Vault of Souls

Reminds me a lot of Game of Thrones.
There’s a lot of magic, politics and bloody battles.
The magic system and world building are fantastic, the three widows and saints are also a very cool concept.
This book is absolutely brutal and violent. TBH there was a point where I would have DNFd had this not been an arc. There are vile characters in this and things done to children that are hard to stomach.
Naturally I am shipping the heck out of J-17 and Saint Ellawyn - the whole forbidden love thing.
Also hoping Morrigan and Rain can fall for each other.
Lycus and Aval need to die asap, and Lorren can join them for doing absolutely nothing to stop his Joffrey-ass brother from hurting whomever he has feelings for.
Obviously I am invested and will continue the series but my god did we have to have 8 POVS??? That’s way too many bro. And I honestly don’t feel like alll of them are necessary. Some parts could also have been cut down a bit.

I also hope they change the current cover.

Thank you to Net Galley and Sungrazer Publishing for the ARC. Vault of Souls was an absolutely epic read!! I loved reading the multiple POVs, there was always something interesting happening in each one of them, so when we switched POVs, I was never bored. I loved following along the multiple journeys different characters take with regards to either stopping or supporting the Widow and the Reaping. The world building and magic system is one of the most fascinating systems I have ever read. I loved following along the politics and different goals of the different kingdoms and entities. The magic system was also really cool!! I loved them all!! I also enjoyed how action packed every chapter and POV was, this was a really fun and fast paced read. The super high stakes of the Reaping made this extremely thrilling and I cannot wait for the next book. I agree with the blurb, I think fans of Brandon Sanderson will definitely love this, I know I did.

I loved this book! 4.5 stars 🤩 Thanks to Victory Editing through NetGalley, I was able to read this book before it’s being published on October 1st, 2024 📖 A multi-POV story, where every character is connected in a web of politics, war, and love. To dive into in-depth backstories for so many different characters at once, without it feeling rushed? Truly impressive. I felt myself being drawn to the characters, enjoying their heartfelt moments while being upset when someone betrayed another.

I grew to love some characters—with my favorite being Rain, of course (how could it not be?). Rain was a steadfast, selfless, and humble warrior. Sky was the same, and she always put other’s needs above her own. Lorren was so full of love for those he could really be himself with, and J-17 was one of the coolest assassins I’ve ever read about. These 4 characters, along with so many other wonderful (or terribly frustrating and evil) ones wove a wonderful, action-filled and miracle-packed story.

If you’re looking for a thrilling fantasy war story that dives into touching relationships, while incorporating twists of mysteries and magic throughout, this book is for you!! Zero complaints, I loved it! Excited to see where this series goes!

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I shared my review on GoodReads on July 23, 2024. Amazon says this item (the book) is not available to be reviewed. I plan to share it to Instagram later this week on @cocos.book.nook

Interesting premise and world, but not quite for me, unfortunately. Thank you to NetGalley and Sungrazer Publishing for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Some books really can take you out of this world and that's exactly what happened with this one, I truly felt I was in a epic adventure and God it was really a ride, it was my second book from the author and I'm definitly not disappointed.. The brutality in some aspects well it was definitly interesting and as someone who devoured Game of Thrones some parts really remind me of it. Also there's a lot of different POV's that in certain books can make you lose your mind but in this case made every sense

Vault of Souls is one of the best books I've read this year. Super well written, super well put together and super interesting! I gave it 5 stars and I recommend everyone to read this book.

Vault of Souls gives off a Game of Thrones vibes. With tons of magic, frustrating politics and battles that will you nauseas. I really enjoyed diving in the world of the story, engaging in the different POV's with each of the characters. All in all an intriguing story.

Adored this epic fantasy book!! Really fast paced and had me invested from the first page. A wide range of characters and povs which was really reminiscent of Sarah j mass characters. The world building was fantastic and adored the characters, I’m excited to see where the series goes next.

Thanks to net galley and the publisher for this arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.
I was really pleasantly surprised by this book. It hooked me from the start. It is an epic story with a really interesting and complex worl building and unique magic. We follow many different characters and I they were all very well written and interesting. My favorites were Sky, Rain and J-17. There were some really intriguing concepts of the world building and I am excited to see how the story is going to continue.

