Mortal Souls (Immortal Stream: Children of the Gods) Paperback – June 2, 2020

I will admit, the beginning had a lot going on that had me glazing my eyes at times. There were a ton of characters being introduced and a lot of explaining of the world of Gods happening. Once I made it through the first few chapters, the momentum of my attention train gained some steam and I was hooked. Even though there were lots of characters, Lena started to gravitate towards certain ones and develop relationships with them which helped me as a reader keep them distinguished from each other.Take heed of the blurb because these gods don’t view love the same as mortals so they are promiscuous. I don’t quite trust Shant and I am interested to see what happens with the next book. Atti and Maden may be among my favorites along with Delete.I am curious to the reason why Lena seems to have captured the attention of several gods. There has to be some type of divine or godly explanation.

What a unique story involving gods and mythology. At first I had a hard time getting into the story only because I was confused with all the gods. It was a little overwhelming trying to keep them all straight and to remember who they were. About halfway through the book I was pretty hooked needing to know what was going to happen to Lena. Then there’s the whole situation with Atti and Shant. I was a little annoyed with the constant Love mentioned when she was around Shant until I figured out why and what it meant. At least I’m assuming I know. As the story came close to the end, I already had my mind made up a little about who I want to see Lena with. I have my mind set on three for sure but I’m not sure I’m going to like a certain friend of Lena’s being around and possibly making things more complicated. We shall see and I will definitely be reading the next book!

Ok so this book utterly confused me. It wasn’t until 50% that it started making sense and I could figure out who everyone is.A mortal girl starts a new school. A god falls for her immediately and then they have to find Pandora’s box.Not sure what to think. The amount of characters is confusing. Along with the formatting makes it hard to read.

I'd read other series by this author and absolutely loved them, so I didn't hesitate to start this one. I'll admit I had a hard time getting through this first book the first time I read it. I'm doing a reread now and it's definitely easier because I know all the characters and it's easier to keep everyone straight. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad read, it's just a bit slow burn and this is just such a massive world with so many characters, it takes a minute to gain momentum with the story (there is plenty of steam as the series goes on!). The mystery of what was going on between Shant, Lena, and Atti was enough to keep me going and I'm so glad I did. I promise you, after this first book it takes off full stream ahead and you won't be able to put it down! These characters are all so unique and so well fleshed out. They will burrow their way into your heart and take you on a wild rollercoaster of emotions. I very rarely reread a book because there's just so many out there and I feel like I'm in a race against time to read as many as I can, but this series is just so fantastic that I'm rereading all 8 from the beginning in preparation for the 9th being released this year. This series deserves so much love, take a chance, I promise you won't regret it!

Spice: 0/5 - mentioned it’s a slow burnSo. Many. Characters. I was totally lost to begin with. 1/2 way through it gets much easier and it’s focused on people better. It begins, though, like a very new author wrote the first few chapters. It did not flow well, but the second half is much smoother and you get addicted. I’m going to keep with the series because I think it’ll get smoother.

After reading Reitan’s Chronicles of Blood series, I decided to start on another of her books. This was a great start to a series and yes, it is definitely a slow burn at its finest. Sometimes I feel like books sort of rush into the relationship and romance even before we get to know the characters, but this book definitely focuses on the characters quite a bit. With this first book and probably several after this being more of an origin story for the main character, Lena, we really get to focus on the people involved, get to know them and their motivations, and slowly be introduced to every intriguing aspect of this word. We are, in sense, wine tasting and not chugging at a frat party. Sit back, relax, and enjoy all of the little bits and pieces that Reitan is giving us as we read, the little hints and fragments of history that we will collect along the way. There is no rush to get to the end, but there is certainly an enjoyment in trying to piece together the puzzle as we read. Some of my favorite things about Reitan’s writing is that she never gives anything away fully at first. Even the harem at this point is completely up in the air. It is hard to guess who will be with Lena by the end of this series, but this also adds to the fun of the story--the guessing game. It could really be any of the characters; we don’t know. The relationships in this story are pretty interesting to follow along with as well as the rules they have set in place. Although I’m sure those will backfire or even get challenged at some point as the series continues. I’m hesitant with my feelings about a certain god of love. Something feels fishy and forced there and I’m hoping Lena doesn’t get over her head with that one. Compared to some of the interactions she has had with other gods, this one seems more forced. There’s less of a connection and familiarity there. I’m excited to continue on with Lena’s story and find out the truth about everything--her ancestry, these instant connections she is having, and why she seems so different.

This is a refreshing take on the gods. I thoroughly enjoyed the amount of action and character development. I can’t wait to see what happens next.