Soulstealer

Nythan was just a regular guy, living life like most of us. He was a cadet in the U.S. Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps at the University of Central Florida, had a job, and made plans for the future. Little did he know that he would be chosen by a powerful entity to be its host and become the Soulstealer. In the beginning, he couldn’t comprehend what that entity was, but later on, he finds out that it’s one of many names. Throughout the centuries it searches for a host, lives by feeding with souls, and tries to ascend and be free. It was present when the Roman Empire rose, it fought in the Trojan War, was a Chinese emperor and was worshipped by the Aztecs. Some call it, Shiva, some The Great One and most know it as Satan. At first, Nythan desperately searches for a way to get rid of it, but they have become one, so he understands that the solution is to accept it and coexist. For the time being, they try to stay in the shadows and in order to accomplish that, they look for the Raptors, the Unas and the Sanhe, mystical organizations that can provide Nythan and the Great One with what they need like money, power, protection, loyalty, a place to hide and the time to complete their plan. But time is running out because a group called Ordo Solis, the Order of the Sun, is breathing down their neck and is getting closer, much closer than anticipated. Now it’s up to Nythan to orchestrate a successful plan, fight the enemy and manage to stay alive in the process.

Nythan is a very interesting character. At the beginning of the story he’s a young man, who just worries about school and money but throughout the story, he evolves into someone who literally has to carry the weight of the world upon his shoulders. He matures extremely quickly, he makes wrong decisions and he will be forced to make tough choices but that’s exactly what keeps him human. The book is basically a dialogue between Nythan and Bane, the Great One. They are completely different characters. Nythan is young and inexperienced, while Bane is old, wise and has his own sense of humor. Together, they make an unusual couple that is the base of the story. The pace is not the same throughout the story. It starts fast, then slows down and as we get closer to the end picks up in the final chapters. In his debut novel, Shane Boulware delivers a beautifully written story with unique and authentic characters and plot twists with religious and supernatural elements that make the reader keep reading until the end! These are the reasons why it is highly recommended to urban fantasy fans. Soulstealer ends with a cliffhanger, and I am looking forward to the next chapter.