This was a very difficult read for me, and while it was not to my tastes, it did resonate within me long after reading it. Read this for the enlightenment it will awake in you, as I did not realize that I would still be thinking about it months after having finished it.

This is by no means a traditional love story or even a fantasy in the truest sense. The story leans strongly on the Hindu belief system of the soul journey and reincarnation as well as the messages of the Bhagavad Gita. Hannah reincarnated as Lin tells us her story as she journeys through two life times and reconnects with people who are bound to her soul across those lifetimes. Get ready for thrills and chills as Hannah journey's beyond the veil of life and spends some time in the between before being reincarnated as Lin. Hannah is a teenage Australian girl in love with Mathew. She hides her relationship with Mathew from her family due to her religious father's fanatic beliefs about sex and marriage. Her life is tragically cut short when she and Mathew are alone in the woods enjoying an intimate tryst. Reborn in a Chinese family in Hong Kong she longingly remembers the woods of her home in Australia, Mathew and other details that she draws in her art books.
She forms an immediate connection to Reineir, when she meets him in a busy Chines market. Reineir weaves a fantastic story about souls and reincarnation which despite's it's oddity resonates with her. He tells her how the two of them have connected in various life times but never had the chance to form a lasting relationship in any of them. Will this be the life time where she and Reineir are destined to be together? As Lin journey's around the world in search of the destiny she's compelled to fulfill, readers get a front side view into the author's imagination of God, Angels and other beings that go bump at night.
Even while the story is founded on love and connections that transcend a human life time there I found it chilling and too emotional at times. Do I want to read the upcoming books in the series? I'm fascinated yet fearful of where the author will take us next.

I loved the clarity of this novel, the lyrical writing style and the fact is is an Australian Author writing about Australia.
I found the protagonist, a little on the annoying side, however this didn't take away from the novel.

I just couldn't get into this I kept thinking this would going a different direction and it kept me guessing and I just felt that this i'snt really my kind of story.

I have always had an interest in reincarnation so I was excited to read how Heidi Catherine would weave it into her story.  The Soulweaver is well-written spiritual romance with vivid, detailed imagery for scenes that would be hard to imagine otherwise. I was drawn in by the first chapter and hooked as Lin traveled across the world as to seek answers for the memories she has of Hannah's life. I found it is easy to connect with the main characters Hannah/Lin, Matthew and Reiner which led to some heart-tugging moments It is a book that will stay with me and one I will return to over and over. 

The Soulweaver would be perfect for book clubs because it provides lots of material to discuss including characters, beliefs, and experiences. It leads me to want to read more about the topic of reincarnation and would love to have a cup of tea with the Heidi Catherine to hear about her ideas and how she researched this. I am already counting down to her next book The Truthseeker in May 2018.

Have you ever gotten the sense of Déjà vu? Like you have been in a place and met the same people at some point in your life? Like you cannot get the people you pass by or meet out of your head? You know you have a connection to them… but how? Well, that’s probably because you are having reoccurring memories from a past like with other souls that have been weaved into your destiny! Well, at least that’s what I got from this book! As the debut novel for this incredible new author, The Soulweaver is an exquisitely imaginative written tale about reincarnation and how we are drawn to those who we love over each lifetime!

I did enjoy reading the story and thought it was very imaginative but there were points where it seemed like there was a word quota to fill instead story to be told. There was also a sense of forced religious beliefs and the faux pas of suicide. For these reasons, I gave it a 3.5 stars.

Lin is so desperate to figure out who she is why her dreams are haunted. She feels close to the people in them. She is lost, and I believe that she finds herself during the course of the story. I did feel like she was a bit whiny at times I wish I loved the romance aspect more. I am more of a “Death & Destruction” kinda girl and I rarely find sappy romances that take my breath away. Now I love some Romeo and Juliet type story that doesn’t end well and isn’t traditionally a “Happily Ever After!” Which I also another reason for 3.5 stars.

I really do think that people who love a good romance and can overlook the constant bombardment of the religious aspect of the story, will find a book that they can truly enjoy and will find themselves raining down tears by the end! Overall, great work Heidi! I will be putting you on my watch list for future books because I believe that you are going to be a force to reckon with in future books!

So, I'm not really having much luck at the moment in regards to my reading material.
Here we have another Arc I was so looking forward to only to be let down again in my expectations.
I think I may need to lower them slightly, expectations that is, this is beginning to be a bit of a pattern for me lately.
So The Soulweaver by Heidi Catherine is a lyrical narrative that for me fell slightly too much on the wordy and preachy side of the fence.
The soulweaver basically tells the story of the life and death of Hannah/Lin and how all things are interwoven with rebirth, reincarnation and growth ultimately leading to a higher plane of enlightenment.
Reinier/Lin/Hannah/Mathew/Shen each of these has a role to play in the bigger picture that this tale is striving for.
So I wish I could say I loved this, But I really didn't it was a bit of a chore to finish if I'm honest and I was really starting to skim near the end.
So, This was so going to be a two-star all the way then Soulweaver kinda side-swiped me from the left-field.
Throwing in that mega emotional ending and I've got to admit I kinda got a bit emotional and had myself a good old cry over it, I'm such a girl.
So yeh that weepfest was enough to pull it out of the bag for me and It got that extra star on the merits of my girly tears.
That aside, my main issue with this is I felt at times that I wasn't reading a story but receiving a sermon. And even know religion itself is never outright mentioned.
There was enough of the Mother /Soulweaver and Creator/Author and the sin of suicide to make you think it was on the cusp sitting there, it was the elephant in the room just a different terminology was ultimately used.
In conclusion, this just really wasn't for me.
Thank You to Netgalley, the publisher and the Author for proving me with an ARC of Soulweaver of which I have reviewed voluntary.
All opinions expressed are entirely my own.

‘The Soulweaver’ initially follows Hannah and Matthew, who find themselves torn apart. Hannah dies trying to protect Matthew, and then is reborn as Lin, Lin meets Reiner, who she feels strangely drawn to from a previous time. As the story unfolds, Reiner is from her previous life and she helps to unravel this life which is intrinsically interwoven with both Reiner and Matthew.
Without giving too much away, this is a story of reincarnation and enlightenment. I must admit that I found the message of ‘saving the world’ and its religious connotations, at times difficult to hear repeated; however, this is quite a different genre to me. Overall, I found the storyline to be very cleverly written.
I received an advanced review copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Soulweaver, Heidi Catherine

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Romance, Sci-fi and Fantasy

I love stories that are a little “different” and was intrigued by this one. I really wanted to love it but....like was the best I could describe the way I felt.

I've always been intrigued by “what comes next” and as a child was fiercely convinced in reincarnation. I thought this book would be interesting, and wanted to see how the Hannah/Matthew/Lin/Reiner conundrum would work out. Somehow though when I think of reincarnated souls I see them as lovers, not parent and child, sister and brother, and that part just made it difficult for me to understand, hard for me to feel the love.

Love for a parent/child to me is very different to love for a soulmate.
It did all go full circle, did all work out but for me it was just an OK read, not one I loved. As usual though that's subjective and I can see that others love it so you chose if its likely to be one for you.

 Stars: Three, its a well written book, its just that the story wasn't great for me in the way it played out.

Arc supplied for review by Netgalley and publishers