I've been hoping for a new fantasy series with good, novel world-building, and one without so much of the horror elements that seem so popular right now in fantasy series. This book, assuming it is the start of something bigger, may be what I was hoping for. I am a bit confused, still, about the basic magic system.So, the dead go to the Vault of Souls, and that vault powers the magic somehow, but the Vault is full, and must be emptied, so now LOTS of people will die? Which would fill the Vault even more? I hope we get a better explanation in the next book of how this works, cause while I could go along with the characters' assumption THAT it works, I am still not sure how it could. So, for me this is a 4.75 point book, at least on my first reading, but if the world-building fills in the seeming glitches in future books, a reread of this one may be a solid 5 star.. I just wish book 2 was already out so I could start it tomorrow.

This is a brilliant piece of work full of rich worldbuilding and fully-developed characters. While I think it is too dense for me personally, it does not sway my opinion that Angellini is a incredible writer. A recommendation for all high fantasy fans!

"You can love whatever you choose to love.
Even if he takes away the onject of your love,
he can't take your love for it".

I requested this book immediately because of the Starcrossed series, I had the chance to read it a few years ago and it was one of the few series I re-read and that never lost its appeal.
This new book is quite different from what I remember of Starcrossed, but in a refreshing way.
Weirdly the presence of so many characters and so many point of views was not so confusing, every single story was connected to one another helping the reader understand exactly what was happening.
I, of course, looked forward to Rain's and also Sky's point of view, even if I now do understand why she does not have one (I really don't want to spoil anything about the story
but wow...). Rain reminded me a bit of Jon Snow and the Wall from Game of Thrones—not that they’re the same,
but the vibes at the beginning were similar, and I really enjoyed that.
For once, I did care about each character and was genuinely interested in their stories, which kept me hooked. However, I do still have some unanswered questions...

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

~ 4.5⭐️

Josephine Angelini strikes again with Vault of Souls!

A thoroughly enjoyable read from start to finish!

This was so good! Working to take down the Widow and clear the Vault of Souls, champions come from far and wide to challenge her. This was so intense and a great story!

In this epic tale, the world trembles under the weight of rebellion. Tabin-Af, a former slave, leads the Avenging Army—a force wielding unchecked elemental power. Their mission? To fill the Vault with every life they take. But when the Vault overflows, a cataclysmic Reaping threatens to unleash the dead upon the living.

Pros:
Magic and World-Building: Angelini weaves a captivating world, reminiscent of Game of Thrones, with intricate magic systems and rich politics.
Concept of Widows and Saints: The three mythical Widows and their Avenging Army add depth and intrigue to the story.
Brutal and Violent: The unflinching brutality keeps readers on edge, making it impossible to put down.

Cons:
Pacing: While the plot races forward, some readers may find the pacing a tad uneven.

Overall, Vault of Souls delivers a thrilling fantasy experience, but its minor flaws hold it just shy of perfection. Still, it’s a must-read for fans of Brandon Sanderson and Naomi Novik.

Why is it so hard to talk about a book you really enjoyed? This book has almost a dozen POVs — which is really the one downside, because so many of them sound exactly alike. If you put them all in one room for a conversation, I don’t think I’d be able to pick even one of them out and say with confidence, yes, this is Character A, or B, or C. And as someone who prefers character driven books, this would normally make it harder for me to enjoy the book, but …

The world building, the magic system, the politics!

You have a nation of people who don’t believe in war taken as slaves —- whose language and culture tell them to go along with it, to give in so that when they die their souls will go to heaven. You have kingdoms of slavers, a Queendom that doesn’t partake, and people of mixed blood whose mothers may not have been willing. It’s loaded and fraught, especially when, among this peaceable people, there arises a leader who is leading her people to war. To end slavery, to kill the slavers, to free her people. And she’d doing it with a heretical magic.

The magic system isn’t explained; there’s no exposition or infodump or one character lecturing another. It’s a low discovery as various characters from various religions and cultures use magic, complain about it, boast about it and fail at it. You have the threat not only of the slave rebellion, but of evil magics, and the cursed Weepers whose blood corrupts and infects — giving you a boarder held, much like GOT, by men cast off from society led by a bastard prince.

That’s not to say this book is derivative, because it’s not. It is very much it’s own thing, it’s owrn world, it’s own religions and magics and cultures and its all so well done. The writing is engaging and effortless, the pace is excellent, spending just enough time in each scene without lingering on unnecessary moments. There are so many breadcrumbs cast about and I’m sure I didn’t get them all, but I cannot wait for the second book in this series to come out.

And to think, this is a debut novel! I want to thank Net Galley and the publisher for letting me read the ARC. I am now going to go preorder a copy of the book for myself.

