Customer Reviews

Carnal Sin (Seven Deadly Sins)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Moira O'Donnel has recently defeated the demon incarnation of Envy. Unfortunately for her and her friends, the other six of the seven deadly sins are still free to do as they please and reek havoc upon the world. All Moira can do is hope that they located the demons before they start killing even more people raising the death count. The demons have other plans though and before they know it, more people are dying and it looks to be the doing of Lust. Moira, Anthony, Skye, Rafe, and Rico set out immediatly to attempt the banishing of yet another deadly sin whilst simultaneously trying to find the location of the evil book that allowed the release of hell on earth in the first place.
Meanwhile, Detective Grant Nelson has begun to investigate some deaths that continue to rise in perplixity and general strangeness. The bodies are adding up and all of them seem to have a few too manty things in common. The bodies are all marked with a very similar yet not quite identical mysterious tattoo; died after a sexual encounter; and seemed to be under the influence of an unknown drug, but tox screen are all coming back clean and thus the deaths are being ruled as simple cardiac arrest. Grant needs to figure out what exactly is going on and he better figure it out fast.
Carnal Sin is the second book in an ongoing series that so far focuses on one of the seven deadly sins in each book. The first book is titled Original Sin and is based upon the sin of Envy. Carnal Sin gives a little bit of background and then unfolds a tale of the capture and banishment of Lust. The story is a mix of law enforcement drama and the idea that the Christian Church has a ministry set up for the purpose of banishing all things sent from hell as well as getting rid of problematic black worshippers such as witches and satanists.
I enjoyed the story and the style of writing and am probably going to be picking up a copy of Original Sin even if it does mean reading the story in a backwards sort of way. I will also be keeping an eye out for the third in this series to see how the story progresses and where characters are going to end up. I stayed up all night reading this book as I just couldn't tear myself away long enough to get some sleep til I finished it. It's a very intriguing and entertaining read.

I am really loving Allison Brennan's foray into paranormal romance!

This second in the series (following Original Sin) finds Rafe, Moira, and team up against the demon Lust. When the coroner's office reports strange marks on a handful of bodies in the Los Angeles morgue, Sheriff Skye McPherson travels to the City of Angels with Moira on hand to check them out. Sure that the mark is that of another of the newly released Seven Deadly Sins, Moira and Rafe stay behind to try and track the demon and hopefully trap it. As the demon wreaks havoc on the city, though, Anthony is sent to Venice where he makes some startling discoveries about the coming battle.

As with Original Sin, Brennan combines police procedural with dark paranormal elements and romance to bring urban fantasy and paranormal romance fans a satisfying and original read.

I read a lot of books with demon killers, dragon slayers, and vampire hunters. But, Moira O'Donnell in Allison Brennan's 7 Deadly Sins series is the best kickass heroine ever. Added to that, Brennan has given her a hero worthy of her - Rafe Cooper. Yum!!

I love that Moira has fears and doubts. It makes her more real to acknowledge them. This latest book - Carnal Sin - is Brennan's sexiest one yet, which no doubt comes from the fact that Moira and Rafe are trying to stop the demon Lust.

I enjoyed Moira's worries that what she feels for Rafe may just be a byproduct of the demon Lust running around wrecking havoc. On top of that, Moira and Rafe are running around and from the police, dealing with demons and witches, which the police are so not going to believe.

Brennan dug deep for this one with its underlying concern with what happens when we die. Can souls be redeemed? Can people repent with their dying breath? It was a very enjoyable read with deep thoughts to think about long after the last page is read.

For seven years Moira O'Donnell trained for one thing as she moved from place to place to stay safe. Her goal is to prevent her evil mother, the queen of the underworld Fiona and the woman's vile lover Matthew Walker from bringing demons across through his Good Shepherd Church in which they created a portal enabling the malevolent to walk this world. With allies like Rafe Cooper and demonologist Anthony Zacarddi, she faced down the first deadly sin Envy left trapped in a vault in Santa Louisa, California at a cost to the team (see Original Sin).

