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17 days and 03:56:54
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Soul Sworn Saga #1
Soul Sworn
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Expected 17 Nov 26Win a free print copy of this book!
17 days and 03:56:54
25 copies available
U.S. only
The thrilling first book of a steamy duology from Sunday Times bestselling author, Kate Dylan.
Two ruthless assassins.
One deadly romance.
Talia Atwater is a reaper, an elite assassin who uses her looks, her charms, and her rare ability to sense lies to rid clients of their sworn enemy: the person destined to kill their soulmate. For Talia, love is just another way to die.
Cain Hawthorne was raised to be a weapon. Bound to a powerful religious order, he hunts rogue reapers in the name of the Gods. Duty is everything. Love is forbidden. All that matters is protecting their fated ties.
So when Talia takes a job that threatens fate, Cain is sent to stop her.
But in a world where every soul is marked—for love and death—the line between mission and desire begins to blur.
As secrets unravel and attraction ignites, Talia and Cain are pulled into a dangerous game of seduction, secrets, and lies. And the closer they get to the truth, the clearer it becomes:
They were never meant to fall in love.
They were meant to destroy each other.
SOUL SWORN is a dark, addictive romantasy filled with assassins, blood magic, and a sizzling enemies-to-lovers romance that will leave readers breathless.
Two ruthless assassins.
One deadly romance.
Talia Atwater is a reaper, an elite assassin who uses her looks, her charms, and her rare ability to sense lies to rid clients of their sworn enemy: the person destined to kill their soulmate. For Talia, love is just another way to die.
Cain Hawthorne was raised to be a weapon. Bound to a powerful religious order, he hunts rogue reapers in the name of the Gods. Duty is everything. Love is forbidden. All that matters is protecting their fated ties.
So when Talia takes a job that threatens fate, Cain is sent to stop her.
But in a world where every soul is marked—for love and death—the line between mission and desire begins to blur.
As secrets unravel and attraction ignites, Talia and Cain are pulled into a dangerous game of seduction, secrets, and lies. And the closer they get to the truth, the clearer it becomes:
They were never meant to fall in love.
They were meant to destroy each other.
SOUL SWORN is a dark, addictive romantasy filled with assassins, blood magic, and a sizzling enemies-to-lovers romance that will leave readers breathless.
Kindle Edition
Expected publication November 17, 2026
About the author
Kate Dylan
7 books321 followersKate is a Sunday Times Bestselling author of fantasy and dystopian sci-fi novels. Her love for creating new worlds is fuelled by a steady diet of coffee, books, and Marvel movies, and when she's not telling stories, you can find her haunting London cafes like an over-caffeinated ghost.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 223 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
3.5⭐️ (rounded up!)
They were never meant to fall in love.
They were meant to destroy each other.
In Sworn Soul, each person has two destined entanglements: one sworn enemy and one soulmate. On the same finger there's a gold band (soulmate) and a red band (sworn enemy). Both bands appear once your soul mate and sworn enemy are born. The soulmate gold ringlet is permanent regardless of life or death, but the sworn enemy band CAN disappear should your sworn enemy die… Which is where people like the FMC, Talia, become important to the story. They're Reapers, assassins for hire that will kill on your behalf—for the right price, of course.
Orphaned and selling her body,Talia, turns to killing as a different way to make money. As a Reaper, Talia follows a strict moral code: No kids, no soulmates, no meaningless killing. She only accepts sworn enemy kills. (Sworn enemy being someone destined to kill your soulmate.) Her rules backfire when she's blackmailed and forced into an uncomfortable mission. This mission has her trekking cross-country to kill an infant. Little does Talia know that while she's on the hunt…there's also someone hunting her.
Cain was raised at a temple under torturous brainwashing. Cain eats, sleeps, and breathes his religion and is a devout believer in the importance of entanglements. Now, he's become a Reaper that kills other Reapers. Eliminating those that his temple deems to pose a serious threat to destinies. Talia is his most recent Reaper target, but when he interjects himself into her mission (while trying to complete his own by killing her!), Cain finds himself blown away and tempted by the jawdropping assassin. This temptation is particularly jarring, as even though he's been "forced to pick up a blade and relinquish his robes," he still follows his teachings--including a vow of chastity. A vow that being around the sex-positive and beautiful Talia proves VERY, VERY, VERY difficult in upholding.
Cain's like a blank sheet of paper, which makes sense considering his upbringing. But still, as a main character, he was sorely lacking in personality. Even at 24, he hardly ever made decisions on his own, 95% of the time resorting to following all that he's been taught to believe. I hope in book two we see more independent thinking from him because even the spicy scenes were about Talia leading and him being an obedient follower.
On the subject of intimacy. Yes, there was some smut. No, there was absolutely no love (or even any romance) between these two. It's entirely lust based. Just two young and hot people alone together and acting on their attraction. Though, I was just as excited as Talia at the prospect of Cain breaking his vow of chastity! Talia thought,"by the Gods would she love to watch that uptight, pious contradiction fall apart." And. fall. it. did. Hehehe.
"How could anyone this smart be blind to the hypocrisy of religion?" There's a heavy divide surrounding the entanglements/Four Gods between both leads. Cain's in favor of the entanglements and one's destiny, whereas Talia thinks they're garbage, "because how can you fall in love outside of your bond, or why do bonded pairs cheat if they're destined?" Both are good points, but the incessant bickering back and forth in absolutes got exhausting and read as TOO DANG PREACHY. Can't both opinions be true? Why does one side need to be COMPLETELY right and the other side COMPLETELY wrong?
Overall: Solid first book in the duology. The entanglements made for a very cool premise! The pacing had the plot moving forward in a steady tempo that didn't get boring, with plenty of new settings and interesting plot points. The male lead was the weakest link in the entire story. With no personality and barely any decision-making on his own, Cain would need a grand upheaval to be worthy of the sex goddess badass killer that was Talia!
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC. All opinions are my own. And shoutout to Bookishness for the buddy read and putting me onto this book! 🩵
They were never meant to fall in love.
They were meant to destroy each other.
In Sworn Soul, each person has two destined entanglements: one sworn enemy and one soulmate. On the same finger there's a gold band (soulmate) and a red band (sworn enemy). Both bands appear once your soul mate and sworn enemy are born. The soulmate gold ringlet is permanent regardless of life or death, but the sworn enemy band CAN disappear should your sworn enemy die… Which is where people like the FMC, Talia, become important to the story. They're Reapers, assassins for hire that will kill on your behalf—for the right price, of course.
Orphaned and selling her body,Talia, turns to killing as a different way to make money. As a Reaper, Talia follows a strict moral code: No kids, no soulmates, no meaningless killing. She only accepts sworn enemy kills. (Sworn enemy being someone destined to kill your soulmate.) Her rules backfire when she's blackmailed and forced into an uncomfortable mission. This mission has her trekking cross-country to kill an infant. Little does Talia know that while she's on the hunt…there's also someone hunting her.
Cain was raised at a temple under torturous brainwashing. Cain eats, sleeps, and breathes his religion and is a devout believer in the importance of entanglements. Now, he's become a Reaper that kills other Reapers. Eliminating those that his temple deems to pose a serious threat to destinies. Talia is his most recent Reaper target, but when he interjects himself into her mission (while trying to complete his own by killing her!), Cain finds himself blown away and tempted by the jawdropping assassin. This temptation is particularly jarring, as even though he's been "forced to pick up a blade and relinquish his robes," he still follows his teachings--including a vow of chastity. A vow that being around the sex-positive and beautiful Talia proves VERY, VERY, VERY difficult in upholding.
