Rating: 5🌈
I forget how much I love the Soulbound series until Hailey Turner brings out another great story about the characters from that complicated magical universe . Then I want to go back and read them all over again.
Especially when it comes to Wade Espinoza, a character who we watch get rescued as a young, horribly abused otherworldly teen. When Wade is practically adopted by Patrick and Jono, and the rest of the core of the NYC god pack, the reader follows his recovery, growth, and progress , book after book, through the events , years of therapy and support, to the circumstances we find him in today.
Wade is that character we loved from the beginning and we always remembered. And wanted to see what happened to him next. That he’s a young dragon? In a universe where dragons are rarely seen, we get the amazing emotional journey from scarred damaged youngster to the confident loved 23 year old Wade, one who’s experienced unbelievable battles, met Gods, helped saved the world, and found himself part of a warm, loving family and pack.
Now he’s being trusted with a mission to save missing alphas in Boston, and he leaves with a smile, a belief in himself, a ton of snacks, and the backing of his pack.
Can you tell I adore Wade? I could read books about him. But Turner goes and delivers an entirely different city of otherworldly beings that honestly I found intriguing and great characters on their own. Plus a fascinating selkie clan that includes Riordan Maguire.
Riordan is a well written character, layered, so beautifully crafted with his selkie personality/fae history embedded into him, with the sea and Irish heritage as much a part of him as his physical appearance. Turner has always been able to capture the essence of the otherworldly characters in the stories, whether it’s selkie, werewolf or dragon. They become real and vibrant.
The struggles against the villain of this piece are genuinely fierce and complicated by political forces that have to be dealt with in a timely manner. It makes the narrative more compelling, the drama more powerful, and all the various aspects of the story more complex.
That includes a romance that has to balance the knowledge of Wade’s past abuse with sensitivity before anything can happen between fated mates Riordan and Wade. Plus that ending is logical for them both given their respective roles and responsibilities.
I love this story so much. I really hope that Turner is up for more stories in Boston with Riordan and Wade because all this did was whet my appetite for more.
10/10 and more please!
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Blurb
Nothing says you can’t steal a heart. Keeping it though? That’s another problem.
Wade Espinoza knows a thing or two about hoards. As a dragon, he’s got plenty. What he doesn’t have is a relationship, and he swears he’s not looking for one. But when he’s sent to Boston to answer a cry for help from another pack, he’s drawn into a mess of fae bargains centered around a selkie who Wade instantly becomes obsessed with.
Riordan Maguire is struggling to keep his selkie clan out of the clutches of a fae lord who will do anything to take over their territory. Partnering with the Boston god pack means coming face-to-face with the first person he’s ever wanted to willingly give his sealskin. Too bad Wade isn’t local and is something altogether strange that Riordan isn’t sure he can trust.
Amidst a growing danger in the streets and Boston Harbor, Wade and Riordan are desperate to find a way to keep everyone safe. For bargains are dangerous things to break, but so are hearts. Wade isn’t willing to shatter either of theirs in a race against time that could see Riordan torn from him forever.
Secondhand Skin is an exciting new standalone novel set in Hailey Turner’s best-selling Soulbound Universe focusing on Wade Espinoza.
- Publication date: September 4, 2024
- Language: English
- Print length: 362 pages
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 