Save My Soul by K.S. Haigwood
Kendra is at death’s door after a terrible fall while rappelling. She can hear the doctors frantically working to save her as she awaits her fate. But Kendra is given a second chance. She is given seven days to save the lost soul of Dr. Adam Chamberlain. If she can turn him back to God’s path, she will get to live. If she can’t, she will die as she should have on that operating table. Kendra finds herself attracted to Adam, but will her love be enough to save his soul and her life?
This debut, self-published novel has a few rough spots, and could have benefited from some revision and polish prior to publication. The author does a nice job of showing Kendra’s warm and friendly personality, although the portrayal is bit shallow. Kendra’s mind flits around in a scattered manner on mundane tasks and random thoughts, while her very life and soul are in peril. Days pass and she still has no concrete plan on how to save Adam’s soul. She shows up in his office, pleading that he needs to find God and telling, what must seem to him, farfetched stories of angels and demons. Also bothersome is how Kendra can flip-flop in a matter of hours between intense feelings for Adam, Mason, and her guardian angel. Because of all this, she comes across as rather flighty and much younger than her 29 years.
Kendra also gets tugged around a lot by the angels and demons, and often seems a pawn in a game beyond her human abilities. In this novel, both angels and demons were once human, and heavenly life has done little to improve ethical behavior. The angels as well as the demons have selfish motives, lustful thoughts and the body parts to act on them. I’m all in favor of powerful supernatural beings with a dark side, but this aspect may be a turn-off for those more religious readers.
The book has a spiritual theme, touching on issues of faith, but shies away from getting deeply into either Kendra’s beliefs or Adam’s pain. While that makes the book more generally accessible, it may leave strong believers wanting more.
I like that Kendra is a realistic, modern day heroine, and that she doesn’t seem the usual poster child for orchestrating a religious conversion. She is kind, generous, and also very confused at how she is supposed to go about saving this man’s soul – a man she just met. The religious aspects of the book are not overwhelming.
Some Christian readers may be put off by the randy and deceptive nature of the angels. Otherwise, this is a nice choice for adults as well as YA/teens that want a modern Christian heroine, and are ok with moderate sexual content. The author shows promise, and I hope she continues to grow in her craft.