Cain's like a blank sheet of paper, which makes sense considering his upbringing. But still, as a main character, he was sorely lacking in personality. Even at 24, he hardly ever made decisions on his own, 95% of the time resorting to following all that he's been taught to believe. I hope in book two we see more independent thinking from him because even the spicy scenes were about Talia leading and him being an obedient follower.
On the subject of intimacy. Yes, there was some smut. No, there was absolutely no love (or even any romance) between these two. It's entirely lust based. Just two young and hot people alone together and acting on their attraction. Though, I was just as excited as Talia at the prospect of Cain breaking his vow of chastity! Talia thought,"by the Gods would she love to watch that uptight, pious contradiction fall apart." And. fall. it. did. Hehehe.
"How could anyone this smart be blind to the hypocrisy of religion?" There's a heavy divide surrounding the entanglements/Four Gods between both leads. Cain's in favor of the entanglements and one's destiny, whereas Talia thinks they're garbage, "because how can you fall in love outside of your bond, or why do bonded pairs cheat if they're destined?" Both are good points, but the incessant bickering back and forth in absolutes got exhausting and read as TOO DANG PREACHY. Can't both opinions be true? Why does one side need to be COMPLETELY right and the other side COMPLETELY wrong?
Overall: Solid first book in the duology. The entanglements made for a very cool premise! The pacing had the plot moving forward in a steady tempo that didn't get boring, with plenty of new settings and interesting plot points. The male lead was the weakest link in the entire story. With no personality and barely any decision-making on his own, Cain would need a grand upheaval to be worthy of the sex goddess badass killer that was Talia!
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC. All opinions are my own. And shoutout to Bookishness for the buddy read and putting me onto this book! 🩵
May 19, 2026
The blurb for this book had me hooked, and I was so excited to receive an ARC copy. Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the execution. Thanks Seri for buddy reading with me!
The premise was incredibly interesting: two assassins a Reaper and a Hunter are destined to kill each other. But what happens when they start to fall in love? Sounds amazing, right? Sadly, the story never delivered on that promise.
Cain, a Reaper who kills other Reapers, had so much potential. Instead of being dark, complex, or morally gray, he felt flat and underdeveloped. We learn very little about his background, motivations, or what truly drives him.
Talia, whose parents died when she was young, was the stronger of the two characters. Her desire to protect her sister and the difficult choices she’s forced to make gave her some depth, but even her character wasn’t explored as fully as I had hoped.
Now for the romance or rather, the lack of it. There was no slow burn, no tension, no yearning, and no emotional connection. What we got was mostly lust masquerading as romance. I felt absolutely nothing between these two characters, which made it impossible to root for them as a couple.
Overall, the concept was far more compelling than the execution. Despite the promising premise, the characters lacked depth, the romance fell completely flat, and I was left feeling bored rather than invested.
I will not be continuing with Book 2. Yawn.
~Pre-read~ Received this ARC copy! Im dying, this cover is stunning!!!
DARK romanticy, Assassins- enemies to lovers, blood magic! say no more~ RTC
The premise was incredibly interesting: two assassins a Reaper and a Hunter are destined to kill each other. But what happens when they start to fall in love? Sounds amazing, right? Sadly, the story never delivered on that promise.
Cain, a Reaper who kills other Reapers, had so much potential. Instead of being dark, complex, or morally gray, he felt flat and underdeveloped. We learn very little about his background, motivations, or what truly drives him.
Talia, whose parents died when she was young, was the stronger of the two characters. Her desire to protect her sister and the difficult choices she’s forced to make gave her some depth, but even her character wasn’t explored as fully as I had hoped.
Now for the romance or rather, the lack of it. There was no slow burn, no tension, no yearning, and no emotional connection. What we got was mostly lust masquerading as romance. I felt absolutely nothing between these two characters, which made it impossible to root for them as a couple.
Overall, the concept was far more compelling than the execution. Despite the promising premise, the characters lacked depth, the romance fell completely flat, and I was left feeling bored rather than invested.
I will not be continuing with Book 2. Yawn.
~Pre-read~ Received this ARC copy! Im dying, this cover is stunning!!!
DARK romanticy, Assassins- enemies to lovers, blood magic! say no more~ RTC
Want to Read
May 16, 2026Two assassins, a reaper and a hunter, bound to kill each other but the line between mission and desire blurs. Where they were meant to destroy each other, a deadly romance begins.
This cover! So many thoughts!
Many thanks to NetGalley, Ballentine/Delacorte Press and the author, Kate Dylan for an early copy.
Publication date: November 17, 2026
This cover! So many thoughts!
Many thanks to NetGalley, Ballentine/Delacorte Press and the author, Kate Dylan for an early copy.
Publication date: November 17, 2026
May 14, 2026
The magic system was very unique and interesting. But, not explained and flesh out very well. The soul mate concept was rather confusing and doesn’t make much sense. A red line on the finger tells you that you have a soul mate and that someone will kill them but that’s about it…no how’s and why’s.
The FMC isn’t very likeable and the MMC is rather soft and dumb to be honest. They are assassins, but have absolutely no skill.
He’s sent to kill her. She has no idea, but is sus of him the whole time and knows he’s lying. Yet, she just shrugs it all off.
A pet peeve of mine is modern/real world vernacular being is used in a made up fantasy world. Risqué is a French word. There is no France here. This is just one example.
I get spicy, but this was just horny. The very first scene of spice the MMC is being a creep and watching the FMC through a keyhole getting dildo’d (is this a word??). It’s also right after the FMC and MMC met for the first time. It was just weird and ruined the vibe for me. He’s also a virgin but all he can think about is sex.
This missed the mark for me. On paper this sounds great! But, the execution was done poorly.
Thank you delacorte and netgalley for an early copy.
The FMC isn’t very likeable and the MMC is rather soft and dumb to be honest. They are assassins, but have absolutely no skill.
He’s sent to kill her. She has no idea, but is sus of him the whole time and knows he’s lying. Yet, she just shrugs it all off.
A pet peeve of mine is modern/real world vernacular being is used in a made up fantasy world. Risqué is a French word. There is no France here. This is just one example.
I get spicy, but this was just horny. The very first scene of spice the MMC is being a creep and watching the FMC through a keyhole getting dildo’d (is this a word??). It’s also right after the FMC and MMC met for the first time. It was just weird and ruined the vibe for me. He’s also a virgin but all he can think about is sex.
This missed the mark for me. On paper this sounds great! But, the execution was done poorly.
Thank you delacorte and netgalley for an early copy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
May 19, 2026I decided to dnf this title after 56% (20 chapter) after we got a scene of
Perhaps if not for this scene, I would have tried to read further, but even after reaching the halfway mark, I still knew very little about the world. The characters often made questionable decisions that didn't always feel true to who they were, and the writing relied heavily on telling rather than showing.
I'm especially disappointed because the blurb and the initial premise genuinely intrigued me. The idea of soulmates and soul enemies existing simultaneously felt fresh and original, but the concept was never explored to its full potential. The introduction and the rules of the world felt messy and underdeveloped, leaving me constantly wondering: How does this work? Why does it work?
And the characters... sigh. How is it possible to give the FMC such distinct personality traits while stripping the MMC of his? While Talia wasn't entirely likable, her priorities were clear, and I could understand the reasoning behind her decisions. Cain, on the other hand, lacked that same depth and consistency. As a result, I found his POV much less engaging and struggled to enjoy the parts of the story told from his perspective.
Thank you Delacorte Press and Netgalley for opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for honest review.
