My Immortal (Seven Deadly Sins, Book 1) [Mass Market Paperback]

Erin McCarthy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 28, 2007

In the late eighteenth century, plantation owner Damien du Bourg struck an unholy bargain with a fallen angel: an eternity of inspiring lust in others for the gift of immortality. But when Marley Turner stumbles upon Damien's plantation searching for her missing sister, for the first time in two hundred years it's Damien who can't resist the lure of a woman. But his past sins aren't so easily forgotten-or forgiven.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Marley, a reliable and unassuming teacher in Cincinnati, hasn't heard from her wild sister in months, except for one e-mail. Fearing trouble, Marley heads to Louisiana to look for Lizzie at the old plantation she mentioned. Hot and sweaty, she is totally discombobulated by the genteelly dilapidated mansion's handsome owner, Damien, who is equally intrigued but can tell her nothing about Lizzie. Damien seems innocuous, but he's got his own issues. Back around 1790, he volunteered to serve the local demon in exchange for immortality. Although his original mission was to incite lust in those he came into contact with, he now simply holds a semiregular orgy for those who are interested. Since Lizzie probably attended one such gathering, he offers to throw another in the hope that she'll reappear. Thoroughly shocked, Marley has no choice but to agree. McCarthy has fashioned a sexy and oddly poignant tale of lust, love, and redemption. Hatton, Maria

About the Author

Erin McCarthy, the author of A Date with the Other Side, Bad Boys Online, Smart Mouth, Houston, We Have a Problem, and Mouth to Mouth.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Jove (August 28, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515143480
• ISBN-13: 978-0515143485
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #508,031 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Erin McCarthy, the author of Bad Boys Online, Smart Mouth, Houston We Have a Problem, and Mouth to Mouth, lives with her husband and two children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A lushly told paranormal, September 3, 2007

By 

Stacy ~ "book lover" (Chicago 'burbs) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Immortal (Seven Deadly Sins, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

The year is 1790, and the demons are out to play during Louisiana's hot, sticky summer solstice. One such demon, Rosa Francis is making the rounds of the various plantations to partake in the offerings they have left for her. Her first stop is Rosa de Montana, where she expects to be properly admired and feared by the extravagant offerings of the plantation, only to be greeted by silence, and not the gratitude of those who understand the power she can unleash if she is made angry. Instead she finds the cruel and handsome Damien du Bourg, who gives her great pleasure in exchange for eternal life....

Present-day Louisiana: Marley Turner is looking for her free-spirited sister Lizzie, whose last known whereabouts happens to be Rosa de Montana, and is rather dismayed when when she arrives from Ohio and sees the crumbling mansion where Lizzie had supposedly been staying. Here she runs into sinfully gorgeous Damien du Bourg, who makes her a tad bit uncomfortable and suspicious, but he may be the only person who can help her find her missing sister, so she reluctantly agrees to let him help her while trying to deny her overpowering attraction to the enigmatic man. She knows Damien is keeping secrets from her, possibly dangerous ones, but she's desperate enough to ignore all that if it will help her find Lizzie. Damien discovers that Marley has something he wants, a letter about someone from his past, and he has agreed to help her find her sister in exchange. Damien arranges to throw one of his infamous sex parties in the hopes Lizzie will show up and put Marley's fears to rest, and in turn will give him what he wants.

Damien is intrigued by the saintly yet lushly sexy Marley, especially since she's able to resist his overwhelming sexual pull, a fringe benefit to the immortality he eagerly demanded centuries ago. Part of Damien's curse is that he must service women sexually, and he has done so faithfully yet wearily for years, but now he faces a woman who truly attracts him, yet manages to avoid his seductive charms. The more he gets to know this virtuous woman, the more he wants to be with her, until he finds himself wishing for a future he knows he can never have: of happiness with the one woman he loves beyond eternity. Damien du Bourg has been given a curse he gladly asked for, not realizing until it was too late just how cruel a pact with a demon truly is, and Damien has done things, horrible things for which he knows he can never be forgiven, so wishing for happiness is just a foolish wish.

