All Souls Near and Nigh: Soulbound Book 2, Hailey Turner

So, really, is it possible for Hailey to write something bad?  Maybe too complicated?  Perhaps too convoluted?  Apparently not.  Another book for the win.  Seriously.  Not only has she masterfully added two more pantheons worth of deities, but she also threw in a whole 'nother breed of shifter along with all the other complications inherent in the series itself.  You'd think it would be too much, but somehow, someway, it all weaves together to keep me excited and pouring myself into the story so much that I'm kinda ticked that it's not real.  So yeah, Jono and Patrick for the win...again.

There's a lot more Jono in this book and how he fits into his role with Patrick and as a god pack shifter with a bad-a patron.  While we don't get any deeper into his past yet by establishing him as a willing partner, one who is immensely powerful on his own, we're getting a set-up for a phenomenal pair that won't put up with any bull and will get things done, no matter how difficult the task.  I love the way Jono puts up with everything that is Patrick and all his baggage of the deity varieties.  His well-timed calm and sarcasm are a fantastic match for the snarky, surly, secretly vulnerable mage.

And speaking of the mage, Patrick is hilarious and his take-no-guff attitude never fails to entertain.  I do quite enjoy how he's never threatened by Jono's power, patron, or capabilities.  The way he reluctantly accepts his feelings is also strangely entertaining, mostly because of how he snipes at Jono about them.  While Patrick is an unwilling pawn of many, many gods, he never comes across as merely a puppet, but is powerful in his own right and maintains his own methods for doing their bidding.

This book is a doozy, to say the least.  There are so many elements added that you can easily get lost if you try to skip ahead or get so excited that you read too quickly.  Many of the subtle interactions have ginormous consequences in their world and with all the new puzzle pieces added you have to really pay attention.  At times I had to go back and re-read short sections because I got distracted or tried multitasking and failed at everything, but once I got back on track and sequestered myself in my room after the kids were in bed, I didn't stop until the book was done.  I might have been dead tired the next day because I didn't sleep, but I can honestly say it was worth it.  I didn't even notice that I was tired while reading because the flow of the story just kept moving, kept building.  The climax came and I honestly didn't see it going down like that.  I loved it.  As soon as I get a crack at book three I'm going to start at book one so I can become fully immersed in their world so I miss nothing.  Cannot wait.

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You can’t bargain with death if you’ve already sold your soul.

Special Agent Patrick Collins has been reassigned by the Supernatural Operations Agency to New York City. Navigating his new relationship with Jonothon de Vere, the werewolf he’s now soulbound to, is nothing compared to dealing with territorial disputes between the vampires and werecreatures who call the five boroughs home. But the delicate treaties that have kept the preternatural world in check are fraying at the edges, and the fallout is spilling into the mundane world.

Manhattan’s club scene is overrun with the vampire drug known as shine and the subways have become a dumping ground for bodies. When the dead are revealed as missing werecreatures, Patrick and Jono find themselves entangled in pack politics twisted by vampire machinations.

Learning to trust each other comes with problems for both of them, and the gods with a stake in Patrick’s soul debt aren’t finished with him yet. Bound by promises they can’t break, Patrick and Jono must find a way to survive a threat that takes no prisoners and is stalking them relentlessly through the city streets. 

Old and new betrayals are coming home to roost but the truth—buried in blood—is more poisonous than the lies being spun. Trying to outrun death is a nightmare—one Patrick may never wake up from.