MY IMMORTAL

Author: Erin McCarthy ISBN: 0515143480 9/2007 PARANORMAL Publisher: JOVE

In the late eighteenth century, a spoiled, selfish plantation owner struck an unholy bargain with a fallen angel: an eternity of servitude for the gift of immortality. For more than two hundred years, Damien du Bourg has held up his end of the bargain—by inspiring lust in everyone around him. While searching for her missing sister, Marley Turner stumbles upon Damien's plantation on the outskirts of New Orleans and enters a world of shocking decadence. Drawn to the tortured man at the center of it all, Marley feels a powerful sensuality stirring inside her. For the first time, it's Damien who can't resist the lure of a woman. But his past sins aren't so easily forgotten—or forgiven.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Certain passages in MY IMMORTAL would make a great episode of Supernatural, one of my favorite paranormal television shows. Actually, being able to envision such a thing makes me realize what a talented author Erin McCarthy is, especially when painting the scene. She does that so well that I wonder if I have imagined all the hidden nuances I find in the book.

Though there are several different areas in the book featuring paranormal elements, I see MY IMMORTAL more as a book for lovers of a bad boy seeking redemption. Damien, the hero, is trying to do the right thing in a situation where it is impossible to do so. His main problem is that he is unable to forgive himself for his past mistakes, and the demons that hold him hostage know that all too well. They gleefully exploit the hedonistic lifestyle Damien must endure, but take no joy in it. For me, the struggle he (and the heroine, too) fight within themselves, is enough to make this a good book. The romance is icing on the cake.

There are some powerful messages in MY IMMORTAL, but my favorite sections involve the inherent ideals and responsibilities some people feel, and how the edges of black and white are blurred together. As simple as it sounds, but more profound than many of us realize, is that what you see is not always what others do.

There is a lot to be learned here, but do not mistake the book from this review as nothing but a preach fest. Anything I read between the lines is my own, and on the surface McCarthy seems to simply have a story that is sexy, unusual, and enthralling. But again, perhaps I see something more (or less) than you may.

Shannon Johnson