Little Souls: A Novel

Written by Sandra Dallas

Narrated by Carly Robins

"The narration by Carly Robins is exceptional." - The Reading Frenzy on Little Souls

Sandra Dallas's Little Souls is a gripping tale of sisterhood, loyalty, and secrets set in Denver mid America’s last deadly flu pandemic.

Colorado, 1918. World War I is raging overseas, but it’s the home front battling for survival. With the Spanish Flu rampant, Denver’s schools are converted into hospitals, churches and funeral homes are closed, and nightly horse-drawn wagons collect corpses left in the street. Sisters Helen and Lutie have moved to Denver from Ohio after their parents’ death. Helen, a nurse, and Lutie, a carefree advertising designer at Neusteter’s department store, share a small, neat house and each finds a local beau – for Helen a doctor, for Lutie a young student who soon enlists. They make a modest income from a rental apartment in the basement. When their tenant dies from the flu, the sisters are thrust into caring for the woman’s small daughter, Dorothy. Soon after, Lutie comes home from work and discovers a dead man on their kitchen floor and Helen standing above the body, an icepick in hand. She has no doubt Helen killed the man—Dorothy’s father—in self-defense, but she knows that will be hard to prove. They decide to leave the body in the street, hoping to disguise it as a victim of the flu.

Meanwhile Lutie also worries about her fiance “over there”. As it happens, his wealthy mother harbors a secret of her own and helps the sisters as the danger deepens, from the murder investigation and the flu.

Set against the backdrop of an epidemic that feels all too familiar, Little Souls is a compelling tale of sisterhood and of the sacrifices people make to protect those they love most.

A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin's Press

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Apr 26, 2022
• ISBN: 9781250837011

Sandra Dallas

SANDRA DALLAS, dubbed “a quintessential American voice” by Jane Smiley in Vogue Magazine, is the author of over a dozen novels, including Little Souls and Where Coyotes Howl, many translated into a dozen languages and optioned for films. Six-time winner of the Willa Award and four-time winner of the Spur Award, Dallas was a Business Week reporter for 35 years, and began writing fiction in 1990. She has two daughters and lives with her husband in Denver and Georgetown, Colorado.

Reviews for Little Souls

[Linda Bordenave · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A wonderful story full of tragedy, heartbreak, and love. Historical fiction is my favorite genre of books and this one fit the bill.

[mary-197923 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The author has written such a gripping tale that I read it in two hungry gulps, intrigued by the deftly penned narrative and the well-developed characters. A must-read for histfic fans and for those intrigued by WWI and the 1918 flu.

Two Sisters, an epidemic, and only one way to make it through to the other side. What lengths you’ll go to under such stress, a person will never know, but these sisters, Helen and Lutie prove that by sticking together they can overcome ANYTHING!

[Amy Hagberg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

... It means the poor, the hopeless, the common people nobody ever notices. In truth, it applies to all of us. We are all lost little souls in our own way. —Sandra Dallas, Little Souls

Sisters Helen and Lutie move to Denver from Iowa after their parents’ deaths. Helen, a nurse, and Lutie, a carefree advertising illustrator at a fashionable women’s store, share a small home and rent out the basement apartment. But the epidemic hits hard. Schools are converted into hospitals, churches and funeral homes are closed, and horse-drawn wagons collect corpses left in the street. When their tenant dies from the flu, the sisters care for the woman’s young daughter, Dorothy. Soon after, Lutie comes home from work and discovers a dead man on their kitchen floor and Helen standing above the body, an icepick in hand. What the sisters discover is heart wrenching and disturbing on many levels. While Little Souls is peppered with tragedy, the message of hope permeates the sorrow.

First off, I adored the historical perspective Sandra Dallas provided about World War I and the Spanish Flu outbreak in Denver, details I’d not read elsewhere. In one scene, she used the term “blue devil” for those experiencing grief and/or depression. Isn’t that descriptive? The relationship between the sisters was a thing of beauty; they would have done anything for each other.

I sure wanted to like this book more. Unfortunately, I found it to be predictable and lacking in depth. I was shocked Dallas overused “that,” which is a rookie writing mistake. She’s far from a rookie: she is the New York Times best-selling author of fifteen adult novels, two young reader novels, and two non-fiction books. The writing was so saccharine I literally rolled my eyes a time or two, but the storyline itself was a winner. 3.5 stars. For more reviews visit amyhagberg.com

[Leslie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very enjoyable and interesting.I do so enjoy these types of stories

[Mary Powell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Right away the storytelling begins, and I was all-in. I love a good story. The subject matter is dark; Dallas lightly brushes on incest, death, murder, war, and child prostitution. She uses WW I and the Spanish Flu as her historical backdrop.

The story begins to lose steam halfway through. The writing is well done. The simplicity of the story in conjunction with the topics mentioned above became a little aggravating at the (60-70% marker). This 10% was rough.

The sweetness of the book and what takes this to the next level is the ending. Dallas was able to swing the pendulum from meh to wow.

Kudos to Sandra Dallas for writing a beautiful book without profanity. The "damn" was noticed and appreciated.