Blog Tour for The Space Beyond (The Book of Phoenix #2) by Kristie Cook; Review

Posted by Melanie
Release Date: May 19th, 2014

Finished Date: May 14th, 2014
Publishers: Ang'dora Productions, LLC
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal 

Source: For Review
Format: Kindle
Pages: Unknown

Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US 

As members of the Phoenix, Jeric and Leni are thrust into their new lives, expected to lead Earth’s Guardians. But Leni struggles with trusting her own soul, and Jeric is more concerned about keeping Leni safe than meeting others’ demands. When Darkness swarms Lake Haven, they embark on their first mission with little preparation and no idea which soul the Dark hunts.

Born and raised in Lake Haven, Bex hopes to escape her small-town life, ideally in the arms of her soul mate. She knows he exists, and her heart aches with the need to find him. When her long-lost mama calls to announce she's knockin' on death's door, Bex reluctantly makes the trip to see the uncaring bitch (bless her heart), only to be knocked off her feet by the sexy and charming Dr. Mason Hayes. Is he really The One?

Leni’s soul felt an instant connection to Bex, but if Bex found her soul mate, she isn’t their mission. So who is, and why does Leni instinctively feel drawn to her? Can Leni even trust her intuition? And will Jeric step up and lead when the time comes or continue to hold them back?

If they don't learn to trust themselves and each other quickly, Darkness will claim them all…along with the rest of Earth’s souls.

The Review: 4.5 flowers! 

The Space Beyond is the second book in ‘The Book of Phoenix’ series and gives us a much different story this time around. In book one, we had met Jeric & Leni as they find out that their souls are connected in a big way and they will always share that connection & always have. It’s through ‘the book of Phoenix’ that they are able to remember some of their past lives with each other and what they fight for. Now that things have settled with their transformation into Guardians, they try to remember more from their lives in an attempt to unlock any possible powers/gifts to further their strength as guardians and in doing so, come across another pairing that could be important to the group – Rebethannah & Nathayden – but something isn’t right with them and with no other clues, they have to go where they’re needed and that is back to Lake Haven where the Darkness is amassing.
In Lake Haven, Bethany/Bex remembers Leni & Jeric (which is unusual) and Leni is sure this Bex is Rebethannah, she feels the connection and the Darkness is hanging around… but does Bex feel the connection too and does she feel the pull of a soul mate? Bex is at risk of succumbing to the dark with her early years being so troubled, her mother currently dying of the consequences of the lifestyle she led and the cost of that lying solely on Bex’s shoulder but she has two men willing to be her ‘knight in shining armour’, the problem is which of the two is ‘the one’?.
Leni knows that she has things to learn but the biggest thing is to believe in herself….. can she do that in time to save Bex and reunite another pair of twin flames to help in the fight against the ‘Darkness’.

I really enjoyed this sequel and as I said, it had a different feel to book one because in this it wasn’t all boy meets girl, they clash, realise they’re soul mates, evade the bad guys, connect and live happily ever after….there are real issues here, very serious issues that are addressed and made this journey a very emotional one. Bex is a girl all too familiar – dragged up by a mother hooked on drugs/alcohol, forced to become the caregiver to her sister who was only a year younger only to be abandoned by her mother at age 8 into the care of her Grandmother where her life did get better, but only slightly. Her life is hard, living in a trailer, working 3 jobs to pay for her mothers’ care even though it goes against all of her principles to give the woman anything – so she is definitely ripe for the picking when Darkness descends upon Lake Haven and it’s easy to see how she would fall for two men that would promise her the world because she wants ‘the one’, she believes in soul mates but is disillusioned with life. For all that she is down on her luck & had a rough upbringing, she is still a fun character with a great attitude and you can see what type of girl she could be shine through now and again giving us a glimpse of the Bex that could be. It was a surprise to see that Bex was back in Leni & Jeric’s lives following their ‘misunderstanding’ in book one but it was great to be back in a familiar place and was a great way for Leni & Jeric to start believing in themselves and their capabilities. I liked that even though most of the focus was on Bex, that we still got quite a bit from those two aswell, seeing the problems and progress they’re making in their new position as guardians. There were still some hot moments between them were we could feel their love shining through too. The focus of this book is obviously on Bex and what she goes through, not so much the romance this time around as her drama more than makes up a big part of the storyline, yes she does get some sweetness but she also gets a lot thrown at her too and as a reader, I totally went through that with her – so be prepared for a rollercoaster ride of emotions. It’s hard to give away the slightest thing when it comes to her ‘soul mate’ because as I mentioned – there is more than one vying for that spot – plus when you have the background of Rebethannah & Nathayden, you will understand how that will interfere with the present but I will say that it was different to book one in a big way and it opens up the world a bit more, it also brings ‘the book of phoenix’ back into the light and we learn a few new things about a special group of guardians that Leni & Jeric must learn to lead. I thought the issues that were dealt with throughout were handled very well and created a very emotionally charged finale that will leave you both devastated and hopeful, connecting to Bex on another level….. but also leading to a cliffhanger that will be felt by all and leave you desperate for book three.

AUTHOR BIO

Kristie Cook is a lifelong writer in various genres, from marketing communications to fantasy fiction. Besides writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, traveling and riding on the back of a motorcycle. 

She has lived in ten states, but currently calls Southwest Florida home with her husband, three teenage sons, a beagle and a puggle. She can be found at www.KristieCook.com.