*ARC kindly given by @netgalley for my honest opinion.*

"Jivaja" by Venessa Giunta is a captivating fantasy novel that immerses readers in a richly imagined world filled with magic, intrigue, and compelling characters. Giunta's skillful storytelling weaves together elements of mythology and adventure, drawing readers into a tale that is both enchanting and thought-provoking. With its vivid imagery and dynamic characters, "Jivaja" is a must-read for fans of epic fantasy looking for an engaging and immersive literary escape.

I received an arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a solid 3 stars from me. It's technically fine, it just didn't really work for me. I found the pacing to be a bit slow, and some of Mecca's decisions were kind of ... questionable. I really didn't like David, Mecca's father, at all, and half of the book is told from his point of view (which was a bold choice by Giunta; I applaud risk-taking by authors trying to do something different). I thought the Soul Cavern and Mecca's powers was interestingly done, though.

I think there's good ideas here, they're just lacking in a more solid execution.

Jivaja is an imaginative tale that takes the old elements of storytelling along with the author’s own out of the box innovative ideas to create a very much welcomed story spin on vampires. And, speaking of vampires let us take a stroll down on memory lane of the blood-sucking creatures of the night…the upgraded version. The Visci are a group of civilized creatures that have seized control of government around the states and whom Mecca should not have gotten involved with but unfortunately, her lineage in companion with the Visci she accidentally kills has made her the most wanted person on all the Visci’s list. The Visci feed off human blood for sustenance but unlike their old ancestors, vampires, they are not dead and neither are they human.

Jivaja is the type of book that deserves more exciting. More hype. More people talking about it because it is just that amazing. From begging, middle and end, I was entranced in the Atlanta fantasy setting of an oncoming civil war and bloodsucking monsters that are not vampires. And, of course, I am all for a person of color being the main character in a young adult fantasy novel I mean…*points at self* yes, please. Brimming with mystery, I was kept at the edge of my seat.

Even with its flaws of the slow pacing, the deviating focus from Mecca to the father, and some questionable decision made by the characters; Jivaja is still a good book and I recommend all to give it a read. Character love
CHARACTER LOVE
Mecca is a character that can be debated to be very typical like with her damsel in distress act she pulled and being very obnoxious with her thoughts mistaking it for confidence. However, she has her qualities like

David turned out to be much more intriguing than I gave him credit for in the begging. He really showed to be a man of courage and sensitivity who also has a dark side when you press him enough. I liked David but I wished the author would focus less on him and more on Mecca.

Claude was a character who I instantly fell for from the begging. Maybe because I’m a basic bitch who likes basic shit like good looking villains that may be the potential love interest. He is evil, like evil-evil, not the evil with a soft heart. Nope, he is a total bastard and I stan.

If you like vampires, power, beautiful creatures, as I do, this is a great book.
Thank you Netgalley for this nice adventure.

Thanks to NetGalley and Publisher for review copy.

I loved the cover art on this and that is what drew me in but when I found out we had some vampire action going on, this got even more intriguing to me.

It did start off slow for me and about 40% through I found myself really getting to like the plot and wanted to finish it. That was my down fall is that it took me awhile to get into the book. I do recommend the book but just don't lay the book down.

Jivaja is a good read, entertaining but not memorable. Still it has potential. Mostly, it’s a typical girl meets vamp, discovers her power to destroy evil vamps, but is also drawn to one of them with his own agenda. Vamps have a war coming and need Mecca’s power. The biggest difference is that Mecca’s father plays a big role, and has the same powers she does. So we have a traditional setup plus the potential build in of a father daughter conflict. Jivaja is definitely setting the groundwork for a series. The big question is will it surpass the cliched masses.

I’d prefer to read the next book before giving my final opinion, but as of now I’d give Jivaja a 3.5 / 5. (rounded up to 4 / 5 )

I received a copy of Jivaja from the publisher and netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

— Crittermom

I only skimmed through Jivaja. I'm not a fan of vampire stories. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that this was a vampire story. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Jivaja (Soul Cavern Series Book 1) Kindle Edition
by Venessa Giunta
I received a complimentary review copy via NetGalley and am leaving a fair and honest review.

Vampires are my single most favorite trope in fiction. I particularly love when a writer creates a new way to see them or a new opponent for them. Ms. Giunta does both in Jivaja.

Mecca has a secret - she is able to see and use the spiritual energy of others. When she is attacked by the man who offered to walk her to her care, she uses that power to save herself, accidentally draining him to death. She runs, terrified she murdered him. But there was something odd about him. Maybe it was the way he attacked her, looking for her blood. Or maybe it was the fact he seemed to have no soul of his own. All she knows is that he wasn't right. Neither were the people who kidnapped her.

Mecca isn't the only one with a secret. Her father, David, has always told Mecca he doesn't have the Gift. Even though he trained her to use her Gift, he swore it was because he watched his brother's training. When Mecca discovered a long line of older, wealthy wives who died of mysterious illnesses in her father's past, she isn't sure she knew him at all. Even when he comes to save her.

A tight, action-packed urban fantasy that keeps the pages turning well into the dark of the night, I loved every moment. The secondary characters were interesting enough to warrant stories of their own – for instance, I would love to know more about Will and how ended up in the employ of Emilia!

