The Will and the Wilds by Charlie Holmberg

I was eager when the ARC of The Will and the Wilds hit my email. I became less eager the more I heard the author talk about the book. She kept calling it a kissing book. And I do NOT like kissing books. So--I put off reading this for a month. (I did honestly have other ARCs that were publishing earlier so I didn't feel like I was abandoning it if I read everything in publishing order.)

Once it was Holmberg's turn to be at the top of my reading list, I hesitantly picked it up and nervously started the first chapter.

This is a standalone novel by one of my favorite authors. She has written some seriously fantastic series and one of my all time favorite standalone novels. I did not like going into this book with such hesitations, but I forged through because Holmberg has yet to write anything that has absolutely angered me. I came out of the Numina series hoping for a return to the excellent soul stirring novels I am accustomed to with Holmberg, and The Will and the Wilds delivered.

Yes, there is kissing in this book. The stealing a piece of your soul kind of kissing, because there are soulless demons sharing the world with humans. (I honestly felt they were more akin to Old World fae creatures than demons, but oh well.) Which then all prompts, how much of your soul can you live without? How much of it makes you you? If you have no soul to start with, how much soul does it take to make you human?

All these questions burned through me as I read this book. And I loved every minute that it prompted me to think about the questions of existence. It even gave good provocation to my husband--who, as an engineer, almost entirely avoids fiction like it's a plague--to discuss a book with me.

The writing was simple and lightweight making this a fast read. But what really makes Holmberg's works stand out for me are all the ways her stories ask questions and prompt reflection. This hasn't taken over favorite book from Followed by Frost, but it is now second.