Fractured Soul (Fractured Light #2) by Rachel McClellan

Title: Fractured Soul

Author: Rachel McClellan

Publish Date: February 12, 2013

Publisher: Sweetwater Books

Pages: 336

Other Books in the Series: Fractured Light

Buy the Book: Amazon

Rating: ★★★★★

Llona will do whatever it takes to protect her new found friends and home, but the dark plot that is threatening Lucent Academy, a school that’s supposed to be a safe place for Auras, may be too powerful for even Llona to defeat. This fast-paced tale of love, loyalty, and overcoming the darkness will keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page!

Here I am, going to fangirl for a little bit before I get into anything else. This book is amazing and so utterly heartbreaking that I am currently debating on ranting at the same time as fangirling. All I can really say is that the plot thickens a lot by the end of the book and I am craving the next book more than you can imagine.

Fractured Soul is the perfect title for this story. A lot of books you wonder why authors select that title above a different one and you can't seem to grasp what made this title better than another. Well, that isn't true for this novel. Throughout the story, you grapple with just how real that title comes into play. To have a fractured soul -- to be fractured at all -- would destroy a person and Llona battles with allowing herself to break in every way possible. I know that if I were her, I wouldn't have made it to the last chapter.

There is so much development for Llona and she is so strong that I long to be like her. Just like the first novel, she isn't hard to connect with and there is something very human in her weaknesses even if the typical person doesn't experience what she does. If I wasn't certain that she could handle everything thrown at her, I would definitely be tempted to pull her from the story and keep her safe. Is that possible? I don't care because I would find a way. Llona faces a lot of struggle, heartbreak, and happiness which puts you on an emotional roller coaster that you never want to get off. Her strength, which I going to continually praise, is awe-inspiring and her abilities as well as selflessness is something that I don't know if I could have. She is an amazing leader and friend, yet she battles with something darker, something more sinister. 

Can I marry Christian? Despite my earlier questions about him as a love interest, he became one of my favorites by far. He has so much depth, so much loyalty, and so much love to him that makes me just want to hug him. Well that and keep him forever. Why can't there be a Christian in my life? Anyways, I love him. There is no doubt in my mind that he is a strong character and yet has a softer side that most men either shy away from showing or maintain instead of being strong. 

All of the new characters introduced throughout the story were either someone who I want to be my best friend or someone I wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley. There were a few that fit into both. May, oh May, I think we should be best friends. She is probably the greatest person ever, except for Llona who has skyrocketed a lot for me. I also fell in love with Tessa who is a brand new character to the story and the story definitely wouldn't have been the same without her. 

If I wasn't so chicken, I would adamantly say that I want to be Llona and have her friends (and let's not forget Christian) but I honestly couldn't handle everything she goes through.

I am going to now sing praises for the epic bad guy(s). I can't even begin to tell you how much I love a well written bad guy, the type that sends chills down my spine and makes me think twice about going out at night. You, Rachel McClellan, will never be questioned about writing bad guys again. You blew my mind and showed me just how much darkness can hide even in the brightest of places. I think you even inadvertently created some less bad guys -- but still not good guys -- throughout the story and whether that was on purpose or not, I loved it. You made me question everything and everyone which is hard to do once I've formed an opinion.

I love this story. There is a lot of beauty to it's darkness and it was awesome in its heartbreaking way. Very few stories have made me so frustrated and I think Fractured Soul is definitely one of them.

The plot...
The characters...
The romance...
The world...
Why can't it be real?

I can without a doubt say that if you read the Fractured Light series, you will not be disappointed. It has everything you could possibly want in a story and leaves you craving more. If you haven't read Fractured Light, go read it because the world isn't complete without reading this series.