Customer Reviews

Tainted (Blood Lily Chronicles, Book 1)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The premise of _Tainted_ is this: A young woman, Lily, is killed while carrying out vengeance against a rapist who attacked her sister. Lily is sure she's going to hell for all the things she did in her short life, but instead she comes back from the dead...in someone else's body. Her mission: to hunt demons for God. Her reward, if she succeeds, is redemption.

At first, I was reminded of a couple of other urban fantasy series. The wrong-body plotline and the theme of sisterly love reminded me a bit of Vicki Petterson's Signs of the Zodiac (though Lily's new body is a stranger's, not her sister's). The idea of earning redemption by slaying supernatural nasties called S.J. Day's Marked to mind. And Deacon, the possibly-evil bad boy who stirs Lily's senses, reminded me of a lot of urban fantasy love interests. What I really loved from the beginning, though, was the story of Lily's struggle to integrate herself into the life of Alice, the woman whose body she now inhabits. It's hard and confusing trying to take over someone's life without giving away how little you know, and it's sometimes sad, as when Lily realizes how few of Alice's acquaintances have even noticed the difference.

What really kicks _Tainted_ into high gear is Lily's growing curiosity about Alice. Why is she in Alice's body in particular, and what happened to the real Alice? Things start adding up a little funny, and I remember thinking, "If Julie Kenner has the guts to take this story where I think she's taking it, I'll be thrilled." And Kenner does. A big fat plot twist takes _Tainted_ out of "standard-issue urban fantasy" territory and makes it something unique and very much worth reading. Even Deacon turns out to have more depth than I was expecting.

If I have any quibble with _Tainted_, it's this: Demons, in Kenner's universe, bleed black sludge instead of regular blood. This is plot-relevant a couple of times. Trouble is, I can think of two scenes that would have been very different if Lily, and the reader, had been privy to the color of a bleeding character's blood. Knowing whether these two characters were demon or human would have given a lot away, and so the narration simply doesn't mention the color of the blood. Given that Lily usually notices this detail during combat scenes, the fact that she doesn't in these two instances feels a little bit like cheating.

That said, _Tainted_ is quite enjoyable, and I'm looking forward to the two upcoming Blood Lily Chronicles novels. There are enough twists here to set this series apart from the pack, and that's something to celebrate in this subgenre.

Tainted started out at a 5 with tough big sister avenging and protecting her little sister only to find herself dead and then reborn, in another's body. I read urban fantasy for a break, or escape if you prefer, and this book started out with me be totally interested in Lilly's issues. This had justified murder, serving a higher authority, right vs wrong. Our heroine, Lilly, was set up as strong with human faults. Then the story just stopped progressing. The story line seem repetitive and in fact ended like a bad TV serial wanting you to tune in next week to find out what happened. Tainted started as a 5 and ended as a 2, so I gave it a 3. Kenner set up the story line will enough for me to read the next book ...... maybe.

Julie Kenner is an author I am very familiar with. I've read her "Demon Hunting Soccer Mom" and her "Good Ghouls" YA series and I have enjoyed both. When I heard she was writing an urban fantasy series I was intrigued. Urban Fantasy is one of my favorite book genres. In "Tainted" Lily goes after her 14 year old sisters rapist and stalker. Somehow she dies as she murders him, leaving her sister and dead beat stepfather on their own. But Lily isn't exactly dead. She wakes up....in a strange body and facing a demon. She soon meets a frog-like man who claims that they have been waiting for her. She has identified as the one in a prophecy who can close the portal that is letting in demons. In the meantime she trains to fight and kill demons, and tries to make sense out of a life in Alice's body. She decides she almost must find out who killed Alice. Some of the ideas here aren't unique. We've seen super strong females fighting demons before. Lily in Alice's body reminded me of the plot in the Signs of the Zodiac series where Joanna finds herself in her sister's body. Joanna also wanted revenge on a rapist. "Tainted" has some truly strong points. There is a big twist toward the end that I didn't see coming and that changed where I thought the series was going. Kenner's writing style is engaging and page turning as usual. I did enjoy this book and I have a feeling the next two will be even better since the storyline is now all set up for us. A strong 3 star debut that I am sure will continue to soar.

Lily Carlyle died when she tried to avenge her sister's attacker. But she is given a second chance at redemption when she's brought back to life in another woman's body. Lily must start life over as a demon hunter and stop evil forces from opening a door to hell on earth.