Perhaps if not for this scene, I would have tried to read further, but even after reaching the halfway mark, I still knew very little about the world. The characters often made questionable decisions that didn't always feel true to who they were, and the writing relied heavily on telling rather than showing.
I'm especially disappointed because the blurb and the initial premise genuinely intrigued me. The idea of soulmates and soul enemies existing simultaneously felt fresh and original, but the concept was never explored to its full potential. The introduction and the rules of the world felt messy and underdeveloped, leaving me constantly wondering: How does this work? Why does it work?
And the characters... sigh. How is it possible to give the FMC such distinct personality traits while stripping the MMC of his? While Talia wasn't entirely likable, her priorities were clear, and I could understand the reasoning behind her decisions. Cain, on the other hand, lacked that same depth and consistency. As a result, I found his POV much less engaging and struggled to enjoy the parts of the story told from his perspective.
Thank you Delacorte Press and Netgalley for opportunity to read this eARC in exchange for honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Welcome to my (spicy) adult fantasy era! Soul Sworn is the first book in a duology and I can't wait for you all to meet Talia and Cain!
Content Warning
While Soul Sworn was written to be a fun book you can fall in love with, it does touch on topics some readers may find difficult, these include: parental death, religious abuse, religious trauma, and childhood prostitution. It also features: violence, death, murder, mild gore, maiming, sex, mild kink, and strong language.
Content Warning
While Soul Sworn was written to be a fun book you can fall in love with, it does touch on topics some readers may find difficult, these include: parental death, religious abuse, religious trauma, and childhood prostitution. It also features: violence, death, murder, mild gore, maiming, sex, mild kink, and strong language.
May 15, 2026
5⭐️ Loved it! A must own book.
Read this if you like complex bonds of fate with a badass FMC who eats lies and makes her living by destroying those magical bonds of destiny.
📖What’s inside:
Assassins 🗡️
Dual POV
💞 Mate bonds
On-page intimacy 🟡
Witches
🌈 Inclusive
Explicit language
FF scenes 👀
Only one bed
✨Vibes: Heartless Hunter meets Nocticadia’s eerie mystery + Mr. & Mrs. Smith but make it magic and mayhem
Book boyfriend meter: 🧡
Would consider. Would absolutely regret something.
💭Thoughts: Came for the cover, stayed for the insane soulmate-but-enemies premise. The dual POV tension was everything—and when they finally meet?? It’s… hot. 👀 True slow burn, but the angst, morally grey chaos, and twisty plot made it impossible to put down. Also—top tier representation and a story that feels genuinely fresh despite the tropes. And that ending??This one’s going to blow up the dark fantasy romance space—I can feel it.
➕Should you add this to your TBR? Omg YES. Actually—go ahead and pre-order it. Digital and physical. Start it immediately on release day, then display that gorgeous copy on your shelf like the trophy it is.
This one is worth it, babes. All the stars!!!!
Thank you to Ballantine books and Netgalley for an eARC copy of this book. Keeping it real with my honest thoughts as always. 🖤
For my full review + more fantasy book recs, check out my blog here → https://www.abookfortheendoftheworld.com
Read this if you like complex bonds of fate with a badass FMC who eats lies and makes her living by destroying those magical bonds of destiny.
📖What’s inside:
Assassins 🗡️
Dual POV
💞 Mate bonds
On-page intimacy 🟡
Witches
🌈 Inclusive
Explicit language
FF scenes 👀
Only one bed
✨Vibes: Heartless Hunter meets Nocticadia’s eerie mystery + Mr. & Mrs. Smith but make it magic and mayhem
Book boyfriend meter: 🧡
Would consider. Would absolutely regret something.
💭Thoughts: Came for the cover, stayed for the insane soulmate-but-enemies premise. The dual POV tension was everything—and when they finally meet?? It’s… hot. 👀 True slow burn, but the angst, morally grey chaos, and twisty plot made it impossible to put down. Also—top tier representation and a story that feels genuinely fresh despite the tropes. And that ending??This one’s going to blow up the dark fantasy romance space—I can feel it.
➕Should you add this to your TBR? Omg YES. Actually—go ahead and pre-order it. Digital and physical. Start it immediately on release day, then display that gorgeous copy on your shelf like the trophy it is.
This one is worth it, babes. All the stars!!!!
Thank you to Ballantine books and Netgalley for an eARC copy of this book. Keeping it real with my honest thoughts as always. 🖤
For my full review + more fantasy book recs, check out my blog here → https://www.abookfortheendoftheworld.com
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Recieved an e-arc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Can we just make some commotion for the COVER??? Hot damn. Truly one of the best covers I have seen in a while.
This book in interesting in its premise and its lore. I have read countless books that feature soulmates, sworn enemies, enemies to lovers, but for a single book to feature all of this, between the main characters? It immediately caught my attention. The detail behind the world building was also very good, and I was genuinely engaged with the lore.
But the execution of these concepts/tropes just fell a little flat for me. While I really liked the idea of it, I just couldn't fully believe the connection between the FMC and MMC. Talia seems smart, resourceful, if a little rough around the edges and a little problematic in her thinking, and Cain is, well, a dumbass. I didn't like him at all. I just felt bad for him.
I am intrigued by the story, despite it moving a bit slow, and found the ending to be just enough for me to want to know what happens next. I can see myself reading the next book if I see it out and about.
Can we just make some commotion for the COVER??? Hot damn. Truly one of the best covers I have seen in a while.
This book in interesting in its premise and its lore. I have read countless books that feature soulmates, sworn enemies, enemies to lovers, but for a single book to feature all of this, between the main characters? It immediately caught my attention. The detail behind the world building was also very good, and I was genuinely engaged with the lore.
But the execution of these concepts/tropes just fell a little flat for me. While I really liked the idea of it, I just couldn't fully believe the connection between the FMC and MMC. Talia seems smart, resourceful, if a little rough around the edges and a little problematic in her thinking, and Cain is, well, a dumbass. I didn't like him at all. I just felt bad for him.
I am intrigued by the story, despite it moving a bit slow, and found the ending to be just enough for me to want to know what happens next. I can see myself reading the next book if I see it out and about.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Update with the new star rankings. Dedicated to you Mel 😊 😊 😊 I love exercising my anti-censorship free will.
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I think I'm going to need to stop falling in love with incredible premises, because every time I get my heart broken with execution.
Soul Sworn is set in a world where every person is bound to have a soulmate and a sworn enemy (so far, personally I mostly have the latter.) The former is revealed by a kiss and the latter is the individual bound to kill or hurt your soul mate.
SS follows Talia and Cain who are both reapers. A reaper in this world is a hired killer who will murder your sworn enemy at a price. Cain does so in the name of his religious brotherhood, Talia kinda does it for shits and giggs (and/or to pay the bills.) Talia and Cain's paths cross, they bicker about stuff like virtue and godliness, put their tongues to other better uses, etc. Romantasy stuff.
As referenced, this might be the coolest premise to walk the face of the earth.
Alas, 2 stars.
The positive notes.
The premise... that's pretty much it.
Okay, Talia and Cain had a lot of chemistry and could have been developed into a really thematically interesting dynamic. If Dylan hadn't prioritised jamming as many tropes into them as possible and telling us all about how tortured they both are.
Also the cover is genuinely, genuinely gorgeous.
Onto the negatives that had me pulling my hair out at the root.
Why, why is there so much exposition?
Cain's chapters are thick with it from pretty much the off but to begin with Talia's were lighter or at least more organically sewn in. However, when I'm at the 80% mark of a book and I'm still getting paragraphs upon paragraphs of boring, poorly described worldbuilding and motives... something's not right about your book!