As Fiona has doubts that Santa Louisa is the "beacon for evil", a report of an odd case in Los Angeles reaches them. A nice forty years old Kent Galion attacked a blonde before being subdued by Detective Grant Nelson; Galion died. Moira saw the vision of a demon possessing a man. She and her posse rush to L.A. as Lust is loose at the Velocity nightclub; men marked by the demon are dying for hard sex.

The second deadly sin urban fantasy is a strong suspense thriller that grips the audience with the opening assault at Velocity and never slows down as the beleaguered hero team face off against a powerful demon and a coven protecting the evil. The cast, especially the good gals and guys are fully developed so that the reader knows their desires, flaws, and other distractions and detractors as much as their strengths. For instance, Moira fears she will hurt a teammate when she goes into her visionary trance and fears falling in love again; having lost a beloved soul before. Carnal Sin is a superb urban fantasy thriller as Allison Brennan is two for two.

Harriet Klausner

It's been two weeks since the coven and Envy reeked havoc on Santa Louisa. Moria is dealing with nightmares, visions and wondering what sin will be unleashed next. She can no long feel her mother, the evil Fiona. Being clueless on that front has her on the edge also. But it isn't long before Moira learns that Lust has set up shop in L.A. and it's taking no prisoners.

This is only the second time I've read a book by Allison Brennan. As with the first book, the second has also blown me away. Carnal Sin is suspenseful, scenes that are action packed and full of danger, plus some intense romance. We get to see a lot of Moira and Rafe and how their relationship is progressing. I liked that everything wasn't perfect for them in the beginning, that they had issues they need to deal with. Ms. Brennan is such a brilliant storyteller, she keeps you on the edge of your seat and that's where you stay until the end of the book. I definitely recommend this book and series.

I couldn't even finish this book. I found it very hard to follow. I was very disappointed!

This book reads like grandma's attic: a lot of clutter, a lot of potential paths through the mess, a lot of shiny distractions along the way. The main characters (hero, heroine, villain) are underdeveloped, last minute additions to a clunky story that wasn't written for them. The secondary characters are more interesting and human than the cardboard hero or the schizophrenic heroine.

Heroine: The heroine, Moira, was shallow and fickle despite a background that should've made her wiser and a little less intolerable. I wouldn't want this gal as a friend. I think I know what the author was shooting for, and I've seen it done elsewhere successfully. Rather than a she-warrior who's earned her way, been through really bad stuff and exhibits the traits one would expect (stubbornness, quick-learning, fiery), Moira ends up as appealing as a temperamental four-year-old determined to get her way who failed to learn that touching a hot stove will burn.

Hero: The hero, Rafe, is like the piece of treasure you went to granny's attic to find but got so distracted with everything else, you forgot about it by the time you left. He's introduced as a true leader - yet he doesn't lead anyone or anything or even contribute to the story line. The author commits several writing sins, among them: telling instead of showing; not making the character human to the reader; failure to develop the character. This is particularly noticeable because everyone else has a personality. All the hero does is complain, throw up token resistance that melts like invisible snow, and follow everyone around like a lapdog.

There's no lust or emotion between the heroine and hero. Their relationship is told (not shown) throughout the book. The leap between what happened in their pre-book past and how they should be acting together is too much for the reader to make while trying to digest the multiple subplots that wander in and out of the story like lost sheep.

The plot could've been interesting, if it didn't resemble a plate of spaghetti. The twist and turns and sudden realizations by the main characters appear out of nowhere, a sign of poor plot and subplot development. There was a mountain of potential in the villain - the demon Lust; however, she proved little more interesting than the hero.

In all fairness, the characters came from a previous installment in this series. I'm one of those who believes that - even if part of a larger series - each book should be able to stand on its own, or you'll never draw in new readers. I was at the mercy of an airport when I grabbed this book, which meant no selection and no previous books from the series to provide background. It also means that, while this book sucked, the author made zillions off of other travelers in my shoes despite the poor tradecraft exhibited.

This is a good example of how publishers are more interested in publishing a popular name than a quality product. Only an established writer could get a book published that espouses so many tradecraft violations that an editor should've laughed him/her out the door.