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Review

5 “bella mia” stars!

Sweet Soul is the final book in the Sweet Home series by Tillie Cole. It is a highly emotional read dealing with real situations that are heartbreaking. Tillie Cole is a master writer whose words will leave both tears in your eyes and a smile on your face. This book does just that.

Levi is the youngest of the Carillo boys. He is 20 years old and is the gentler brother who carries his heart on his sleeve. Levi has had a very painful life. He struggles with his past and the death of his mother. He tries to hold onto his memories of her, but as time passes he finds himself forgetting. Levi is not your typical college student. He plays football, which he loves, but he is not into the party scene and everything that goes along with it. Levi is shy, kind and quiet. He feels alone and finds it hard to open up to people, including his family, until he meets Elsie.

Elsie is 18 years old and has lived a really hard life. She is homeless, starving, and doing what she has to do to get by, including stealing. She is all by herself dealing with difficult challenges. She has lived through terrible situations and nothing seems to be getting better until she meets Levi.

Due to the circumstances surrounding Levi and Elsie’s initial meeting, he is furious at first. However, his heart is so big that his anger turns into intense sorrow when he sees how Elsie lives.

A dry blanket. That was all it took. To this girl, a dry blanket was like a touch of heaven.

You can see that Levi just wants to take care of her and keep her safe. Elsie has never know such kindness. She grew up thinking she didn’t belong in this world and couldn’t fathom why he was helping her. All her life she was told to hide her voice. It wasn’t until Levi came along and showed her how beautiful her voice and words were that she finally allowed herself to accept who she is.

“I want you to watch me live. To make something of myself, to achieve something, even if that’s just achieving a normal life. A normal, everyday life with someone who loves me.”

This is a beautiful love story between two people who feel so alone in the world. Both Levi and Elsie are new to relationships so we see them falling in love and learning and experiencing things for the first time. I loved watching them open up to each other. We see the sadness and tragedy in each of their lives. What Elsie went through broke my heart. Levi helps her gain confidence and shows her that she has nothing to be ashamed of. He stands by her the whole time and gives her strength to fight the thoughts in her head. And in return she helped him.

With every step my sadness, the pain that I’d carried for too long, fell away. Because this was one love of mine that came back. And she brought with her innocence. She brought with her life.

Levi and Elsie were perfect for each other – an amazing couple who fought to conquer their demons and came out on top!

“He gave her the world, a life so unknown, Heart finding beat, their fate it was sown. Fear pushed aside, no victim, no choice, He gave her the moon, her twin soul, her voice. She gave him the shine, a stitched up heart hole, The blessing to her, the purest sweet soul. She, the silent girl, bereft and alone, He, the silent boy, who through love, brought her home.”

Sweet Soul is a wonderful ending to a wonderful series!

 

The Sweet Home Series 

 

For similar reads, see our NA Recommendations page

And for more reads by this author, see our Tillie Cole Author Spotlight