Also - and if this was gone over in swaths of exposition I will apologise but I was drowning at the time... does nobody just... die of cancer in this universe? Is someone's sworn enemy dysentery? Ebola?
furthermore everything just felt... too easy. Half the time the characters seemed to stumble into and out of the plot. There were very early signs of this when the "Weeping Woods" which had been built up as the biggest baddest most creepiest woods since that one Stephen King movie where no one nor their nan gets out alive... How did they survive? Well they walked and they walked and they walked.
Well thank Christ nobody else thought of that. The Weeping Woods might have been renamed the Huh? Woods. There were more and more examples of this but the best was when the main characters essentially bullshitted their way out of the climax's plot point. You're telling me someone went to the effort of chaining up people who were the crux of a whole-ass, kingdom-wide conspiracy theory... and they were just... in some bloke's house with such stunning security mechanisms as the world's most gullible maid.
Great. Once would have been fine, every single plot point had some finish-line like this.
and don't even get me started on Dylan's baffling choice that whenever some stunning revalation takes place the character's following narration is approximately 39 questions. Usually not even in itallics. Just thoughts and vibes.
I'm a grown woman. This is a book for adults. I do not need every single reaction spelled out.
In a similar vein, SS is full of prose that shows you things beautifully. Then immediately has to explain exactly what has just been shown to you. Yes, Cain, I expect the cloak heavy with blood and dust was just from all of your killing... I wasn't expecting you to explain to me that the laundromats had actually been out of order since before the plot.
Similarly to the overly-telling prose that would really be out of place even in YA, for me none of the themes were explored in any real depth. Cain and Talia have the beginning of a really interesting conversation about whether its right that this reality's god decides who your love is and isn't. An earlier conversation talks about having to live after the death of your soulmate and hints that a lot of people simply choose not to.
If that sounds really interesting to you don't get your hopes up. Its picked up and dropped off like a hot, rotting potato.
Really, really sad about this one.
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Brown for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I think I'm going to need to stop falling in love with incredible premises, because every time I get my heart broken with execution.
Soul Sworn is set in a world where every person is bound to have a soulmate and a sworn enemy (so far, personally I mostly have the latter.) The former is revealed by a kiss and the latter is the individual bound to kill or hurt your soul mate.
SS follows Talia and Cain who are both reapers. A reaper in this world is a hired killer who will murder your sworn enemy at a price. Cain does so in the name of his religious brotherhood, Talia kinda does it for shits and giggs (and/or to pay the bills.) Talia and Cain's paths cross, they bicker about stuff like virtue and godliness, put their tongues to other better uses, etc. Romantasy stuff.
As referenced, this might be the coolest premise to walk the face of the earth.
Alas, 2 stars.
The positive notes.
The premise... that's pretty much it.
Okay, Talia and Cain had a lot of chemistry and could have been developed into a really thematically interesting dynamic. If Dylan hadn't prioritised jamming as many tropes into them as possible and telling us all about how tortured they both are.
Also the cover is genuinely, genuinely gorgeous.
Onto the negatives that had me pulling my hair out at the root.
Why, why is there so much exposition?
Cain's chapters are thick with it from pretty much the off but to begin with Talia's were lighter or at least more organically sewn in. However, when I'm at the 80% mark of a book and I'm still getting paragraphs upon paragraphs of boring, poorly described worldbuilding and motives... something's not right about your book!
Also - and if this was gone over in swaths of exposition I will apologise but I was drowning at the time... does nobody just... die of cancer in this universe? Is someone's sworn enemy dysentery? Ebola?
furthermore everything just felt... too easy. Half the time the characters seemed to stumble into and out of the plot. There were very early signs of this when the "Weeping Woods" which had been built up as the biggest baddest most creepiest woods since that one Stephen King movie where no one nor their nan gets out alive... How did they survive? Well they walked and they walked and they walked.
Well thank Christ nobody else thought of that. The Weeping Woods might have been renamed the Huh? Woods. There were more and more examples of this but the best was when the main characters essentially bullshitted their way out of the climax's plot point. You're telling me someone went to the effort of chaining up people who were the crux of a whole-ass, kingdom-wide conspiracy theory... and they were just... in some bloke's house with such stunning security mechanisms as the world's most gullible maid.
Great. Once would have been fine, every single plot point had some finish-line like this.
and don't even get me started on Dylan's baffling choice that whenever some stunning revalation takes place the character's following narration is approximately 39 questions. Usually not even in itallics. Just thoughts and vibes.
I'm a grown woman. This is a book for adults. I do not need every single reaction spelled out.
In a similar vein, SS is full of prose that shows you things beautifully. Then immediately has to explain exactly what has just been shown to you. Yes, Cain, I expect the cloak heavy with blood and dust was just from all of your killing... I wasn't expecting you to explain to me that the laundromats had actually been out of order since before the plot.
Similarly to the overly-telling prose that would really be out of place even in YA, for me none of the themes were explored in any real depth. Cain and Talia have the beginning of a really interesting conversation about whether its right that this reality's god decides who your love is and isn't. An earlier conversation talks about having to live after the death of your soulmate and hints that a lot of people simply choose not to.
If that sounds really interesting to you don't get your hopes up. Its picked up and dropped off like a hot, rotting potato.
Really, really sad about this one.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
1.5 / 5.0
Soul Sworn by Kate Dylan is a fantasy romance with assassins, soulmates, and an interesting magic system - at least it wants to be?
I am going to be very careful saying this because it is a HUGE hot topic but I think part of this is written using a LLM. The writing displays several hallmarks of generative, prompt-based writing. Within the first three chapters alone I read examples of the big three ("the list of three", weird metaphors, and contrast phrasing) in every paragraph. A prime example of this being "It was a scream in flavor and a churn of nausea in scent." (location 170). What?
There is very little emotion to the writing which makes it hard to connect to the characters, writing, magic, entire book... The excessive use of em dashes and avoidance of copulas, which leads to run-on sentences and circular reasoning, are basic LLM markers and they are pervasive in this text.
I do believe that the dialogue was created though genuine creativity. The syntax in the spoken text of this is very modern. In a world that is based off a medieval fantasy model, the language is casual and could be heard down at any corner coffeeshop. It does not fit the setting or the characters, taking the reader out of the story and highlighting the issues with the writing. The actual prose does strive for a "fantasy voice" in the writing which is completely at odds with the dialogue.
Finally, the magic is illogical. Each person has a soulmate and an enemy bound to them. The soulmate part is messy but the enemy part makes no sense at all. This person is destined to kill you, but they also have a soulmate and an enemy of their own? So everyone has to search for their soulmate and for the person they are an enemy of while avoiding the person who is their enemy? How do you know your enemy OR if you're someone's enemy? And then there's the soulmate... if you don't find YOUR soulmate then you never get to be bonded, but there's nothing explaining how you come to find this person. It was very confusing to read which is compounded by the poor writing and a secondary magic system based on non-hereditary magic focused around truth/lies/healing/blood/souls/fate. This was undeveloped and confusing as well.
I really wanted to dive into this and find a new fantasy favorite, especially since this is a duet in a world of epic sagas. Unfortunately, I am not able to recommend this because I am not sure of the provenance of the writing.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.
Soul Sworn by Kate Dylan is a fantasy romance with assassins, soulmates, and an interesting magic system - at least it wants to be?
