Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

For the past five thousand years, the same one million souls have continuously been reborn. The night Ciana died, the temple flashed dark for the only time. Five years later, Li and her lover Menehem welcomed a daughter into the world. She was expected to be Ciana’s reincarnation but when the Soul Tellers pressed the newborn’s hand into the soul-scanner, no match was found. The soul had never been born before. Everyone wondered where did it come from and what had happened to Ciana’s soul?

On Ana’s eighteenth birthday, she left the only home she had ever known for a journey of self-discovery to find out who and what she was. Having been what was called the nosoul, Ana had a very unhappy upbringing. Her mother Li was cruel to her and blamed Ana for Menehem leaving them behind. She decides to go to the city of Heart to beg the Counsil for research time in the great library to see if she could uncover her existence. On the first night of her journey, she runs into trouble with a sylph and ends up in an icy lake. Just when she realizes she will drown, a mysterious stranger rescues her.

Freezing cold, Ana wakes up in a tent in the arms of the stranger. After a bit of a struggle, Ana realizes her rescuer is her age. Sam willingly accepts Ana even after she tells him she is the nosoul. Having never known acceptance, Ana is leery at first, but slowly opens up to Sam. He tells her that she is a newsoul and takes care of her when she is injured saving his life during a sylph attack. Several days are spent at his cabin caring for her burns. Then they leave together to go to Heart.

But not everything is smooth sailing in Heart. In order to gain admittance into the city, Sam agrees to be Ana’s guardian/teacher and many citizens stare and whisper about her. Soon Ana discovers who Sam truly is and her world is turned on its side. Who is Sam and why is it important to Ana? Can she find acceptance when everyone but her has known each other for thousands of years? What happened to Ciana’s soul when she died and why was Ana born with a new soul? Will Ana find acceptance in herself? Can she and Sam fight their mutual attraction? And what happens when Li comes to Heart?

Incarnate is the first book in a trilogy with book two to be published in winter 2013 and concluding in the winter of 2014 with book three.

Visit Jodi Meadows' website.