Rating 4.5/5

This is one of the most involved books that I have read in a long time and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have never read anything with so many POVs and while it was a bit hard to keep track in the beginning, but it got a lot easier over time. I definitely wish I would've started this book after my vacation though and not before it cause that definitely threw me off a little bit.

Overall, I really enjoyed this debut adult fantasy novel. It was not at all what I was expecting and I truly love that. I found the world building and the characters to be so interesting, especially how imperfect all of the characters were. There were moments where I loved them and moments when I hated them (except for Rain, I love Rain 24/7).

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes true fantasy books with heavy world building and complex characters that make it difficulty to form an opinion of them. If you're someone who only enjoys "romantasy" books, then I wouldn't recommend this unless you're ready to try a fantasy book with only small romantic aspects.

I cannot wait to see where the rest of this series goes and I feel so incredible lucky to have received an eARC from Sungrazer Publishing and NetGalley!

'Vault of Souls' is a book containing a world and magic system absolutely interesting. This last one is very well explained within the first 5% of the book, and expanded over the rest of it.
The multiple pov's, while being a lot of characters, really helped understand the political intrigues going on all around the world, as well as build up tension as we see a situation from multiple angles.
The plot was immensely enjoyable and I found myself loving some of the characters.
But there were a couple of points I didn't enjoy as much :
- the age of the characters is unbelievable : they all act and talk as if they were in their late teens/early twenties, when some of them are in their thirties.
- some of the relationships are also unbelievable : they only talked once and then bam! they're having sex and they love each other? I found it a bit rushed.
- speaking of rushed : the ending, and the pace. For almost the entirety of the book, it was alright. But in the last quarter of it, it was all over the place : suddenly months and months had passed, the final battle lasted 10 pages. I felt like we missed some moments that we didn't get to see during those months.
But, to be true, I really enjoyed this book.

4.5 Stars

It was my first book received from NetGalley, and I was drawn in by the description.

Firstly, OMG, that ending!!! What a cliffhanger, dammit!

This is a fantastic book, I think I was at around 250 pages and I was like, this is REALLY good.

The story is told from seven different point of views, that come together towards the end of the book. No character is better than any other and they all have their flaws, maybe apart from Rain (Rainier) but he’s in love with someone and doesn’t realise this, not sure if that counts as a flaw? There are also some truly despicable secondary characters, and I’m hoping they get their sticky end (Lycus - a Joffrey/Ramsey Bolton type character and we know what happened to them)

There is a lot of politics, which I really enjoyed reminded me a little of Game of Thrones from that respect as well.

I loved the concept, that miracles are channeled but they come at a cost, that they deplete the miracle workers and that the miracles themselves are not provided by good as such.

Owenna, who is described as muscular and strong- which you so rarely see in fantasy books, had the most heartbreaking story.

The pacing was great, slow to start as the world building is introduced, but the last third of so of the book was fabulous and I didn’t want to put it down.

I will be looking for more books from the author and will definitely read the second book when released.

Usually I love Josephine Angelini, but I must admit that in this book it felt like there were a lot of very separate strings to keep track of and sometimes I struggled. The plot overall was good though and overall I did enjoy what turned out to be a pretty epic adventure.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The idea that magic is powered by the souls of the dead really is something new. The world-building and the character-building was really really impressive and after the initial dread that there might be too many viewpoints, I sincerely enjoyed switching from one great character to the next.
The only bad thing I can say is that it clearly is the first book in a series (trilogy? duology? who knows?) and I couldn't read on!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

This is so good, but ooof serious trigger warnings. My only experience with Angelini before this was The Illustrated Girl which I enjoyed, but this is so unlike that, in such a good way (more mature, more fleshed out). I can’t wait for book 2!

"Vault of Souls" by Josephine Angelini is a fantastic debut adult fantasy novel that captivated me from start to finish. The story is told from seven different points of view, each character deeply flawed and complex, which adds to the richness of the narrative. The world-building is intricate, reminiscent of "Game of Thrones," with a unique magic system where miracles come at a cost. The political intrigue and the concept of miracles depleting their workers were particularly fascinating. The pacing was slow initially due to the detailed world-building, but the last third of the book was so gripping that I couldn't put it down.

The book's ending is a major cliffhanger, leaving me eagerly awaiting the next installment. Despite the numerous POVs, which can be challenging to keep track of, the story's depth and the characters' development make it a compelling read. The brutal and violent elements kept me on edge, and the writing is engaging and effortless.

One thing I love is a good fantasy I love a book that can make me forget what's going on in the world and go into an imaginative world where the impossible happens and you meet characters and creatures you would never meet for real and this book had ot all