Kenner is the author of one of my favorite series - the Demon-Hunting Soccer Mom. So, I had high expectations for her new fantasy series. This is a decidedly different feel from Kenner's other light-hearted books. Lily is a tortured soul, still wanting to look out for her little sister, despite having to leave her old life behind. And even though she had a shady past, Lily is determined to do the right thing this time around. And that means helping the forces of good fighting evil. Lily is a kick-butt heroine in true urban fantasy fashion.

This series debut has one of the most twisted plots I've ever read. The story kept me on the edge of my seat with suspense. When demons seek redemption from their past, it's hard to determine who the truly bad guy is. But one thing is for sure, readers are in for a big surprise. Tainted is fast-paced, dark, and action-packed. Urban fantasy fans won't want to miss this new series.

Lily has gone to kill her fourteen year old sister's rapist. She is able to kill Lucas Johnson with a gunshot, or so she thinks, but her act also backfires on her as she lies dying in a pool of her own blood because he stabbed her. Now she thinks she is going to hell for the crime she has committed as well as some minor misdeeds she did while was alive. But Lilly doesn't die because as she awakens from her blackout, she finds herself tied down and about to be sacrificed by some monster. Lily is able to escape but passes out on the street in front of a man who reminds her of a frog.

When Lily comes to, she isn't in her own body. She has been inserted into Alice Purdue, a waitress who works at her uncle's pub. The mysterious looking frog man is Clarence, and the reason Lily has been saved is because she has been called upon to join in the battle between good and evil. The war that has been raging for millenniums is about to come to a head and Lily is the only one that can stop the demons from opening the final gate of hell, where they will bring pain and suffering on Earth. While she trains, Lily now must become Alice and forget about her old life, especially of her drunk of a stepfather and Rose, her emotionally scarred little sister.

As Lily becomes accustomed to her new body and life, she meets a sexy and dangerous man. His name is Deacon and he knows that Alice is very different. Apparently Alice had secrets, and Lily has to try and figure out what they are as well as keeping her distance from Deacon because he is not human but a demon. Because he is Lily's enemy she may have to kill him at one point even though she is very attracted to him. As Lily channels her powers, she has entered into a dark world where no one can be trusted and is she doesn't succeed, many will suffer, which also means Rose.

Tainted is a dark Urban Fantasy with another heroine who channels her inner turmoil to fight those that are evil and want to rule the world. Lily's outlook on life is bleak but because of her deep love for her sister Rose, you can't help but want to cheer her on. Lily goes through a great deal of pain all because of one rash act on her part. But because of this, she sets into motion something that has been planned for a long time.

Lily acts like a fish out of water, which makes sense because she has a new identity and new body. She does pretty well considering, especially with Alice's family and friends. Things really pick up when she meets Deacon, the demon who makes Lily question herself and what she must accomplish.

Fans of urban fantasy will find much to recommend with Tainted and the world Julie Kenner has created. There were times I had a strange sense of déjà vu while reading because of the amount of urban fantasy series being published with a heroine who is the key to salvation and must fight evil. If readers can get past this main issue while reading then they will certainly enjoy Tainted and look forward to the next book, Torn in The Blood Lily Chronicles.

Katiebabs

Tainted: Blood Lily Chronicles Book 1 by Julie Kenner

Product Description from Amazon:
Lily Carlyle has lied, cheated, and stolen her way through life.
But in death, she'll really get to be bad...
When her little sister is brutalized, a vengeful Lily determines to exact her own justice. She succeeds at the cost of her own life, but as she lies dying, she is given a second chance. Lily can earn her way into Paradise by becoming an assassin for the forces of good. It's the job Lily believes she can really get into-but she doesn't realize that she may not be able to get out.

My thoughts:
The story begins with this line, "Can I just say that dying sucks?"

I was already hooked on the first page. This story is filled with action, demons, the fight against good and evil, the ordeal of deciding who and what is good and/or evil, and one girl's struggle to save the world. I love strong and independent women battling for the good of mankind, so this story is right up my alley. I have always been a take-charge kind of person and I found it easy to connect with Lily/Alice. Deacon being the incredible man that the author portrays him to be would make any woman with a pulse short of breath.

All-in-all this was a great story! No spoiler, but it's a cliffhanger! I read it on a friend's Kindle and went to Amazon and ordered all three of these books in paperback before I started this review.

