Book Review - Soulprint

Soulprint
Author: Megan Miranda
Standalone
Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopian | Young Adult
Release Date: 12th February 2015
Publishers: Bloomsbury Childrens
No. Pages: 368
Source: Review Copy - Bloomsbury Childrens
Rating:
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Alina Chase has spent her entire life in confinement. With the science of soul-printing now a reality, she is 'protected' for her own safety - and the safety of others - because her soul has done terrible things.. or so she's told.

When Alina finally breaks out of prison, helped by a group of people with unclear motives, she begins to uncover clues left by her past life that only she can decipher. And she may not be as innocent as she once believed. Can Alina change her future, or is she fated to repeat her past and face the consequences?

When it comes to Soulprint I feel like I'm in the minority of people who didn't get wowed by it. While I really enjoyed the concept of the book, and thought the character development was done really well for the short amount of time that passes from start to finish, it just felt like something was missing. There was plenty of action, a nice handful of back story and I was never left bored while reading, but the story felt let it was more of a sequel. Though there was a bit of back story, I still was left wondering what life was like before the scientist proved that souls reincarnated. I was swept up in the idea of it because it was so unique but right up to the end I felt like the story was missing June. I know that the book is centred around Alina and her life with the soul of a criminal, but because so much emphasis is put on her being just like June I would have though she would have been given more of a voice/flashbacks/history and because of this it didn't feel complete.

Soulprint may not be flawless but the idea of souls being reincarnated is pretty close to it. Every time someone is born their soul is scanned and kept on a database like a fingerprint, there it will have everything notable the person with the soul before you did, which pretty much translates to you lucking out if they happened to be a murder or criminal in any way shape of form. Everyone in Soulprint believes that the personality is transferred with the soul, for most people they are blissfully unaware of what the soul did or didn't do in the past life because up until the age 18 they aren't required to find out. Everyone expect Alina of course who just so happens to have the soul of June Calahan, one of the most hatred and feared criminals that even her own parents thought she would be better off dead then have to live with it inside her.

As far as the characters go I thought that Alina Chase was a pretty well rounded person considering she's spent most of her life locked up on an island so she couldn't hurt anyone, though at times her immaturity from not living a normal life really showed. Then we have those who helped her escape and search for the truth, Cameron and Casey (there is of course a 3rd one but you'll have to read and find out for yourself). Casey is a decent hacker who is in search of a deeper truth of her own and Cameron will do anything he has to in order to protect Casey. The characters were fairly relatable and I enjoyed seeing them grow. However... one thing I don't think worked well was the love in the story. As I've already mentioned not a lot of time goes by from start to finish (its maybe a week?) and even though I wouldn't say it was completely rushed, I still felt like it could have moved slower.

Overall I did enjoy the book, despite some flaws. The reason I'm giving it a 3 is because it just didn't wow me, and because I couldn't help but feel I was reading the second book in a series instead of a standalone. I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if it was turned into a series.