I am going to be very careful saying this because it is a HUGE hot topic but I think part of this is written using a LLM. The writing displays several hallmarks of generative, prompt-based writing. Within the first three chapters alone I read examples of the big three ("the list of three", weird metaphors, and contrast phrasing) in every paragraph. A prime example of this being "It was a scream in flavor and a churn of nausea in scent." (location 170). What?
There is very little emotion to the writing which makes it hard to connect to the characters, writing, magic, entire book... The excessive use of em dashes and avoidance of copulas, which leads to run-on sentences and circular reasoning, are basic LLM markers and they are pervasive in this text.
I do believe that the dialogue was created though genuine creativity. The syntax in the spoken text of this is very modern. In a world that is based off a medieval fantasy model, the language is casual and could be heard down at any corner coffeeshop. It does not fit the setting or the characters, taking the reader out of the story and highlighting the issues with the writing. The actual prose does strive for a "fantasy voice" in the writing which is completely at odds with the dialogue.
Finally, the magic is illogical. Each person has a soulmate and an enemy bound to them. The soulmate part is messy but the enemy part makes no sense at all. This person is destined to kill you, but they also have a soulmate and an enemy of their own? So everyone has to search for their soulmate and for the person they are an enemy of while avoiding the person who is their enemy? How do you know your enemy OR if you're someone's enemy? And then there's the soulmate... if you don't find YOUR soulmate then you never get to be bonded, but there's nothing explaining how you come to find this person. It was very confusing to read which is compounded by the poor writing and a secondary magic system based on non-hereditary magic focused around truth/lies/healing/blood/souls/fate. This was undeveloped and confusing as well.
I really wanted to dive into this and find a new fantasy favorite, especially since this is a duet in a world of epic sagas. Unfortunately, I am not able to recommend this because I am not sure of the provenance of the writing.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this eARC.
Did Not Finish
September 18, 2026DNF @ 35 pages.
I received an ARC from netgalley, and I understand that ARCs are going to have some mistakes in them. Honestly pre-Covid I found there were far less mistakes in ARCs and they were almost ready for the shelf but wanted early reviews, but even the 35 pages I read here had me feeling like I was doing the publisher free editing labour.
The issues I found were:
Page 14: extra quotations after “in sixteen fucking years”
Page 18: “little but little” I think should be “little by little”
Page 18: should there be a capital after the colon in the sentence “that’s how men like him operated:” ? On a previous page a capital was used after a colon.
Page 20: refers to the character Iver as Ivan
Page 35: refers to her mum losing the compass rose on her finger when the dad died, but when referring to lexi’s husband dying earlier on page 15 it says bonded bands don’t disappear in death?
So we’ve referred to a character by the wrong name, and broken our own magic system all within the first 35 pages (10% ish).
Every sentence was littered with colons, semi colons and dashes. Sentences were long, mealy and hard to parse.
The amount of info dumping was incredible for only 10% of the book. It was the epitome of telling and not showing.
Another reviewer mentioned a lot of the sentence structure is telltale of Claude as they have a lot of AI that crosses their desk in their day job that they have to sift out. By no means am I accusing the author of this, but the quality of the writing unfortunately speaks for itself.
Incredibly disappointing, romantasy as a genre appears to be getting worse in quality :(
I received an ARC from netgalley, and I understand that ARCs are going to have some mistakes in them. Honestly pre-Covid I found there were far less mistakes in ARCs and they were almost ready for the shelf but wanted early reviews, but even the 35 pages I read here had me feeling like I was doing the publisher free editing labour.
The issues I found were:
Page 14: extra quotations after “in sixteen fucking years”
Page 18: “little but little” I think should be “little by little”
Page 18: should there be a capital after the colon in the sentence “that’s how men like him operated:” ? On a previous page a capital was used after a colon.
Page 20: refers to the character Iver as Ivan
Page 35: refers to her mum losing the compass rose on her finger when the dad died, but when referring to lexi’s husband dying earlier on page 15 it says bonded bands don’t disappear in death?
So we’ve referred to a character by the wrong name, and broken our own magic system all within the first 35 pages (10% ish).
Every sentence was littered with colons, semi colons and dashes. Sentences were long, mealy and hard to parse.
The amount of info dumping was incredible for only 10% of the book. It was the epitome of telling and not showing.
Another reviewer mentioned a lot of the sentence structure is telltale of Claude as they have a lot of AI that crosses their desk in their day job that they have to sift out. By no means am I accusing the author of this, but the quality of the writing unfortunately speaks for itself.
Incredibly disappointing, romantasy as a genre appears to be getting worse in quality :(
September 6, 2026
I actually really vibed with this???
A world where everyone has a soulmate and a sworn enemy - your sworn enemy will kill your soulmate unless you kill them first. fascinating and hooked me immediately!!
world building straightforward, really well paced, never got bored, lots happening, fun characters - the fmc was a bit generic I must say, perhaps lacking a bit of depth, and so was he tbh but it was a fun romp and their interactions were satisfying nonetheless
I love a jaded hot priest what can I say
A world where everyone has a soulmate and a sworn enemy - your sworn enemy will kill your soulmate unless you kill them first. fascinating and hooked me immediately!!
world building straightforward, really well paced, never got bored, lots happening, fun characters - the fmc was a bit generic I must say, perhaps lacking a bit of depth, and so was he tbh but it was a fun romp and their interactions were satisfying nonetheless
I love a jaded hot priest what can I say
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
dark fantasy done right!! i expect to see everyone reading this come november (and that’s a threat)
Soul Sworn is set in a world where fate assigns you a soulmate and a sworn enemy in the form of tattooed rings on your finger. Kiss your soulmate and your bond is sealed, but beware of your sworn enemy who is fated to kill your soulmate. their world also has gods and those with special abilities- “lie tasters”, “fate readers”, “blood scribes”, etc. once i wrapped my head around the concept, this book had me enraptured!! i loved the darker themes (check content warnings!) and i found myself not wanting to put down this book.
both characters have a dark past and twisted ways of thinking. i loooved being in both of their minds (hi dual pov!!). talia is a reaper, a bounty hunter, and most of her assignments have been to eliminate others’ sworn enemies. her heart is hardened against finding her own soulmate and as such, she has a personal rule not to kiss anyone so her bond is never sealed.
cain is a reaper for the brotherhood of the blessed, essentially a priest for a corrupt religious group that “absolves him of the sin” to kill to eliminate their enemies.
their paths cross when talia is assigned a new target, and cain is assigned to kill her before she completes her mission. their encounters are JUICY and full of lots of lies and betrayals. talia can taste lies and is constantly suspicious of cain, yet they’re inexplicably drawn to each other. cain has LOTS of religious trauma and guilt, and talia isn’t shy to lean into it.
both talia and cain’s worldviews are challenged, and by the end of this book you’ll be sitting on the edge of your seat every page. the wait for book two will be painful 😭
READ SOUL SWORN IF YOU LOVE
-dark fantasy worlds
-fated bonds
-forced proximity
-badass fmc
-dual pov
-slow burn
-spiceeeee
-oh no there’s only one room left at the inn / one bed trope
Soul Sworn is set in a world where fate assigns you a soulmate and a sworn enemy in the form of tattooed rings on your finger. Kiss your soulmate and your bond is sealed, but beware of your sworn enemy who is fated to kill your soulmate. their world also has gods and those with special abilities- “lie tasters”, “fate readers”, “blood scribes”, etc. once i wrapped my head around the concept, this book had me enraptured!! i loved the darker themes (check content warnings!) and i found myself not wanting to put down this book.