Erin McCarthy has strayed from her usual lighter, humorously hot stories to bring us a darkly sensual tale filled with lust, redemption and the overwhelming power of love. The setting is the earthly and humid location of New Orleans, Louisiana, which invokes a multitude of images saturated with the spicy and flavorful naughtiness and decadence of the bayou. It comes across as the perfect playground for a regretful demon to live out his eternal life while he pays homage to those he answers to, albeit reluctantly. It's also the right setting for Marley to transform from a shy, introverted wallflower into a confident, brave, alluring woman who demands more out of life than to just merely exist. While searching for her sister, Marley learns some things about herself and about what she cannot control, no matter how much she tries, and while it's a bittersweet lesson, it's one she needed to learn in order to go on with her life.

This book haunted me long after I read it and couldn't stop thinking about what it must be like to live with such a curse. The story was rather dark, and the characters really had to go through a lot to earn their HEA. It reminded me how the consequences of our impulsive actions can sometimes cause strong regret when they can't be taken back, ever. Kudos to Erin for delivering an emotional and intense story that made me think, but also made me believe in the strength and courage it takes to face up to what you've done in your own life instead of whining and/or blaming others. This book really resonated with me. I completely fell into the story and couldn't put it down, which just goes to show you what an amazing talent Ms. McCarthy truly is.

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Je Pense, Donc Je Suis, September 5, 2007

By 

Cherise Everhard (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My Immortal (Seven Deadly Sins, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Two hundred years ago Damien du Bourg, the rich, gorgeous and arrogant plantation owner, made a deal with a demon. It was a decision he made in haste and regretted soon after, but he was a different person then. He has lived his life doing the bare minimum, just enough to hold up his end if the deal. For the past one hundred years he has denied himself as punishment for how he had lived his life.

When Marley Turner shows up on his doorstep looking for her sister, he knows there is something different about this woman, something that can make him forget his one hundred year old promise to himself.

Erin writes a tale about lust, sex, greed, regret, redemption and forgiveness. Running parallel with the present day story is the story of the past; these two stories wind seamlessly through this book, both completely intriguing.

For you long time Erin McCarthy fans, this book is a lot darker than what we are used to, but it is still fantastic. The sex in this book is plentiful. I am by no means a prude, but in some cases it was a bit shocking. Shocking or not, I completely enjoyed the sex scenes, thought they were extremely well written and enhanced the story.

Erin McCarthy books are automatic buys, for me; I have loved every one of her stories and this one did not disappoint. I read this book in one day; I simply couldn't put down this edgy, sexy, daring book.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Trying too hard..., March 25, 2008

By 

S. McCullough "pacey1927" (Indianapolis, IN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: My Immortal (Seven Deadly Sins, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

My Immortal by Erin McCarthy is the first in a series of (supposedly?) seven books following the Seven Deadly Sins. The first theme shown here is Lust. We learn the history of Damian, a demon servant, through letters left by his first wife and stories told by an elderly neighbor woman. I became completely engrossed in the novel due to these letters. We learn quickly that Damian was made immortal by the demon in exchange for encouraging lust. The more immoral sex going on the better, apparently. The letters are mixed in with the narrative told by Marley, a slightly chunky, straight-arrow woman in search of her missing, trampy sister. This story is extremely well-written and I look forward to reading more novels by this author due to that fact alone. The story so engaging that I found it hard to put away. We see many sides to Damian and Marley, to a lesser extent. (Seeing how he has 200 plus years on her, I guess thats understandable.) My problem with this novel wasn't the explicit sexual content. The book just went on and on about about how immoral sex was. When people were doing each other randomly and in groups and stuff, I could MAYBE stretch my imagination and say 'ok maybe' that could be considered immoral. But when the married woman believes she is becoming more and more immoral because she is having wild sex with her husband, that just seems like Ms.McCarthy was stretching a little bit to make the story fit her theme of Lust being a Deadly Sin. What happens between and man and his wife isn't immoral, its beautiful. Three stars for "My Immoral" for its portrayal of sexuality as always being a sin. This was very distracting to me as a reader. The plotlines were strong, and the story-telling even better, despite that.