Soulmated by Shaila Patel

Cliffhanger.
Book 1 in a young adult paranormal series Joining of Souls. Considered a romance but.....cliffhanger.
Subsequent books 2 and 3 are available.

Eighteen year old Liam is an empath from Ireland. After searching for many years, he believes he’s finally met his Soulmate, The One, Laxshmi. An Indian-American from North Carolina.
She’s a typical high school good girl. She follows her mother’s edicts for the most part, but has her own dreams. The two are instantly draw to each other and soon carry heartache when they are apart. But danger is near in the political world that Liam belongs to. Not everyone wants Liam to find his Soulmate.

It is a compelling read. The only thing that I didn’t care for were the typical up and down thoughts of Lucky throughout. “He likes me.” “He doesn’t like me.” “He likes me.” “He’s using me.” “He likes me.” I’m not a big fan of teen angst.

This book is the first in a series and as such, ends with issues unresolved. ( )

Interesting, definitely want to read next book, but also confusing. Can't say it was predictable, and ending definitely left me hanging. Basically felt there was much left unsaid, hope book 2 will make it make sense. ( )

SOULMATED is the story of two individuals (Laxshmi “Lucky” and Liam) who are destined to find each other, no matter the obstacles. Liam comes from a royal empath family. This means he has the power to understand others’ emotions and also to manipulate how people feel. However, in order for his family to gain social standing, he must find his soulmate.

This, of course, is easier said than done, because finding your soulmate is a very rare occurrence. But everything changes when Liam moves next door to Lucky. Lucky is from a very traditional Indian-American family and she has pressures of her own to deal with. Her mother is giving her only two choices, graduate early and go to medical school or marry a man of her mother’s choosing.

Lucky is determined to have some control over her own destiny. Her chance comes when the meets Liam. There is an instant spark between them. As their relationship progresses they must deal with their families disapproval, as well as other dangerous rival empath families. They must decide if their love is worth pursuing and at what potential cost.

Normally I am not one for INSTA-LOVE stories. I have often complained about them in the past. However, the whole premise of this book is based on the idea of soulmates. The very definition of a soulmate is a person with whom you have an immediate connection from the moment you meet. Therefore this is the perfect use of INSTA-LOVE. You don’t need any explanations or reason because they are soulmates. Which is why it is such a rare thing to find. So in this specific case, Lucky and Liam falling in love so quickly did not bother me as it normally would.

My main issue with the SOULMATED is that I wanted further development in the world building. I also would like the empathic powers explained in further detail. Since there is another book in this series I assume further development will happen there.

I found SOULMATED to be charming, and full of humor too. I loved reading about Liam and Lucky as their relationship grew. Their chemistry is palpable. You can’t help but want to root for them to be together. Shaila Patel’s writing is lovely. It captured the mood and feeling of falling in love beautifully. My favorite part is how authentic Lucky’s voice is to her Indian-American culture. Which made the character really come to “life” for me. I can’t wait to see what adventures book 2 holds for these two lovebirds.

If you are looking for a fun, YA romantic fantasy read I would recommend you pick up a copy of SOULMATED.

Thank you to Shaila Patel and Month9Books for providing me with an E-ARC of her book in return for an honest review. ( )

I enjoyed this book, the first of a new series with very different cultures represented by each of the lead characters. They struggled with their own backgrounds and with trying to find themselves, as well as trying to form a connection. Motives, self doubt, some intrigue and romance, this couple will be worth following to see how it all turns out. ( )