both characters have a dark past and twisted ways of thinking. i loooved being in both of their minds (hi dual pov!!). talia is a reaper, a bounty hunter, and most of her assignments have been to eliminate others’ sworn enemies. her heart is hardened against finding her own soulmate and as such, she has a personal rule not to kiss anyone so her bond is never sealed.
cain is a reaper for the brotherhood of the blessed, essentially a priest for a corrupt religious group that “absolves him of the sin” to kill to eliminate their enemies.
their paths cross when talia is assigned a new target, and cain is assigned to kill her before she completes her mission. their encounters are JUICY and full of lots of lies and betrayals. talia can taste lies and is constantly suspicious of cain, yet they’re inexplicably drawn to each other. cain has LOTS of religious trauma and guilt, and talia isn’t shy to lean into it.
both talia and cain’s worldviews are challenged, and by the end of this book you’ll be sitting on the edge of your seat every page. the wait for book two will be painful 😭
READ SOUL SWORN IF YOU LOVE
-dark fantasy worlds
-fated bonds
-forced proximity
-badass fmc
-dual pov
-slow burn
-spiceeeee
-oh no there’s only one room left at the inn / one bed trope
June 8, 2026
This book was EVERYTHING.
Talia is a lie Eater and reaper, fiercely protective of her younger sister after losing both of their parents. In a kingdom where being a witch is a death sentence, she’s spent her life hiding what she is to survive. When she’s forced into a mission she doesn’t want to take and her sister is used against her, she finds herself traveling through a haunted forest soaked in the blood of thousands of executed witches.
Enter Cain.
A Blood Scribe raised by a ruthless religious order, Cain has spent his entire life trying to atone for sins he isn’t even sure are his own. He’s pious, tortured, deadly and also sent to kill Talia.
The chemistry between these two is immediate. She literally feeds on all of his delicious lies. Their dynamic is messy, complicated, antagonistic, and absolutely addictive.
Tropes & vibes:
🖤 True enemies to lovers to ....
🖤 Forced proximity
🖤 One bed at the inn
🖤 Touch her and die 😲
🖤 Morally gray characters
🖤 Religious trauma
🖤 Gothic fantasy
🖤 Haunted forest
🖤 Witch persecution
🖤 Protective older sister
🖤 Virgin self flagellating MMC
🖤 Praise and punishment dynamics
🖤 Slow burn!!
The worldbuilding was atmospheric and both Talia and Cain felt deeply wounded and beautifully complex. I loved that they were genuine enemies with real reasons to distrust each other, making every moment of connection special.
4.25 ⭐️
Talia is a lie Eater and reaper, fiercely protective of her younger sister after losing both of their parents. In a kingdom where being a witch is a death sentence, she’s spent her life hiding what she is to survive. When she’s forced into a mission she doesn’t want to take and her sister is used against her, she finds herself traveling through a haunted forest soaked in the blood of thousands of executed witches.
Enter Cain.
A Blood Scribe raised by a ruthless religious order, Cain has spent his entire life trying to atone for sins he isn’t even sure are his own. He’s pious, tortured, deadly and also sent to kill Talia.
The chemistry between these two is immediate. She literally feeds on all of his delicious lies. Their dynamic is messy, complicated, antagonistic, and absolutely addictive.
Tropes & vibes:
🖤 True enemies to lovers to ....
🖤 Forced proximity
🖤 One bed at the inn
🖤 Touch her and die 😲
🖤 Morally gray characters
🖤 Religious trauma
🖤 Gothic fantasy
🖤 Haunted forest
🖤 Witch persecution
🖤 Protective older sister
🖤 Virgin self flagellating MMC
🖤 Praise and punishment dynamics
🖤 Slow burn!!
The worldbuilding was atmospheric and both Talia and Cain felt deeply wounded and beautifully complex. I loved that they were genuine enemies with real reasons to distrust each other, making every moment of connection special.
4.25 ⭐️
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I was so excited to read this book, everything about the prose stood out to me. Unfortunately I have chosen to DNF this at 28%
Up to the point of where I did not finish, the story was extremely interesting we have our FMC an assassin called a reaper then we also have our MMC also an assassin for the brotherhood. Every person has two lines or rings (kind of like tattoos, how I perceived it as). One for your sworn enemy and another for your fated mate. This concept initially was amazing and was so excited to see where it would go.
The world building was interesting but I did feel confused at times, and felt it wasn’t fully explained. There was a sentence used where ultimately steered me to DNF and I didn’t feel comfortable at all, perhaps even triggered slightly.
Thank you to little brown for the E-ARC.
Up to the point of where I did not finish, the story was extremely interesting we have our FMC an assassin called a reaper then we also have our MMC also an assassin for the brotherhood. Every person has two lines or rings (kind of like tattoos, how I perceived it as). One for your sworn enemy and another for your fated mate. This concept initially was amazing and was so excited to see where it would go.
The world building was interesting but I did feel confused at times, and felt it wasn’t fully explained. There was a sentence used where ultimately steered me to DNF and I didn’t feel comfortable at all, perhaps even triggered slightly.
Thank you to little brown for the E-ARC.
August 3, 2026
This was my first Kate Dylan book and such a fun, quick read! I flew through Soul Sworn in two sittings — it’s short, fast-paced and there is always something happening.
I really loved the concept of the entanglements, magical bloodlines and different gifts, especially the soulmate/sworn enemy bonds. It was such an interesting spin on fate and destiny.
And then we have Talia and Cain… a badass reaper paired with a painfully repressed priest? Say less. 😂 Their completely opposing views, tension and temptation were easily some of my favourite parts. Also the smexy repressed times were FIRE 🔥
And THAT ending twist?! So clever and completely sent me spiralling. I need to know where Kate Dylan is taking this next because excuse me?! 👀
Fast, entertaining and ridiculously easy to devour. Definitely keen for book two!
Thank you to NetGalley, Little Brown UK and Piatkus for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
I really loved the concept of the entanglements, magical bloodlines and different gifts, especially the soulmate/sworn enemy bonds. It was such an interesting spin on fate and destiny.
And then we have Talia and Cain… a badass reaper paired with a painfully repressed priest? Say less. 😂 Their completely opposing views, tension and temptation were easily some of my favourite parts. Also the smexy repressed times were FIRE 🔥
And THAT ending twist?! So clever and completely sent me spiralling. I need to know where Kate Dylan is taking this next because excuse me?! 👀
Fast, entertaining and ridiculously easy to devour. Definitely keen for book two!
Thank you to NetGalley, Little Brown UK and Piatkus for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Want to Read
July 3, 2026🗡️❤️🔥 Soul Sworn ❤️🔥🗡️
📖 Bookish Thoughts
My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
💫What to Expect
• Dark Romantasy
• Enemies to Lovers
• Assassin x Assassin
• Fated Mates
• Blood Magic
• Forbidden Love
_ _ _ _
📅 Pub Date: November 17, 2026
Thank you to Ballantine, Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
📖 Bookish Thoughts
My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
💫What to Expect
• Dark Romantasy
• Enemies to Lovers
• Assassin x Assassin
• Fated Mates
• Blood Magic
• Forbidden Love
_ _ _ _
📅 Pub Date: November 17, 2026
Thank you to Ballantine, Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
June 11, 2026
Great concept, mediocre execution. The writing itself is overstuffed and the phrasing feels “off,” and the magic system doesn’t make a lot of sense, despite it theoretically being very simple. The romance is forced as well.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Rating - 4.25
Thank you, Piatkus, for providing me with an ARC of Soul Sworn in exchange for an honest review.