As with many of the urban fantasy books I've been reading lately, I was really looking forward to reading Tainted. I actually got excited when I saw this sitting on the shelf in the library, and I couldn't wait to get to it in my to-read pile. A demon fighting assassin heroine may not be original, but it sounded fun and exciting at least. Unfortunately, I was more than a little disappointed with Tainted. First, the age old wake up with powers routine. I've never been bothered when this happens in other books, but this time I was. While training, the main character Lily amazingly knows exactly what to do to kill the crazy demon. A kick butt switch was turned on in her head that makes her a fighting machine. I understand that people may not enjoy reading hundreds of pages of fighting lessons and combat training, but the instant ability is a bit annoying. It felt very unrealistic and unbelievable, and my favorite urban fantasy books have the most realism. My next issue was the characters. I personally did not like Lily. In her previous life she was somewhat of a punk. Yet, when she is reborn as Alice she becomes caring, concerned, and an upstanding citizen. At the same time she is a crazed killer that has a large dose of bloodlust. I just didn't find her character cohesive and enjoyable. Next, the plot. Lily is to take down the forces of evil and save humanity. She is also concerned with making sure her sister is safe, and discovering Alice's past. A large portion of the book is introspection. Lily goes over the same things in her mind time and time again. I didn't mind reading it the first time because I wanted to find out more about her character, but by the 5th or 6th time I had enough. The training and fight scenes were not very interesting to me either. I knew that the main character was pretty much invincible, so why bother reading an action scene when you know the outcome. Overall, the plot felt like 250 pages of boredom followed by 50 pages of excitement, and a huge cliffhanger ending. If the novel was comprised of a 50 page introduction, followed by the 50 pages of excitement, and then continued past the cliffhanger, I really think I would have loved it. Instead, the chapters felt choppy and didn't flow into one another, and the first three fourths of the book felt like a waste.

I have really enjoyed Julie Kenner's other books, and so I was excited when I found this series. It more than held my interest, so much so I went out and purchased the next two and read immediately.

But..... the romance writing is just bad. Really bad. Like a caricature of romance from a J.D. Robb book. The story is good (although it could have been told in 2 books very easily), but don't read this if you're looking for good romantic science fiction. My suggestion is that you read Elizabeth Haydon for that.

This was a great book! I had previously read a number of Julie Kenner's humorous paranormals about a demon-hunting soccer mom, and loved them. This is something completely different: much darker, and the heroine is not a heroine, exactly. But the book is extremely well written, and keeps you hooked from the first page. And without giving anything away, all I can say is...expect the unexpected!

I'm coming in kind of late with a review here, but I just recently finished this series. Tainted is the first book in the Blood Lily Chronicles.

Lily Carlyle is a girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Her younger sister, Rose, is raped by a man named Lucas Johnson. When Johnson is released on a technicality and begins to stalk Rose, Lily takes matters into her own hands and kills Johnson. Unfortunately, Lily is also killed during the attack.

Lily wakes up in the body of Alice Purdue, a bar maid at the Bloody Tongue. The Bloody Tongue is owned by her uncle Egan, and, as it turns out, by Alice and Alice's sister Rachel. Lily is soon greeted by an odd creature who calls himself Clarence and who tells Lily that her mission is to assure that the Ninth Gate to Hell is locked before something called Convergence. At Convergence, which is imminent, the legions of Hell will be able to pass through to Earth. Part of what she will have to do is kill demons.

Lily begins her demon-killing training, but is curious about the life she has usurped. She begins to dig into Alice's background, all without giving away the fact that she is *not* Alice, and finds that Alice is an integral part of what is happening. Making things even more interesting is a demon named Deacon Camphire, who was originally befriended by Alice and who seems to have an intense interest in Lily-in-Alice's-body.

I thought this was an original take on urban fantasy. Lily was an engaging character. The story is told in the first person, typical of much UF, and although, Lily can be sarcastic, I still found that I liked her voice. She is smart and has a sensible knack for self-preservation.

I did think that Lily's acceptance of her new life came pretty quickly, but I can understand why she was ready to leave her old life -- except for Rose -- behind. I also wasn't completely sold on the seemingly instant transformation of Lily into a demon-fighting super-girl. Fighting is a skill acquired through practice -- lots and lots of practice -- and it seemed to come too quickly to Lily to be realistic.

The secondary characters were interesting. Deacon is a enigma, who we get to know better over the course or the series. I like that his secrets are revealed slowly. Can't say too much here, because it would be a spoiler.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read, and I would definitely try other books by this author.