4 ½ stars out of 5 rounded up to 5.

https://www.amazon.com/Jivaja-Soul-Cavern-Book-1-ebook/dp/B07GZGXM1F

This is a re-invention of the vampire mythos that is completely new. It turns out that what humans think of vampires is imperfect shadows based on the truth of two different species. One of them is called the Visci and does indeed live upon blood. The other lives directly upon life force, and is known as Jivaja.

Mecca's father has trained his only child in how to manage what he calls her Gift, but as she grows older she wonders whether her childish affection for her own mother caused her death from cancer. Until one day at college she gets attacked by a pervert who bites her on the neck. Instinctively she retaliates and the man crumbles into a papery lifeless husk. And unfortunately there was a witness. When she and her dad return to the scene, all trace of the death is gone.

What follows is a twisted suspense-filled maze of human and Visci politics, power plays, secrets revealed, duels to the death and blood sports where the prey are innocent humans swept out of Atlanta's back alleys. It turns out her father has had many different identities over the years, but he's willing to risk it all to protect Mecca. The one thing she can count on as certain is her father's love. We learn to tell what the true definition of monstrous is--not nature, but nurture, in the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Fictionvale Publishing, LLC for a free copy. This is an honest review.

Jivaja is a story about Mecca. Mecca has a special gift that she hates. It allows her to manipulate energy, as in souls. This gift saves her life but puts her in the cross hairs of the Visci. The Visci are in the beginnings of a civil war and Mecca just became the greatest weapon.

This was an interesting world. I liked the gift, even if it made Mecca a special snowflake. This could be a little slow paced at times. If spoilers are not your thing, stop reading now. Mecca makes a lot of questionable decisions so she was not my favorite. Her father is a jerk in so many ways. The visci are vampires as much as they try to seem like they are not. Sarah is awesome. I like her and would prefer to keep her around. This book had a very prequel feel to me. We learned more about her father than Mecca. There is some romance set up with two potentials. I don't like either one currently. One is evil and the other is selfish. The more I think about this book the more I struggle with it. The saving grace was the last 20%.

Netgalley: 3 stars because the writing was fine but it was not fast paced and the characters made some questionable choices.
Goodreads: 2.5 stars because I did not like it but I am hoping the author will grow. I wanted to like it. It will be rounded to 3 stars for convenience of NetGalley to Goodreads posting.

This book has the potential to be so much more than what it ended up being, which really is a disappointment.

The Visci are similar to vampires, they feed on human blood to sustain their lives but they are born as they are. I've read other authors that have done a similar form of born vampires but I really liked how the author executed it with her version. That there is something more than just the blood that keeps them going. There is also the Soul Cavern, where a persons essence, their life force is kept. Its a really interesting concept and the parts of the story that dealt with the Visci and the concept of the soul cavern kept the book moving. I hope that the author does expand on it in the next book (although the teaser doesn't fill me with a lot of promise but its just a teaser).

There is a real problem is with how the book is executed, it sells itself as Mecca's story but its really more about her father, David. Thankfully the book also is told through two other perspectives, David and Claude one of the Visci so it keeps the plot moving. But for as much as the book focuses on David's backstory, we get very little of that when in his chapters. It just there, never fully explored. And Mecca, I do like her as a characters but her decisions, especially at the end made me question her thought process.

As a whole, this book has some really great ideas and an interesting world. The relationship between father and daughter is really nice it just fails in some of its execution.

I received a copy from netgalley for an honest review.

To start, the story was well written, and the characters were fleshed our well. However, this book just did not do it for me. There were things the main characters did that just made me frustrated. I really wanted to like this story, but I didn’t feel like I could connect with them, and do many choices they made made me want to facepalm. There was too much of an all or nothing feel in some of the choices for me.

Jivaja is a well written book with a interesting plot. Although the book had some slow spots it was a solid read. I would read more from this author.

Actual rating: 2.5

This isn't necessarily a bad book, it just did a lot of things I really didn't care for. It's well written and I'm sure other people could easily find it more enjoyable than I did, but I was skimming a lot by the end. I liked the world building with the Visci and the Soul Cavern [although I would have liked some additional explanation on what exactly is going on there], but I didn't really connect with any of the characters and I thought the plot was pretty slow and rested on characters making some pretty stupid choices.

[NEXT TWO PARAGRAPHS CONTAIN SPOILERS]

Mecca spends about the first HALF of the book chained to a bed somewhere and mostly drugged into unconsciousness. The plot still moves forward slowly since the book is split with her POV and her dad's, but I just absolutely hate it when people are tied down for long periods of time and it was literally half the book so I was not into that. Also I hate the whole 'vampires feed you their blood and then you're in love with them or whatever' trope and while it definitely wasn't as bad as it could have been here, I'm sure her and whatshisface are going to have ~sexual tension~ or something in the sequel.

Plus that is what caused her to GO BACK TO THE PLACE THEY WERE KEEPING HER for no good reason. I mean she got points for escaping the first time but then she waits til her dad goes back to sleep so she can go back to the vampire stronghold ALONE?? If this was a horror movie this is the part where I'd say she's too stupid to live. I guess it all worked out in the end but seriously that was dumb. Also I hate the whole 'vampires throwing fancy parties and hunting humans for sport' trope as well so ...really this book was just filled with tropes that I hate.

If none of those things bother you then I'm sure you'll enjoy this a lot more than I did. I was ready to give it four stars after reading the first few chapters, then it started dragging and I thought okay maybe three stars. Then she did that really stupid thing towards the end and I just started skimming and had to give it two stars. It was a technically well written book though, I just didn't necessarily care about anyone in it.