Soul Sworn was such a fun read, addictive and spicy, full of tension- with a devout priest meeting Talia, an ex-prostitute turned Reaper.
I really liked the world concept, with 6 Gods being worshipped (depending on where you are from), gifts given to some witches (lie eater, soul searcher, scribes,...) and bonds dominating people's lives. The soulmate bond and the sworn enemy bond (aka the person who is meant to kill your soulmate). It was such a unique concept, and I really liked how it was pivotal to the plot and the characters' relationships. With Cain on one end, worshipping bonds as sacred (but unable to seek his soulmate because of his chastity vow) and Talia, having witnessed her mother and sisters losing themselves after their soulmates' deaths, determined not to bond with her soulmate.
I do wish the world-building had been a bit more extensive; a lot of the concepts weren't really explained (for example, why/how sworn enemies kill the soulmate) & and the world-building felt a bit clunky in the first 30% of the book. Yet I did really enjoy the world overall, and I really liked how the author used all the different gifts and bonds for the plot.
I really liked both Cain and Talia as characters, and they were fun to follow. They keep sus-ing each other up and not trusting each other, but despite the suspicions, they couldn't stay away from each other. Talia was a bit slow to understand that Cain was up to kill her, but also her gift made her rely on knowing when people lie instinctively. So if she didn't sense a straight-up lie, she was more trusting. Overall, they were fun characters to follow, and I love how Cain's POVs were him unravelling, while Talia's POVs had the time of her life, making him go astray.
The plot was interesting, predictable and a bit flat, but it was still entertaining enough to keep me interested in the story. I loved the ending and how explosive it was, and I really look forward to reading book 2!
Thank you, Piatkus, for providing me with an ARC of Soul Sworn in exchange for an honest review.
Soul Sworn was such a fun read, addictive and spicy, full of tension- with a devout priest meeting Talia, an ex-prostitute turned Reaper.
I really liked the world concept, with 6 Gods being worshipped (depending on where you are from), gifts given to some witches (lie eater, soul searcher, scribes,...) and bonds dominating people's lives. The soulmate bond and the sworn enemy bond (aka the person who is meant to kill your soulmate). It was such a unique concept, and I really liked how it was pivotal to the plot and the characters' relationships. With Cain on one end, worshipping bonds as sacred (but unable to seek his soulmate because of his chastity vow) and Talia, having witnessed her mother and sisters losing themselves after their soulmates' deaths, determined not to bond with her soulmate.
I do wish the world-building had been a bit more extensive; a lot of the concepts weren't really explained (for example, why/how sworn enemies kill the soulmate) & and the world-building felt a bit clunky in the first 30% of the book. Yet I did really enjoy the world overall, and I really liked how the author used all the different gifts and bonds for the plot.
I really liked both Cain and Talia as characters, and they were fun to follow. They keep sus-ing each other up and not trusting each other, but despite the suspicions, they couldn't stay away from each other. Talia was a bit slow to understand that Cain was up to kill her, but also her gift made her rely on knowing when people lie instinctively. So if she didn't sense a straight-up lie, she was more trusting. Overall, they were fun characters to follow, and I love how Cain's POVs were him unravelling, while Talia's POVs had the time of her life, making him go astray.
The plot was interesting, predictable and a bit flat, but it was still entertaining enough to keep me interested in the story. I loved the ending and how explosive it was, and I really look forward to reading book 2!
October 7, 2026
0 stars. The author tanked my original review critiquing her terrible writing that reads like garbage AI slop. I originally left a detailed review explaining exactly why I thought the writing was terrible: nonsensical prose, plotlines that go absolutely nowhere, worldbuilding details that contradict themselves five chapters later, and sentences that is literally AI slop so aggressively stuffed with unnecessary synonyms that they read like someone discovered a thesaurus and decided to fight it.
Clearly that review hit a nerve. and probably a guilty conscience because the author shaded me a staggering twenty one times in the total of two months! and sent her friend to comment some weird things under the reviews of several negative reviews. They even publicly mocked me and discussed ways to report my review, which resulted in my reviews now being hidden on goodreads and my rating of her book deleted! This is some crazy coco bananas on crack. Goodreads is supposed to be a reader space. If an author strut in to read her reviews and hence get her feelings hurt, that is not the fault of a reviewer! No one is less pleased that you wrote a shitty slop book than me!!!!! AI is killing the planet! and this book is a waste of paper, not to mention a waste of several hours of my life! Nothing makes me dislike a book more than the author making the reading experience about themselves.
And yes, I am especially irritated because I already thought the prose was dreadful. The writing repeatedly felt like AI-generated word salad—sentences overloaded with synonyms that don't actually fit the context, as though sounding "fancy" mattered more than sounding coherent. If I'm going to spend hours reading a book, I expect those hours to have been worth something. Very displeased this burner account doesnt have 0.25 star option. Will comeback and update the rating once I finish writing my fifty thousand word review of this book and collect all of the AI fingerprint left in the text. If I have to sit through almost a hundred hours of how to spot AI training for my day job i'm putting it to use!
Clearly that review hit a nerve. and probably a guilty conscience because the author shaded me a staggering twenty one times in the total of two months! and sent her friend to comment some weird things under the reviews of several negative reviews. They even publicly mocked me and discussed ways to report my review, which resulted in my reviews now being hidden on goodreads and my rating of her book deleted! This is some crazy coco bananas on crack. Goodreads is supposed to be a reader space. If an author strut in to read her reviews and hence get her feelings hurt, that is not the fault of a reviewer! No one is less pleased that you wrote a shitty slop book than me!!!!! AI is killing the planet! and this book is a waste of paper, not to mention a waste of several hours of my life! Nothing makes me dislike a book more than the author making the reading experience about themselves.
And yes, I am especially irritated because I already thought the prose was dreadful. The writing repeatedly felt like AI-generated word salad—sentences overloaded with synonyms that don't actually fit the context, as though sounding "fancy" mattered more than sounding coherent. If I'm going to spend hours reading a book, I expect those hours to have been worth something. Very displeased this burner account doesnt have 0.25 star option. Will comeback and update the rating once I finish writing my fifty thousand word review of this book and collect all of the AI fingerprint left in the text. If I have to sit through almost a hundred hours of how to spot AI training for my day job i'm putting it to use!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Soul Sworn was such an enjoyable read! I was immediately drawn to the premise, and it was such an interesting foundation for a romantasy. There were so many intriguing elements to explore, especially the complicated relationships between characters.
I enjoyed getting to know Talia and Cain. They have very different personalities and perspectives, which made their interactions entertaining. I loved watching their relationship develop, and the romantic tension added so much to the story. Their connection kept me invested, and I was always curious to see how their feelings and circumstances would evolve.
The story moves at a good pace, making it an easy book to get caught up in. I did find myself wanting a little more worldbuilding, but that didn't take away too much from my overall enjoyment.
Overall, this was a strong start to a new romantasy duology with an intriguing premise, compelling characters, and a romance that kept me turning the pages. I'm looking forward to seeing how the story unfolds next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review 🗡️
I enjoyed getting to know Talia and Cain. They have very different personalities and perspectives, which made their interactions entertaining. I loved watching their relationship develop, and the romantic tension added so much to the story. Their connection kept me invested, and I was always curious to see how their feelings and circumstances would evolve.
The story moves at a good pace, making it an easy book to get caught up in. I did find myself wanting a little more worldbuilding, but that didn't take away too much from my overall enjoyment.
