Review: Bind the Soul by Annette Marie

Book Blurb: The most important rule for an Apprentice Consul is simple: Don't get involved with daemons. Well, Piper is planning to break that rule — big time. After a near-deadly scandal with the Sahar Stone, she has the chance to return to the only life she's ever wanted. All she has to do to keep her Apprenticeship is forget about Ash and Lyre. Ash might be enigmatic and notoriously lethal, and Lyre might be as sinfully irresistible as he is irritating, but they’re not bad for a couple of daemons. There's just one problem: Ash is missing. Really, she shouldn't risk her future for him. He lied. He betrayed her. But he also saved her life, damn it. Wherever he is, he's in trouble, and if she doesn't save his sorry butt, who will? But with every dangerous secret she unravels, each one darker than the last, she slips deeper into Ash's world — a world with no escape for either of them. My Review: 5 Out Of 5 Stars

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Dystopian, Supernatural-- Piper has spent the last 5 weeks trying to find Ash. He disappeared after the events in the last book with no trace, yet nobody but Piper and Lyre are concerned. Piper gets a lead that she has to follow up with, throwing her into the underbelly she has no place in. Her father has decided that she has been making poor choices and plans to send her away to a human boarding school in just a few days. Piper has to figure out how to find Ash before she is sent away for good this time. This is the second book in the series and they must be read in order because the characters, plot and world build upon the first book. And really, these books are so awesome why start on the second when you can read the first? I read a ton of different kinds of books, but Urban Fantasy holds the key to my heart. This was another stellar example of why I love this genre. Everything about the book was fast paced, full of action, strange creatures, dark places, difficult scenarios, hard choices, and loyalty. I think this book was darker than the first one since a great deal of the book was spent on new ways to torture the characters both physically and emotionally. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved the story, but it is not for the light fluffy reader. Piper is a great character and I love her, but this book reminded me of how young she really is. In the first book, she is on the run with no guidance from a parental figure, and she deals with the fall out of her sexual desires and makes tough grown up decisions. But really, she is just a 17 year old girl with no magic, making her severely handicapped for the world she lives in. She so desperately wants to be a consul, or peacekeeper, but she is missing skills needed and is constantly reminded of how much she is lacking. In this book, Piper has her life dictated by her father with her not allowed to give any input. It bummed me out to see such a strong passionate person under someone else’s control (Not to be spoilery, but that is not even the half of the control issues in this book). Piper rebels against him of course, but it was strange to see her in that situation after having her be so independent in the first. Also, she makes some terrible decisions in this story, ones that made me want to drag her away or at least slap a hand over her mouth. She had very honorable intentions, but raced into dangerous territory and believed the bad guy when he gave his word. Lesson #1: Never take the bad guys word for anything, they are lying and will kill you anyway. She kept expecting different outcomes from the evildoers and it made me shake my head at her naivety. I guess there is kinda sorta a love triangle here, but not quiet. We have attractive friendly Lyre who makes his desire for her known while still being a good guy. But does he really want her, or is it just that she is female and he is an Incubus? And there is dreamy Ash (can you tell who I may be just a tidbit biased towards?) Ash is quiet, tough, loyal and brave but gives off the vibes of terror in his natural state. Yet Piper is drawn to him regardless of the fear he produces. What does it show you about who she really wants to be with, a guy she keeps at arm length who is a walking fantasy or a scary badass that Piper is drawn to regardless of everything? I feel that Piper and Ash have a real relationship that has built based on trust and hardships and it has grown into something wild and romantic and I absolutely love the two of them together! Both would willingly die for the other, and almost have repeatedly. There are so many intimate moments between them that are wrought with tension and affection, yet no words or actions happen and it makes me want them to live happily ever after in the midst of war. If Piper gets to be Consul, she can’t have either so maybe it is a moot point anyway… I absolutely love this series. I love this world full of different factions of daemons and supernatural creatures. The ending made me really upset because it was bittersweet so I can’t wait for the next book, which will hopefully be happier than this one was and have more Ash/Piper potential romance action. I think this has become my favorite book so far this year, yet again proving how awesome the Urban Fantasy genre is. I am a huge fan of this author and will read probably anything she writes. I received this title from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.