Three women and a gallery show, all connected by complex relationships and the twisted art of a serial killer.

Kadence is recovering from a broken heart and excited about her first exhibition, until she realises the woman who destroyed her relationship is also exhibiting at the gallery. While she knows that Shiva’s bronzes are amazing they are almost too perfect and something about them, along with the disappearance of her ex, leads her to look a little harder.

Mallory runs a high end art gallery but feels under constant pressure to live up to the acclaim of her famous artist mother. She is caught up in a seriously manipulative relationship with the sculptress, who seems determined to play hard to get just to keep her guessing.

Sheva is a gifted sculptress with a twisted mind. For her nothing and nobody can stand in the way of her art.

Laydin Michaels has written a very unusual psycho-thriller. The setting is interesting, just beyond most of our knowledge but recognisable and intriguing as a backdrop. The whodunit is obvious from early on; the thrill comes from discovering the details with the amateur sleuth and not knowing if she will work it out in time to save the next victim. The crimes are bizarre but just believable enough to make this a very good story.

The three main characters are all strong in their own way. Kaydence is complex, damaged by a difficult childhood, she has learned to deal with her own issues. She is somebody we can all empathise with and root for. Mallory is less likeable, but as her character unfolds she becomes more human and less the hard-nosed gallery owner. Her relationship with her mother is clearly a defining force that she needs to resolve in order to break free. Shiva is dark, mad, complicated and ultimately evil. As we move between the three, using interior monologue and third person, Ms Michaels weaves a complex emotional and psychological web.

It’s well written, and with each book Laydin Michaels’ writing matures and her characters and plots deepen. The mystery/thriller story arcs are very well done and make a welcome change, something unusual to get your teeth into. For me the romance started well but became secondary to the thriller and I do think that this is miss-classified as primarily a romance when the psychological thriller is so much stronger.

Really enjoyed this and look forward to whatever twisted evil Ms Michaels comes up with next.

I was unable to review this book because of a conflict in my schedule. Sorry for any inconvenience this has caused the publisher or the author of the work. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review for you and I look forward to reviewing for you in the future.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32072976-captured-soul" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Captured Soul" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1497372003m/32072976.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32072976-captured-soul">Captured Soul</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13652911.Laydin_Michaels">Laydin Michaels</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2154381811">3 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Rec'd an ARC from NetGalley/Bold Strokes Books for an unbiased review.<br />Main characters in this thriller/romance are Mallory, Kadence and Sheva. While the storyline was choppy in some areas, it delivered thriller-wise. Ms. Michaels imaginative plot holds your attention.<br />3.5 stars.
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/31134832-gail">View all my reviews</a>

A truly lovely multi-perspective novel which provided valuable insight into the art world that I love.

This suspense thriller is technically well written. The murder plot line is intriguing and the story of the victims’ demise is not graphic. The two main characters, Mallory and Kadence have the potential for romance if they can believe the other’s perspective is valid. The romance seemed to go from cool to hot too quickly. A good thriller with a so-so romance.

This is a good read with a plot most focused in the intrigue/thriller part than the romantic side of the story. The main character, Kadence, is damaged from a hard childhood but has learned to reflex her feelings on the canvas. She has a complex personality but is likable and makes you root for her in the hard parts. The other main, Mallory, has been less appealing to me. It has had also a diferent kind of childhood, with an artist mother and a strict father. But due to her position in the story, she must take some decisions that makes her unkind. The book is well paced and although the mistery isn't really concealed, keeps you interested and alert till the end. I would have liked that it had had more of Mallory and Kadence relationship at the end, but as I said, the plot is not enterely about romance, so I guess it has enough. Entertaining and interesting book.

What a fantastic read. Laydin Michaels knows how to keep you reading and the pages turning. The story flows well and keeps your attention. The book is well written and I could visualize each scene. Certainly worth the read. It's a different kind of thriller for sure. I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed reading this book a lot. The characters were well written and fit well together. I liked the crime/mystery part of it since it was not a normal police investigation kind of story but it felt more like the reader solved the puzzle with Kandence together. The book is well paced and the question of happened to all those women keeps the reader interested. I just wish there would have been a little bit more at the end between Kandence and Mallory - that seemed a little too short - but I guess it was not the primary focus of the book.

I think the best way to describe this would be a psycho-thriller with some romance. I have an on going battle with book blurbs. I tend to really skim them since I think some give away too many spoilers. Therefore, sometimes I end up misreading them and getting a book totally different than I expected. I thought this book was going to be a drama/romance in the art world. That is not what this is at all. I figured I misread the blurb again. Well no! I I just re-read the blurb and there is nothing about this being a psycho killer, thriller type book. I just think it is important for people to know what this book really is about, so you can make an informed decision.

This book is not a murder mystery. There is a serial killer and you know who they are, there is no mystery about it. You are just waiting to see if the other characters can figure it out, before it is too late. I will say what the killer does with the bodies is creepy and pretty unique. For the most part, I liked the psycho-thriller parts of this book, it was the rest that left me hanging a bit.

The romance started really well. I thought it was going to be a sweet friends to lovers story. I really enjoyed that the base of friendship being built before the romance. Unfortunately, things changed quite a bit. The romance went from "I don't like you anymore because I think you are mentally unstable" to "I'm in love with you". What? Talk about a leap, unstable to love is a big jump. That's where the romance lost me. All the good friendship scenes and the build up, just got erased for me. Lastly, just not enough chemistry. I wanted the mains to be together because of their friendship, not because I really felt the sparks between them.

For me, the psycho-thriller part good, the romance not so much. Because of that, this book is pretty down the middle. I can't recommend it, but I would not say stay away either. The art world setting was pretty well done. I enjoyed the artistic parts of this book. And I was entertained, so there is that. If you enjoy art and thrillers, this book may be for you.

An ARC was given to me by BSB, for a honest review.

This story is very well written, told in third person for the most part and from three point-of-views. I say in third person for the most part as there’s a great deal of inner dialogue which, of course, is narrated in the first person.

Readers who enjoy the arts will thrive on that aspect of the story. To be honest, it took me a while to warm up to Mallory, I found her character contradictory at times. I had no clue what she wanted, but then again, perhaps that was deliberate as Mallory herself didn’t seem to know what she wanted.

Kadence was a honey and far more mature than her youthful age. The antagonist was batshit crazy, and I loved that about her because her character added depth to the story.

I found the ending was satisfying and you can’t ask for much more than that.