Overall, this was a strong start to a new romantasy duology with an intriguing premise, compelling characters, and a romance that kept me turning the pages. I'm looking forward to seeing how the story unfolds next!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review 🗡️
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
what the hell was that kate dylan?? ma'am I need to speak to you now. where is that book 2???? GIVE IT TO ME!!!!! full rtc
August 29, 2026
I was sold a dream..
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The cover of this book is amazing. The premise is genius. The writing and the book itself? A total letdown. We don’t have tension, chemistry, no emotional connection between the characters, we have no depth, spice just to be there and that has no actual importance whatsoever, no development no anything.
August 5, 2026
This book sounded very interesting on paper, but did not execute. In the beginning of the book, I was immediately confused by the Soul Sworn magic? 1 line on your finger for your soulmate, 1 line on your finger for your sworn enemy. Okay i guess? It was confusing and a bit corny...
FMC is 3 years old when both lines appear on her hand which so happen to be Cains. FMC is 27 years old. MMC is 24 years old. This is petty, but I don't like my fantasy men younger than the FMC. Also- he's a virgin, but all he could think about was sex. Huh?
This book was giving let's try to be different than every other romantasy, which okay I understand wanting to make your book stand out and be unique among others, but it failed in the delivery.
The book all in all was falling flat and was boring. I had to make myself read it, it wasn't for me.
*Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.*
FMC is 3 years old when both lines appear on her hand which so happen to be Cains. FMC is 27 years old. MMC is 24 years old. This is petty, but I don't like my fantasy men younger than the FMC. Also- he's a virgin, but all he could think about was sex. Huh?
This book was giving let's try to be different than every other romantasy, which okay I understand wanting to make your book stand out and be unique among others, but it failed in the delivery.
The book all in all was falling flat and was boring. I had to make myself read it, it wasn't for me.
*Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.*
June 27, 2026
I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this and oh my gosh run don’t walk when it comes out!
Such a well written book. I loved the magic use, I loved how clever and Opus Dei coded the belief system was, and the characters were phenomenal. The plot twists were great, and kept me guessing, and the world building is gorgeous. A really solid romantasy novel I’ve already preemptively recommended to people.
Such a well written book. I loved the magic use, I loved how clever and Opus Dei coded the belief system was, and the characters were phenomenal. The plot twists were great, and kept me guessing, and the world building is gorgeous. A really solid romantasy novel I’ve already preemptively recommended to people.
August 30, 2026
if you want to read a story about an assassin and a repressed priest who also is an assassin….plus a mysterious plague (!!) then look no further!
soul sworn low key blew me away. I went in expecting one thing and got something so different but still just as gripping. Talia and Cain are both so hot and their magical abilities are so cool that I simply couldn’t put this book down. I read 75% of it over two days and every time I’d pick it up, it felt like I was flying.
landing on a 4.5 for this one because as an adult story that bills itself as spicy…I wasn’t quite expecting the almost fade to black scenes. I expected more detail or explanation idk…it kind of bummed me out because the story would have been so freaking amazing with those scenes fully fleshed out.
The cliffhanger was DIABOLICAL but this book truly was so good, I can’t wait for everyone else to get their hands on it!!!
Thank you to the publisher for an earc!
soul sworn low key blew me away. I went in expecting one thing and got something so different but still just as gripping. Talia and Cain are both so hot and their magical abilities are so cool that I simply couldn’t put this book down. I read 75% of it over two days and every time I’d pick it up, it felt like I was flying.
landing on a 4.5 for this one because as an adult story that bills itself as spicy…I wasn’t quite expecting the almost fade to black scenes. I expected more detail or explanation idk…it kind of bummed me out because the story would have been so freaking amazing with those scenes fully fleshed out.
The cliffhanger was DIABOLICAL but this book truly was so good, I can’t wait for everyone else to get their hands on it!!!
Thank you to the publisher for an earc!
Read
July 31, 2026Kate Dylan has delivered another hit, and she continues to prove why her books are so reliable. The magic system in Soul Sworn is genuinely unique right from the start. On top of that, the characters are wonderfully multifaceted in their moral greyness. I loved their interactions and dynamic throughout the book, which is something Dylan does so well across her entire backlist.
The pacing is spot on as well. The plot gets going pretty early, and once it kicks in, it is fast, engaging, and keeps you hooked. By the end, you will be, like me, on your knees begging for the next instalment.
Overall, it's a fun read if you enjoy a bit of unhingedness and murky on page morals, which let's face it, is right up my street.
The pacing is spot on as well. The plot gets going pretty early, and once it kicks in, it is fast, engaging, and keeps you hooked. By the end, you will be, like me, on your knees begging for the next instalment.
Overall, it's a fun read if you enjoy a bit of unhingedness and murky on page morals, which let's face it, is right up my street.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Two ruthless assassins. One deadly romance.
They were never meant to fall in love. They were meant to destroy each other.
The blurb and cover for this book had me so intrigued and I was so happy to secure an ARC. However, I think my expectations were set too high. The premise sounds so interesting and there was potential but the execution was pretty poor.
The characters lacked depth and the magic system was quite confusing, even though it should have been pretty straight forward. I think that definitely could have been fleshed out a bit more. I didn’t feel anything between the two main characters and found it hard to root for them as a couple.
Overall, I found the story flat and boring :(
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, Kate Dylan for an early copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Publication date: November 17, 2026
They were never meant to fall in love. They were meant to destroy each other.
The blurb and cover for this book had me so intrigued and I was so happy to secure an ARC. However, I think my expectations were set too high. The premise sounds so interesting and there was potential but the execution was pretty poor.
The characters lacked depth and the magic system was quite confusing, even though it should have been pretty straight forward. I think that definitely could have been fleshed out a bit more. I didn’t feel anything between the two main characters and found it hard to root for them as a couple.
Overall, I found the story flat and boring :(
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, Kate Dylan for an early copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Publication date: November 17, 2026
August 10, 2026
4.25✨ THANK YOU NetGalley & Little, Brown Book Group UK for this ARC and this took me so much brain-faffing to write because THAT END?!
But FIRST our FMC is an assassin type girl (for reasons I won’t say, whose objectives I also won’t say). Our MMC - here’s the draw card of the HOT PRIEST right - he’s ALSO kind of an assassin (again, reasons/objectives I won’t say.) BUT… he’s after HER. 😏
We’re in this world which has a really promising magic system - I was confused at first, and then I thought I understood, and then things happened and I got confused again, but it does unfold and become clearer as you go.
I was intrigued and interested - there’s a dynamic that’s enticing, if a little baffling at times - but I remained intrigued and interested. And on the topic of intriguing and interesting and ENTICING TBPH I was FANNING MYSELF among other things and no I shan’t elaborate any further you HEATHENS.
But I AM LEFT WITH SO MANY QUESTIONS THOUGH LIKE KATE MA’AM WHAT THE FUCK.
But FIRST our FMC is an assassin type girl (for reasons I won’t say, whose objectives I also won’t say). Our MMC - here’s the draw card of the HOT PRIEST right - he’s ALSO kind of an assassin (again, reasons/objectives I won’t say.) BUT… he’s after HER. 😏
We’re in this world which has a really promising magic system - I was confused at first, and then I thought I understood, and then things happened and I got confused again, but it does unfold and become clearer as you go.
I was intrigued and interested - there’s a dynamic that’s enticing, if a little baffling at times - but I remained intrigued and interested. And on the topic of intriguing and interesting and ENTICING TBPH I was FANNING MYSELF among other things and no I shan’t elaborate any further you HEATHENS.
But I AM LEFT WITH SO MANY QUESTIONS THOUGH LIKE KATE MA’AM WHAT THE FUCK.
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