returning to this fantastical world time and time again.